Obuasi, Jan 9, GNA - Chief Superintendent Patrick Adusei Sarpong, the Obuasi Divisional Police Commander, has called on the media to assist the pol ice to fight stealing of electricity cables and defilement.

"Cable thefts are an emerging crime that we need to draw up strategies to weed out", he said.

Mr Sarpong, who was interacting with the members of the Obuasi Press Corps for the first time since he assumed duty a month ago, appealed to the media to "do a lot of publication on the crime". "I suggest to journalists to follow such cases to the courts and publish the end results for other people to know the consequences of cable stealing and defilement of girls."

On bailing of suspects, Mr Sarpong reiterated that it was an offence for the police to demand favours before a bail was granted. Mr Richard Ellimah, the secretary of the Obuasi Press Corps, suggested police-media monthly meetings to help review crime situation in the municipality and fashion out strategies to combat them. Alhaji Kofi Mensah, the dean of the press corps, said a healthy press-police relation was a tool for effective combat of crime in the society.

He said since the media and the police were human institutions, there were bound to be misunderstandings but that should not affect their relations. 09 Jan 07