Crime among juveniles surges in Asante-Akim Central

By Yussif Ibrahim, GNA
Odumase (Ash), Sept 01, GNA - The Asante-Akim Central Municipal Police Commander, Superintendent Sulley Ibrahim, has expressed concern about the growing involvement of juveniles in the area in criminal activities.

He said he found the situation deeply troubling and that everything must be done to reverse the trend.

Supt Ibrahim said some of the offenders were as young as eight years and caught engaged in theft and gambling.

He told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) of a recent incident where some children were arrested for breaking into two shops in Konongo through the ceiling to steal items costing about GHȼ20,000.00.

The case was now being handled by officials from the Department of Social Welfare, he added.

Equally disheartening, he said, was the increasing rate at which the adolescent girls were taking to the commercial sex trade.

These young girls, aged between 12 - 18 years, often traveled to the municipal capital, from some outlying communities, to engage in prostitution in the night.

Supt Ibrahim said many parents in the municipality appeared to have failed to give protection to their children and invited the chiefs, opinion leaders and other stakeholders to work together to prevent matters from getting out of hands.

He additionally called for the municipal assembly to take steps to streamline the activities of the game centers.

He underlined the determination of the police to make things uncomfortable for people who had chosen to live outside the law.

A special exercise they carried out led to the seizure of large quantity of whitish substance, believed to be cocaine, and he vowed that this was going to continue.

The Police Commander encouraged the people to provide them with vital information for the arrest and prosecution of criminals in the society.

They should also form community watch committees to complement the job the police were doing to bring down crime.

GNA