NACOB MAKES 57 ARRESTS IN 10 MONTHS

The Narcotics Control Board (NACOB) arrested 57 drug traffickers for narcotic-related offences between January and October this year.

The suspects were found to be in possession of 28 kilograms (kgs) of cocaine, 6. 3 kgs of heroine, 140 kgs cannabis and 4kgs of methamphetamine. Out of the number of people arrested, 39 were Ghanaians and 18 foreigners, while seven were females.

According to NACOB officials, the arrests were effected at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) and other entry points, while others were carried out through the collaborative efforts of informants who had become a vital entity to the board’s operations.

The executive secretary of the NACOB, Mr. Yaw Akrasi-Sarpong, disclosed this to the Daily Graphic.

According to him, 51 narcotic cases involving four people were sent to court during the period under review with one conviction secured so far while an additional 27 cases were pending trial.

Also, six persons were granted police enquiry bail with six others released on court bail while two were discharged for lack of evidence. Investigations into an additional four cases were also underway, he said.

Mr. Akrasi-Sarpong said following the sophisticated means being employed now by criminal gangs using technology, NACOB had similarly intensified advanced form of profiling travelers, particularly those from known risk areas, as a way of clamping down on traffickers and couriers.

Similarly, he said couriers had now adopted a modern and sophisticated cycle of concealment, with drugs sometimes being concealed in embroidery works of African sewn dresses, while some were often in lobsters, okra, handles of traveling bags among other means, to outwit officials.

“Some traffickers also sometimes soak the drugs in wet towels, with the most female traffickers concealing them in their panties as checks are hardly conducted in sensitive areas,” he disclosed.


SOURCE: DELLA RUSSEL OCLOO, DAILY GRAPHIC, MON OCT 24,2011