More women pop up, accuse Tema DOVVSU officers of snatching their husbands

The Director-General in Charge of Welfare for the Ghana Police Service, DCOP Habiba Twumasi-Sarpong, has assured of an investigation into some cases of police officers snatching husbands of complainants in the Tema jurisdiction.

Daily Guide on Saturday, May 14, 2022, shared the story of an aggrieved woman whose husband had allegedly been snatched by Detective Chief Inspector Devina Worlanya Afenu, of the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) division of the Tema Katamanso Police Station.

According to Mary Agbenu Edorla, Chief Inspector Afenu ended up taking her husband of over three years from her after she became the investigator in a case she was involved in.

Narrating her story in an interview with Daily Guide amidst tears, the aggrieved woman said she got to meet the officer after a domestic help living with her family left their house and was brought back by the police.

“The girl actually stole my money, and when I reprimanded her, she left the house to an unknown place,” she stated.

She narrated that the domestic help was brought back in the company of a police officer and a neighbour who explained that the girl had been spotted loitering about in an uncompleted building.

According to the neighbour, the girl when she was questioned confessed that her mother had threatened to assault her.

The aggrieved woman said she was subsequently invited to the station to give her statement while she was asked to invite the biological parents of the domestic help to the police station.

“My husband upon his return to the house was given the news and quickly he drove to the police station where Chief Inspector Afenu was the case officer.

“The case officer, upon introduction asked my husband to go to the village of the victim to bring her biological parents, which he did.

“After settling the case, I realised that Chief Inspector Afenu constantly called my husband on phone at night, and whenever I ask, he tells me it was part of their investigations (sic).

“I accepted this excuse until one day when I saw some nude pictures she had sent to the mobile phone of my husband, and that was when I discovered that they were having an affair,” she said.

“Now she has succeeded in taking away my husband in the name of investigations and as we speak, they are currently living as husband and wife,” she added.

Following the report of Madam Edorla’s story, two other women have reached out to Daily Guide to share their stories about how they also lost their husbands to police officers at the Tema DOVVSU unit.

One of the complainants whose name the newspaper withheld said she reported a case of spousal abuse against her husband to the Tema DOVVSU five years ago and backed her report with pictures of her swollen and bruised face.

The complainant said her husband was called by a female police officer to report to their station after she lodged her complaint.

She later discovered that the pictures she gave the police, were in the possession of her husband.

“One day, I was at home when my husband brought the pictures that I had given to the police officer as evidence to show to me. He further assaulted me and told me that, the case was going nowhere and true to his words too, no action was taken,” the victim said.2

“It was later that I discovered that the said corporal who was then investigating my case was in a love relationship with my husband,” she added.

According to the victim, she reported the matter to some senior officers but nothing happened to her disappointment.

She finally left the marriage out of frustration from her husband’s affair with the female police officer.

According to the third victim who expressed delight about the matter coming to light, she also lost her husband to a police officer at the same unit under similar circumstance.

“Madam, we are happy that this case has come out. My husband was also taken from me by a police officer in Tema, and what surprises me was that after all the ordeal I reported to the police, my husband went to renovate the DOVVSU office for them.

“We pray that the current Inspector General of Police (IGP) looks at Tema, and if possible, make changes, because the situation is getting out of hand,” she pleaded.

Meanwhile, the matter has attracted a swift intervention by the Police Administration, who, have ordered a probe to be conducted by the Police Professional Standards Bureau (PPBS).