Policemen flee after causing accident

Four policemen who on Friday mounted an apparently unauthorised check point at the Marchigani portion of the Kasoa road took to their heels after they negligently caused an accident.

And as the fleeing policemen hit the road, they abandoned two brothers trapped in a Kia truck fully loaded with assorted Kasapreko alcoholic beverages that somersaulted and was soon to burn to ashes.

According to a Ghana News Agency report quoting eyewitnesses, the accident occurred when the policemen who were conducting checks on passing vehicles, waved a truck in the inner lane to park.

"Immediately, the truck without warning crossed my lane and in my attempt to prevent him from running into my car and products, I tried to veer off the road only to realise that the vehicle had somersaulted due to the weight of the goods I was carrying," the GNA quotes a tear-filled Mr John Kojo Amoah, owner and driver of the burnt vehicle as saying.

Mr Amoah said immediately the accident occurred, the policemen took off leaving him and his brother who was acting as his mate trapped in the car.

He said it was sympathizers who helped him and his brother out of the car before fire engulfed the entire vehicle with the products.

"My brother who is now on admission at the Kasoa Government Hospital, got burnt when he tried to retrieve the 50 million cedis cash we were carrying in addition to my passport.

"Because of the intensity of the flame, he could not retrieve the money and my passport and I had to look on watching my 50 million cedis with my three month old Kia truck valued at 95 million cedis burn to ashes," said Mr Amoah.

He said the truck driver who crossed his path also absconded.

Mr Charles Anim Boateng, Head of Security, Kasapreko Company limited who also arrived on the scene shortly after the accident estimated the total value of the destroyed alcoholic beverages at 100 million cedis.

According to the eyewitnesses, majority of who are residents of the area, this was about the third accident caused by the police on that portion of the road within the past fortnight through the mounting of road checks.

"The police on most days arrive here either in a hired taxi or on their bikes and mount road checks between 1.30 pm and 3 O'clock," an eyewitness alleged.

The residents appealed to the police to stop the road checks on that portion since the road was a highway and also had a barrier just a few kilometres away from the Marchigani area.

The residents quoted three of the registration numbers of the Motorbikes used by the Police as GP 1594, GP 1548 and GP 1558.

Source: GNA