The Inspector General of Police David Asante Apeatu has ordered the interdiction of three policemen said to have assaulted three journalists with the Ghanaian Times newspaper.

He has also instructed  the Accra Regional Crime Officer to take over the assault investigations from the Ministries police station.

The instruction by the IGP follows mounting pressure on the police to take action against its officers who were alleged to have punched and kicked the journalists who were bold enough to film one of the officers who escaped on a motor bike after running into their vehicle.

The three policemen are Inspector Isaac Opare with the Ministries Division, Accra, Sgt Ebenezer Akrofi Accra Regional Police HQ and L/Cpl  Evans Kofi Ntim with the police visibility/Accra.

Background

The journalists Malik Sulemana, Raissa Sambou and Salifu Abdul Rahman were said to be on their way to cover an assignment when a policeman jumped a traffic light on motorbike and run into their vehicle scratching it in the process.

police assault

All attempts to stop him failed. The driver in the Ghanaian Times vehicle mounted a chase and managed to stop the policeman around Kinbu in Accra.

Malik Sulemana immediately took his phone to capture a video of the errant policeman to gather evidence but that angered the policeman who then invited his colleagues to mount a full blown assault on the journalists.

Raissa Sambou, a nursing mother who attempted to stop the policemen from assaulting her colleague was punched in the stomach. She fell unconscious and was rushed to the hospital.

Malik was punched in the face, on the nose, bled from the nostril and was shoved into a police van and driven to the ministries police station. He was put into cell and assaulted by some officers at post after he refused to write a statement without the presence of a lawyer.

Even though the incident happened on March 14, no remedial measures were taken by the police to bring the errant policemen to book.

Assault on policeman

Driver assault

On the same day, at a different place in Accra, a policeman was assaulted by a driver and his mate after a misunderstanding.

Barely a day after the video of the assault went viral, the driver and his mate were rounded up , charged and remanded in court for two weeks to reappear on two charges, including assault.

The swiftness with which the police administration dealt with the assault on its man at the expense of the police assault on the three journalists triggered a public campaign for the prosecution of the police officers as well.

It appears the campaign has yielded fruits with the IGP instructing the interdiction of the three officers.

Editor of the Ghanaian Times newspaper Dave Agbenu said the policemen were more than three, adding one of the men was a soldier.

He wanted the police to broaden investigations and have all the police and military suspects arrested and prosecuted.