Journalist arrested for taking photos of a Policeman who demanded GHC 5 bribe

A. Monney, President of GJA

A Journalist from the Daily Express Newspaper has been arrested for ‘offensive conduct’ by the police, for taking pictures of a policeman who was allegedly requesting a GHC5 bribe from a bus driver around Tesano in Accra.

FSDetails available as at press time indicate that Fred Sarpong, the Daily Express Journalist and his colleague, Raphael Apetorgbor witnessed a police officer demanding a GHC 5 bribe from a bus conductor around Tesano this afternoon and took his picture.

Though, the situation that led to the request for a bribe remains unclear, we can confirm that Mr. Sarpong was arrested and whisked off to the Tesano Police Station after being accosted and assaulted. He is currently behind bars.

The Ghana Police Service is constantly battling extant perception of corruption within its ranks. There has been news of some police officers involved in all manners crimes and fraudulent behaviours including armed robbery, assaults, bribery and corruption.

In an attempt to fight the spate of indiscipline that has rocked the Service, Director General in charge of Police Operations, COP Christian Tetteh Yohonu while instructing police officers to gun down their colleagues involved in armed robbery attacks recently, went further to admonish them to desist from brutalising innocent civilians.

As the December polls are fast approaching, there is a growing anxiety among some journalists on how they would be handled by security agencies while conducting their normal duties, reporting all election-related issues from different parts of the country.

In an interview on Adom News this afternoon, Raphael Afetorgbor of Daily Express recounted the episode that ensued and confirmed that Mr. Sarpong remains behind bars at the Tesano Police Station.

Source: Mobile Parliamentarians, a Network of Discerning Journalists working to uphold the tenets of the journalism profession and fulfilling its mandate as the fourth estate in the realm and watchdog of society.


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