7 busted over bus load of Niger-bound Indian hemp

Seven suspects, including a driver of a Nigerien-bound bus and a physically-challenged man have been arrested in Kumasi for attempting to transport 37 parcels of dried leaves suspected to be Indian Hemp.

The suspects include Ibrahim Mumuni, 35, the Ghanaian driver and two Nigerien accomplices Adamu Isaku-48, Abubakari Janilo, 32 the disabled person.

A team from the Regional Criminal Investigations Department arrested the suspects upon a tip-off at a lorry terminal in Aboabo.

Acting on a tip-off, uniformed and plain-cloth police officers stormed the Aboabo lorry terminal for Burkina Faso-Mali- Niger buses at about 10 a.m on Saturday.

A search in one of the compartments close to the back axle of the Kumasi-Niamey bound bus led to the discovery of 38 parcels carefully concealed in a nylon sack.

The driver of the bus, Ibrahim Mumuni mentioned a passenger, Janilo, as the owner of the parcels. He told police the parcels were 68 but his apprentice who is currently on the run sold some of them.

Janilo, with walking impairment, in his caution statement to police said the parcels were given to him to be sent to an unidentified Nigerien man.

Police have since mounted a search for the driver’s mate and impounded the DAF Bus with registration GT 19 F, pending investigations.

The Regional Police Command is expected to brief the media on the operation on Monday.

Source: Myjoyonline.com