…Years after attacking Amissah-Arthur’s widow

The Ghana Police Service (GPS), has taken custody of a fugitive lone robber, who had been on its wanted list since 2022.

The suspect was handed over by the Togolese Police Force (TPF) through a diplomatic arrangement brokered by President John Dramani Mahama through his Togolese counterpart, President Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé.

Adinda Akpo Abdul Mugibo, whose criminal activities were captured on CCTV, targeted high-end residential areas in Accra, robbing victims of valuable items, including jewellery, luxury watches, pens, and large sums of money in both local and foreign currencies.

Also known by aliases such as Rashid Bawa, Maxwell, Papa Rich, and Dawa, the suspect holds both Ghanaian and Togolese identification.

He was arrested in Lomé, Togo, in a joint operation involving the TPF, Interpol, and Ghanaian police officers.

Over the weekend, he was extradited to Ghana aboard a military jet operated by the Ghana Air Force.

CCTV footage circulating on social media, shows the robber calmly entering homes often left unlocked by unsuspecting residents before threatening victims at gunpoint and robbing them of valuables.

Interestingly, a man named Yahuza Osumanu, had earlier been arrested and arraigned before a court presided over by Justice Lydia Osei Marfo. He pleaded not guilty to 26 counts of robbery and money laundering and was subsequently denied bail.

It later emerged that, Adinda Akpo Abdul Mugibo, had been hiding in Togo. It is not clear, when he will be brought before the court. It is also unclear, what will happen to Yahuza Osumanu, the man before the court.

In June last year, former Second Lady, Matilda Amissah-Arthur, confirmed reports of an armed robbery attack at her home, first reported by The Herald.

In a widely circulated video published on Sunday, June 9, 2024, she recounted the harrowing ordeal she experienced on 5 December 2023.

She described waking up in the middle of the night to find a muscular man in her bedroom pointing a gun at her and threatening, “Don’t move. If you do, I will shoot.”

Initially believing she was dreaming, she quickly realised the gravity of the situation. The intruder demanded money, and she handed over US$2,200, five euros, and all the Ghanaian cedis in her purse, funds her siblings, had entrusted to her for a project.

Despite her compliance, the robber grew agitated, accusing her of wasting his time. He began to strangle her and repeatedly struck her head. Desperate, she offered him her gold watch, earrings, and other valuables, but he remained dissatisfied.

“He turned my room upside down,” she recounted. “Of course, he didn’t find any money or more jewellery. Then he said, ‘You’ve wasted my time, so I’ll kill you. I want to call my boss.’ Whether he actually called anyone, I don’t know.”

She continued, “By this time, he had dragged me from the bed, put me on the ground, and hit my head on the floor. He spoke on the phone and said, ‘My boss said I should shoot you, but I won’t. I’ll strangle you so you die a slow death. Next time I come, you’ll have money.’”

She said she pleaded with him, saying, “You have searched my room; I don’t have money.” But he began strangling her again. She described entering a trance-like state, finding herself in a beautiful garden she had never seen before, and being led by a faceless figure who said, “It is time to go.”

Officers from the Attorney-General’s Department, filed disclosures and witness statements in the prosecution of Yahuza Osumanu sometime last year. Senior State Attorney, Nana Ama Adinkra, informed the court of the filings and requested more time.

Despite his plea of not guilty to 26 counts of robbery and money laundering, Osumanu, was again denied bail. The case was adjourned to 6 June 2024, but has since faded from public view until the recent extradition.

Outlining the case facts, the prosecutor said that during the second quarter of 2023, the GPS Criminal Investigations Department (CID) received multiple complaints of residential robberies committed by a lone armed man in areas including Airport, Cantonments, Tesano, and Ridge.

On September 17, 2023, a complainant, Augustine Okere, reported to the Airport Police that his apartment at Kaeela Court in the Airport Residential Area had been robbed at around 2:30 a.m. The accused allegedly entered the room, brandished a pistol, and demanded money and valuables.

Okere was robbed of two Rolex watches valued at US$38,000, US$23,000 in cash, GH¢2,000, and £3,500. Two days later, the property’s owner submitted CCTV footage to the police, capturing the suspect in the act.

On December 4, 2023, the police received further distress calls from two victims who were also robbed at gunpoint. They reported losing a Cartier wristwatch, an iPhone, and hundreds of dollars in cash. CCTV footage from both scenes was collected and reviewed.

On December 5, 2023, the Tesano Police received a report of a robbery at Mrs Amissah-Arthur’s residence. Again, the assailant fled before the police arrived.

Reports indicated that he was armed and threatened to kill the former Second Lady, if she did not comply. Alongside the cash, the robber stole a gold watch valued at GH¢20,000 and necklaces worth GH¢5,000.

“The accused also assaulted the wife of the late Vice-President by strangling her and repeatedly hitting her head on the ground while demanding more loot. She momentarily lost consciousness and, upon regaining it, found her safe and valuables missing,” the prosecutor stated.

Mrs Amissah-Arthur alerted the police guard at her residence, who spotted the suspect attempting to flee with the safe. He gave chase, prompting the suspect to abandon the safe and escape.

The prosecution noted that various CCTV clips obtained from the crime scenes consistently identified the suspect as Yahuza Osumanu, who had long been on the police radar in connection with a spate of residential robberies across Cantonments, Airport Residential Area, Ridge, and Tesano.

On December 11, 2023, a police patrol team responded to a robbery at Ridge, where the victim reported that Osumanu robbed her at gunpoint, ransacked her room, and fled with luxury items. Initial investigations revealed he had entered the property through an unsecured kitchen window.

Following a comprehensive analysis of the footage, police identified the suspect as Osumanu, a resident of Dome Pillar Two,  who is believed to be responsible for the string of high-profile robberies