There is hope for the families of the three Takoradi kidnapped girls following claims by the main suspect that they’re still alive, according to the Gender and Social Protection Minister, Cynthia Morrison.
There has been a huge public outcry over the failure of the police to find three girls who were kidnapped in 2018.
The three, Ruth Quayson, Priscilla Blessing Bentum and Priscilla Koranchie were kidnapped from the Sekondi-Takoradi area in the Western Region.
The Ghana Police Service has sought assistance from the US and UK to help with investigations.
[contextly_sidebar id=”ScnLusSoJ77FBouRrFqFEoZ6qhrfR7Rj”]The only suspect arrested, Samuel Udoetuk Wills, broke jail and escaped, and was later rearrested at Nkroful near Takoradi. He is currently facing trial for escaping cells, but had refused to give police any significant leads for the arrest of his accomplices.
But speaking on Eyewitness News on Monday, the Gender Minister, Cynthia Morrison, put the fears of the outraged public to rest saying that, the kidnapper has broken his silence with assurances that the girls have not been killed.
“We are now making headways. The suspected kidnapper has been brought to Accra and he has started talking. He tells us that, the girls are still alive; that is the hope we have now. He confirmed that all the three girls are alive. What we are however looking for now is the exact location where they are. So for now, that is where we have gotten.”
Meeting with Nigerian High Commissioner
The Minister also disclosed that she has held a fruitful meeting with the Nigerian High Commissioner to assist the security service with the investigation process.
“Since the suspect is a Nigerian, I have asked the High Commissioner to go with me and she is willing to do so. He has been supportive and he already delegated his people to go to Takoradi to meet the appropriate authorities. We discussed how we can go and talk to the suspect in his native language. Perhaps that will make him open up to the High Commissioner than he will do to any of us.”
Police to be blamed?
Cynthia Morrison has absolved the police of any blame in the recent kidnapping saying they have no control to prevent the menace from occurring.
She thus advised the public to be safety conscious because of their vulnerability.
“To prevent future kidnappings, we need to be very careful. Even if we give each house one policeman, it will be impossible. Anybody can be kidnapped at any time depending on the location and the situations that arise. So the police can’t prevent this. We cannot blame the police because they cannot police us at the same time, that is not possible”, she said.
The kidnapping incidents in the Western Region have triggered support for the traumatised families and a social media campaign by Ghanaians urging the police to be more aggressive in finding the missing girls.
Already, a team of investigators from the United Kingdom and the United States of America have arrived in the country to assist the Ghana police to search for the Takoradi kidnapped girls.
Their arrival follows a petition to the two countries to help Ghana locate the girls who have gone missing between August 2018 and January 2019.
The CID Boss, DCOP Maame Yaa Tiwaa Addo- Danquah, together with the top officials of the Western Regional Police Command have visited the families of the three kidnapped girls in separate meetings in Takoradi.
She said the investigative team has been beefed up and assured the families of intensified efforts to rescue the girls.
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By: Nii Larte Lartey | citinewsroom.com |Ghana |nlartelartey@gmail.com