Terror at gated community; As armed robbers attack homes at dawn

Residents of  PS Global Estates (Leosville), a gated community at Tema Community 25, near Prampram, went through a nightmarish experience at 1.42 a.m. on Thursday, February 13, 2014, when hooded armed robbers attacked them.

Numbering about 10, the robbers, who were armed with pump action guns, pistols, sledge hammers and cutting implements to enable them to gain access to homes, succeeded in breaking into nine homes with audacity, before help arrived from the police.

The robbers just marched from house to house, fired shots, noisily hammered on doors with sledge hammers to break them down and cut away burglar-proof mesh to gain access, not hiding their intention to rob.

Narrating the horrendous incident to the Daily Graphic last Thursday, a resident, who claimed anonymity, said it all appeared unreal, adding, “They stole laptops, jewellery and money.”

He said the incident had brought fear and panic into the entire community because that was their second encounter with armed robbers in two years.

He recounted that the leader of the armed robbers was heard shouting out instructions to the others, who swiftly and brazenly entered homes, broke down doors and cut burglar-proof mesh.

They then commanded the terrified occupants of the houses they entered to bring out any money they had, as well as jewellery, and helped themselves to any laptops they set eyes on.

“In one instance, they broke into the house of a woman who recently lost her husband and lived with her little son. When they demanded money and the woman said she did not have, they asked her to remove the rings on her fingers, which they took away,” the resident said.

Police response

Residents who spoke with the Daily Graphic said but for the timely arrival of policemen from the Tema SWAT Unit at approximately 2.30 a.m., the robbers, who appeared to have planned their operation very well, would have attacked all the houses in the community.

They said on seeing the flashlights of the police vehicles, the armed robbers fled in several directions, leaving some of the laptops behind. 

The police went after them but none of them was arrested.

One of the victims said an earlier stress call to the Prampram Police drew a blank, as the police said their vehicle would not start. They, however, arrived at the community minutes after the SWAT team had arrived, by which time the robbers had already left.

Speaking with the Daily Graphic on Sunday, the Ashaiman District Police Commander, DSP Paul Mensah Bampoe, confirmed the armed attack, saying the robbers fled when the police arrived.

“We are still investigating. We have also intensified our patrols, held a meeting with the residents and discussed how to improve security there,” he added.

About Leosville

Leosville is a gated community developed by PS Global Estate Company. It is just a 30 minutes’ walk from another gated community, Devtraco, and is made up of about 78 houses.

Residents believe the robbers gained easy access to the community because of its dwarf perimetre wall, which they have on several occasions complained about to the CEO, Mr Patrick Ebow Bonful, in addition to other systemic deficiencies in contractual or specific performance. 

The CEO, they said, had consistently turned a deaf ear to their requests to lengthen the wall in order to enhance security and that contrary to the developer’s pledge to provide a 24-hour security service, it had not done so and only two security men from PS Global, without the necessary tools, were at the gate at the time of the attack. 

They were, therefore, easily overpowered, beaten and locked up by the armed robbers before they commenced their operation.

However, in an interview with the Daily Graphic last Sunday, Mr Pius Peterson, the General Manager of PS Global, said although the short perimeter wall issue had been raised by residents after a theft case on February 13, 2013, little progress had been made because the residents had taken an entrenched position.

He explained that according to the CEO, the 24-hour security service indicated in the contractual agreement only referred to security at the entrance and that residents had to bear 70 per cent of the cost of beefing up the wall around the community, while PS Global bore the remaining 30 per cent.