Pastor in police custody for possessing unlicensed pistols
A 44-year-old pastor, Wiafe Kwabena Akenten, popularly known as "Osofo", has been remanded in police custody for possessing firearms without authority.
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The suspect, who heads the Dominion Sabbath Church, was arrested by the police patrol team at his house at Katamanso, near Ashaiman, on October 17, 2015, for possessing two locally made pistols. He will reappear in court on Monday, October 26, 2015.
The Public Relations Officer of the Tema Regional Police Command, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Juliana Obeng, in a statement, said the patrol team, which was on duty in the area, gathered intelligence that Akenten was keeping firearms and ammunitions in his room.
Search
ASP Obeng said the team proceeded to Akenten’s house and searched his room, adding that the search yielded two locally made pistols, a generator, a machete and a hammer, which the accused claimed ownership of.
She said investigations further revealed that he purchased the guns in Kumasi. The police spokesperson said the suspect was subsequently apprehended while the guns were retrieved and sent to the regional headquarters for further investigations.
Watchdog committee
ASP Obeng said further investigations revealed that Pastor Akenten was a member of a Neighbourhood Watchdog Committee (NWC).
She said Akenten had a few weeks earlier told the other members of the watchdog committee that he had acquired the pistols to complement their work but they were not in favour of that and threatened to report him to the police if he did not get rid of them.
She said he, therefore, hid them in a bush on a piece of land in the area where he lived but could not trace them the next day when he returned to the place because the owner had graded the land. He made this known to the other members of the watchdog committee.
According to ASP Obeng, Akenten returned to the place the next day and found the pistols hidden under some weeds. He collected and kept them in his room without informing members of the committee.
Caution
ASP Obeng, on behalf of the Tema Regional Police Command, reminded NWC members that they were not allowed to carry weapons during their patrols and asked them to seek clarification on issues concerning their operations which they were not sure of.
