THE USUAL quiet atmosphere in front of the Ashaiman Circuit Court was yesterday disrupted when a resident of the area tried resisting arrest by a Court Warrant Officer for posing as a military man.

The incident caught the attention of people around the court compelling some relations of persons whose cases were being heard to rush out to the scene. His continuous resistance amidst shouts of “I am a military man so you cannot handcuff me” attracted some residents who rushed to catch a glimpse of him.

He was arrested when he accompanied an accused person to the court and introduced himself to people including some of the lawyers present.

The fake soldier was identified as Alphonse Mensah and was reported to be a popular man around the Valco Flat, one of the many suburbs of Ashaiman. According to some of the eyewitnesses at the scene, Mensah was respected by many who perceived him as an employee of the Ghana Armed Forces and was reported to have said he was stationed at the Kofi Annan Peacekeeping Centre at La, Accra.

When DAILY GUIDE contacted Corporal John Brahene on why Mensah was arrested, he said the suspect was arrested for impersonation but declined to comment further.

Corporal Brahene, after handcuffing the suspect, transported him to the Ashaiman Main Police Station where he was detained.

Some of the eyewitnesses told DAILY GUIDE they were surprised at the turn of events, explaining that they always perceived the suspect as a military man while others said they had always believed his claim because even though they hardly saw him dressed in uniform they had seen him back his assertion with an identification card which he always carried on him.

The said ID card turned out to be that of one Kpodo Newton with the number 199748. The date of birth of the said Kpodo was given as August, 2, 1986 and his religion stated as Christianity. Other details on the card included his rank – ABII, height – 1.78m, blood group – O (positive), sex – male and V/ Mark – Nil.

At the time of going to press, the fake soldier, Alphonse Mensah, was being held in custody at the Ashaiman Police Station.