4 Chinese arrested for stealing electricity cables
Four men, all Chinese, have been arrested at Nsawam-Adoagyiri in the Nsawam-Adoagyiri Municipality in the Eastern Region, for allegedly stealing electricity cables belonging to the Ministry of Energy.
The Eastern Regional Police Command, in collaboration with the National Security, arrested the men at CK Aluminium Company Limited together with the alleged stolen 30 electricity cables, and other wires, which were loaded onto a KIA truck from Accra last Thursday.
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The suspects have been identified as Lianwei, 38, Tian Xiuwei, 41, Su Meng and Zhang Chenming, both aged 55.
A team, led by the Eastern Regional Operations Officer of National Security, Mr Nathaniel Obuobi, together with police personnel from the Regional Headquarters, upon a tip off, stormed the facility to arrest the four suspects together with the items on suspicion that they were stolen.
The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Eastern Regional Police Command, DSP Ebenezer Tetteh, told the Daily Graphic that the said electricity cables belonged to the Ministry of Energy.
He explained that the cables had inscriptions of the Energy Ministry on them, and could, therefore, not have been in the custody of a private individual, let alone foreigners, who were suspected to have stolen the cables.
The Chinese were not workers at the aluminium factory. They hired the trucks to convey the cables to the factory at Nsawam.
The three drivers had no idea that the cables were stolen, thus they were released together with the vehicle after conveying the cables to the Eastern Regional Police Command yesterday.
They said information on how they obtained the Intel could not be disclosed now as investigations were still ongoing.
Investigation
DSP Tetteh said the police had commenced investigations into the issue.
He said the preliminary investigations had revealed that the Chinese were not workers at the aluminium factory, but they hired the truck to convey the cables to the factory at Nsawam.
Also, from the police investigations, it was established that the driver of the truck had no idea the cables were stolen as their trucks were hired for commercial purposes.
DSP Tetteh also confirmed that the driver was released together with the vehicle after conveying the cables to the Eastern Regional Police Command yesterday.
He urged members of the public with further information regarding the issue to assist the police with investigations.
DSP Tetteh encouraged the public in the region to always be on the look out, to report any crime or suspicion of crime in their respective communities to the police to help deal with the crime situation in the region and the country at large.
The items are currently in police custody, as well as the suspects, pending the conclusion of investigations.