Three 'soldier-land-guards' busted

Three soldiers from the Accra Air Force Base have been arrested at Amamole near Pokuase for aiding land guards to prevent a developer, who had acquired a parcel of land in the area, from development his property. The three A/C2 Samuel Dodoo, A/C2 Joseph Lartey and A/C2 Collins Nanor, were arrested together with some five persons suspected to be land guards on Saturday September 26, 2009, on the land of one Gad Tetteh Korney, aka Rasta Man. According to a source, the Rastaman, whose building was pulled down by the land guards, tried to re-build the edifice and started digging the foundation for his defence wall. On several occasions, the foundation was refilled with sand, so he lodged a complaint with the Amasaman Police. The police stormed the supposed residence of the land guards, numbering about twenty-two, employed by one Nii Tetteh Okpei II. A search in their room revealed four live bullets and an indenture signed by the self-styled chief of the area. The chief, who was bent on carrying out his actions, called in the three soldiers after the arrest of some of his cronies while they destroyed the foundation of the defence wall. However, luck eluded them when the police appeared on the scene and arrested them. At the time of their arrest, some members of the public had engaged the soldiers in a fierce battle over their involvement in the land issue and subjected them to severe beatings. The soldiers reportedly assaulted a journalist for taking footage of the incident and as well smashed his camera. The soldiers and their accomplices are currently in the custody of the Regional Police Headquarters where they would be processed for court. The Amasaman District Police Commander, DSP Stephen Kwakyi, confirmed the story. Meanwhile, one Kortey has also been badly wounded by some land guards he confronted on his mother’s property at Amasaman. Kortey, according to a source, met the land guards exchanging words with his mother over the ownership of a parcel of land on which his mother was putting up a one unit chamber and hall building. In the ensuing exchange, he intervened, but his submissions angered the land guards who engaged him in a fight, leaving him with a broken lip and hand as well as a swollen face. He was admitted to the Amasaman Hospital where he was said to be recuperating. Source: Daily Guide