Driver jailed for refusing to pay Ghc 3,000 bribe to police officer

Gideon Ansah, a commercial driver has been jailed for 8 months for refusing to pay Ghc 3000 on the demand of a police officer at Potsin in the Central Region.

Gideon said the police officer allegedly demanded the money to convince him to free him from the hooks of the law.

According to the young man, he was accosted by a military officer who sent him to the police station for wearing army camouflage trousers. The uniform, he said belonged to his late father.

“I sat close to the soldier which I did not know until he showed me his ID card. After he noticed that the uniform was original, he confronted me in the vehicle and handed me to the police at Potsin,” he said.

The CID officer who handled his case, Gideon said, asked him to pay Ghc 3,000 to get him freed.

“I told him I did not have such an amount so I asked one of my brothers who sent me Ghc 600 for the police officer,” Gideon recounted.

The Ghc 600 did not excite the police officer so he processed him for court.

“Even before my case was to be called in court, the CID Officer who was also the prosecutor still asked me to pay the money for him to let me off,” the driver said.

Eventually, he said he appeared in court without a representation and the judge handed him his sentence in default of a Ghc 2,400 fine.

Under its Petty Offenders project, Crime Check Foundation (CCF) interacted with Gideon when it visited inmates at the Winneba Local Prison.

After listening to his story, the Foundation paid his fine and got him released; an initiative funded by Actress and TV personality, Nana Ama McBrown.

Below are some comments;

@nicholasdadzie3750

Sir thank you and nana Ama for assisting the young man. Please kindly report the police cid to his bosses for at least he should return his 300 cedis to him

@bismarkankrahtwumasi7594

How can one with no criminal record go to jail on this petty issue? oh very bad

@potentialmedia2734

Shame to some Ghana police and C.I.D. especially C.I.D bcuz same to happen to me when I reported thief who stole my TV’s and the C.I.D always demanding money from me, so at a point I have to leave the Case like that. I will never report any Case to police but rather go to shrine for it to handle my Case.

@frankasiamah7682

only Ghana u can see these noises

@newlovejnr1214

This is Stupidity… I always wear German military uniform here and nothing happens… is just a uniform…. Ghana needs to learn