General News of Wednesday, 6 August 2014

Source: The Finder

21 Police officers sacked

Twenty-one police personnel were dismissed from the Ghana Police Service in the first quarter of 2014 for various acts of misconducts, investigations of by The Finder have revealed.

Out of the number, two were Cor­porals (Cpl), 15 were Lance Corporals (L/Cpl), and four Constables (Const.).

Nine personnel, including one Su­perintendent, one Chief lnspector, one Corporal and six Lance Corporals, were also reduced in rank.

A Chief Superintendent (C/Supt.) and one Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) were also sacked within the period.

In addition, a Lance Corporal (L/Cpl.) and one Constable (Const.) were severely reprimanded while two Deputy Superintendents of Police (DSP), two Lance Corporals (L/Cpl.) and two Constables (Const.) were rep­rimanded. One Constable was served with a letter of caution.

The disciplinary actions were ne­cessitated in relation to 245 cases brought before the Police Intelligence and Professional Standards Bureau (PIPS) of the Ghana Police Service against some police personnel for the first quarter of 2014.

Out of that number, 127 cases have been investigated while 118 are pend­ing, according to investigations by The Finder.

The investigations also revealed that the cases brought before PIPS were grouped into 15 categories.

The categories ranged from mis­conduct, indulging in civil cases, with­holding of exhibit, and unprofessional handling of cases to misappropriation of exhibits.

Others are police brutality, harass­ment, extortion, undue delay of inves­tigation, and causing damage.

The rest are unfair treatment, enlist­ment fraud, and motor accident.

Unprofessional handlings of cases topped the categories, with a total of 45 cases, followed by undue delay of investigations, which were 40 cases.

A total of 30 cases were recorded under indulging in civil cases while unlawful arrest and detention recorded 27 cases.

Misconduct and unfair treatment recorded 25 cases together, with police brutality recording 16 cases, and ha­rassment, 13.