CRIME: FEDCO boss pulls gun on employees

Gun

THE DEPUTY Managing Directorof the Federated CommunitiesLimited (FEDCO), a licensed cocoabuying company, Mr. Abdul Razak, and an accomplice who posed as a police officer, have been arrested by the Mim Police for allegedly threatening five purchasing clerks of the company with death.

According to the Mim District Police Commander, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Oduro Abrokwa, Mr. Razak, who pulled out a pistol, was reported to have threatened to kill five of his purchasing clerks, if they failed to produce some weighing scales which were in their possession.

His accomplice, who was also detained by the police, was also accused of posing as a police officer from the Brong Ahafo Regional Police Command, tasked to accompany the deputy MD to retrieve the scales.

The accused persons, who were arrested on June 9 this year, have since been granted police inquiry bail at Mim.

Confirming the story to newsmen in his office at Mim, DSP Oudro disclosed that the case had been taken over by the Brong Ahafo Regional Police for further investigations.

As at June 15, 2011, when both the complainant and the accused were invited by the Mim police to meet on the matter, the accused person, who kept the purchasing clerks waiting the whole day, failed to show up.

But, the District Police Commander later told the complainants that the accused persons had phoned the Divisional Commander at Goaso telling him that their vehicle had developed a fault on their way to Mim.

He, therefore, urged them to come back on June 16, which they did, but Mr. Razak again failed to show up, resulting in the complainants suspecting something fishy.

Narrating the incident, one of the victims of the deputy MD, Nana Kwaku Poku, who doubles as Odikro of Amankwaakrom in the Asunafo North Municipality, told the press that between the hours of 12:00 and 1:00 a.m., whilst he was in the room naked with his wife, Mr. Razak, in the company of the imposter, chanced upon him having pushed the door open.

According to Nana Poku, the deputy MD was seen welding a pistol when he entered the room and immediately demanded that (Nana Poku) produce a scale that he used to purchase cocoa.

Nana Poku said he left his wife in the room, while the deputy MD and the “police officer” ransacked the place, collecting some books and receipts in his possession.

He said as Mr. Razak insisted taking possession of the weighing machines, he (Nana Poku) also demanded that the company (FEDCO) pay the bonuses and commissions for 2010 and 2011 cocoa owed to farmers in the area.

The purchasing clerk said at this point, the Deputy MD and his accomplice marched him to his (Nana Kwaku Poku) office (cocoa shed), where they demanded the release of the weighing scales, to which he obliged, and later reported the incident to the police on the advice of his wife .

Another purchasing clerk, Yusif Suleman at Atiponya, also complained that he suffered the same ordeal at the hands of Mr. Razak, saying the MD, accompanied by his accomplice came to him around 4:00 a.m. to demand the weighing scale.

According to him, when the MD realised that he (Yusif) was not ready to release the machine to him, he pulled out a gun and threatened to kill him.

He said along the line, his brothers came to assist him in lifting the weighing scale into one of the three cars the FEDCO boss brought to the village.

Mr. Razak, according to Yusif, fired warning shots when he (Yusif) stopped him from running over some cement blocks with his car, attracting people, including the Chief of Atiponya, Nana Saddiq Bofa, to the scene.

Not even a plea by the Chief would stop Mr. Razak from further firing into the air to scare the spectators away.

Sensing danger, the deputy MD and his people drove away in their cars. “At 7:00 a.m. in the morning I reported the incident to the police.”

Other purchasing clerks who were also molested at gunpoint by Mr. Razak and his team include Mr. John Gyapong of Wam-Adiembra, Foster Adjie of Gambia No. 2, and Kennedy Kwabi at Asanteman Council, all in the Asunafo Municipality.

AAF/Chronicle