Don’t meddle in civil cases -Agblor warns police officers

The Commissioner of Police (COP) in charge of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Mr Prosper Kwame Agblor, has charged police officers to refrain from meddling in civil cases and demonstrate their respect for human rights.

COP Agblor said that was a key requirement to avoid corrupt practices in the discharge of their duties and retain the trust and confidence of the public.

 Speaking at the opening ceremony of a two-week training programme for aides to criminal investigations in Takoradi, he reminded them that “arrests, searches and detentions must be carried out within the confines of the law” and that police officers must desist from engaging in unscrupulous activities that marred the reputation of the service.

“I strongly advise those unscrupulous officers who engage in such practices to turn a new leaf, otherwise they will have themselves to blame,” he said.

Public collaboration

The director also observed that to succeed in the democratic policing era, there was the need for greater collaboration between the service and the general public.

He observed that criminals lived within communities and that the best way out was to support the police to fish them out.

COP Agblor, therefore, called on the public to partner the police in the fight against crime since fighting crime was a shared responsibility.

He said the realisation of the police mandate as enshrined in the 1992 Constitution depended on a large extent to the level of collaboration and support between the general public and the police service.

“The police administration is working assiduously to ensure that Ghanaians live in an environment devoid of crime and an environment required for the socio-economic advancement of the country. We will require the support of the general public in realising this objective,” he said.

Addressing the participants in the training programme, the director of the CID said the essence of organising the training programme was to equip the officers to diligently investigate cases that would enhance crime detection.

He said the participants  must demonstrate improved performance, diligence, dedication, discipline and above all professionalism in all aspects of their work to justify their training.

Western regional crime officer

In his speech, the Western Regional Crime Officer, Superintendent Mr Reuben Asiwoko, said the crime rate in the region had gone up steadily due to the oil find and influx of foreign companies there.

“Criminals are now using sophisticated means to commit crime which are beyond the capabilities of the regional CID,” he said.

Mr Agblor said though the detectives in the region were not enough, the training course was important as it would equip all the detectives in the region with the requisite knowledge and skills to crack down on criminals so that they did not have a field day.

The participants  would be taken through courses such as basic investigative skills, interrogation and interviews, identification methods, criminal law, report writing and communication skills, surveillance, crime scene management and human rights among others.