Parents pay GH¢25,000 ransom for girl's release

Page 32: June 21, 2008.
Story: Albert K. Salia
AN EIGHT year-old pupil of the Alpha Beta School in Dansoman, who was kidnapped on Monday, has been released after her parents had parted with the ransom of GH¢25,000.
Two suspects, one of whom had been identified as Philip Asiedu and the other only as Miller, are currently assisting the Dansoman police in investigations.
The police are currently looking for three more suspects.
The kidnappers had to back-track on their initial demands for $300,000 and had to settle for the GH¢25,000 because the parents said they could not afford it.
The suspects were alleged to have gone to the pupil’s school in a taxi to pick up the girl as if they were her parents and drove off.
Soon after the kidnappers had left the school, the mother of the pupil went to the school to pick her, only to be told that some people had already taken her home.
Sources close to the school and the family told the Daily Graphic that the kidnappers later called the girl’s mother to go to Papaye Fast Food Restaurant at Osu, where they would discuss with her the terms for the girl’s release.
The sources said the kidnappers also threatened to kill the girl should the mother inform the police about it.
They indicated that the kidnappers had accused one of the girl’s parents of being rude to a foreigner, hence the decision to kidnap the girl.
The first negotiation was on Monday at about 6:30pm, the sources added.
They said after the parents had dropped the ransom money, the venue of which they could not tell the Daily Graphic, the police, with the help of other security agencies, managed to arrest Asiedu and later, Miller.
The Dansoman District Police Commander, Chief Superintendent Alex Yartey Tawiah, said he could only confirm that the girl had been released to the parents.
According to him, investigations were just at the preliminary stage and would, therefore, not want to give the details of the operation and the suspects in custody.
Meanwhile, the principal of the school, Mrs Florence H. Adjepong, in a statement, has said what occurred at the school is every school head’s nightmare and a parent’s trauma.
“What happened at Alpha Beta could have happened in any school. It is my social responsibility, therefore, to share this experience and urge school management boards to be diligent in re-evaluating the security measures in place in their respective schools so as to ensure that none of their children and parents are ever subjected to such a traumatic experience,” it said.
According to the statement, if those measures had been taken, the pain and sleepless nights experienced by the parents of the child, the school management and the staff would not have been suffered.
It said since the incident, the school’s security had been dramatically improved.
“A complete overhaul of our security system is being administered under the direction of security experts. A safety awareness programme to sensitise children, staff and parents to the increasing risks of urban living has started,” it said.
It stressed the need for children to be encouraged to be safety-conscious during evenings and at weekends when they might be taking advantage of the freedom of their leisure time.
“There are heinous criminals in our society who have targeted children as their prey. Thanks to the persistence and tireless efforts of our police and the BNI operatives, the perpetrators have been caught,” it stated.