Police says it is investigating alleged assault of journalist by its CID operative

The Sekondi District Police Command says it is investigating an alleged assault of Solomon Amankwah, a sports journalist with Atinka Media in the Western Region.

According to a police statement, the journalist was allegedly assaulted by Lance Corporal Prince Mensah of the Regional CID Operations and Intelligence Unit.

The Police Officer is said to have “applied some minimum force” in arresting Solomon Amankwah, because he resisted arrest.

The police said their preliminary investigations revealed that the journalist who forgot his ignition key inside his vehicle which was parked at the Police Barracks, was spotted searching for a piece of metal from an accident vehicle, to use in unlocking his car.

His actions are said to have raised the suspicions of the Lance Corporal.

“The Police Officer arrived at the scene at this stage and upon suspicion, questioned him about his activities and warned him to leave the barracks. Solomon Amankwah refused to leave and this compelled the Police to decide to arrest him for further interrogations,” the police statement said.

The Police added that they had met with the management of the media house to assure them of investigations into the matter.

They however warned the public about interference with exhibits or items at the police station.

“We would like to state that in as much as the Police Station is a public place to which the public has unfettered access, no one has the right to interfere with exhibits at the station, and certainly no one has the right to attempt to break into an accident vehicle for any purposes.”