An Accra Circuit Court has remanded a 38-year-old aluminium fabricator over an alleged gold robbery at Achimota Mile 7.
The accused, Edem Abotsi, denied conspiring with five others, currently on the run, to rob Mr Joel John Rawlings, the complainant, of one kilogramme of gold and a gold testing machine.
The court, presided over by Mrs Basilia Adjei-Tawiah, ordered that Abotsi be brought back on March 5, 2026.
Meanwhile, Police are on the heels of Razak, Oduro Justine, Yaw Boakye Kelvin, Aikins Boateng and Emmanuel Arko, his alleged accomplices, as well as Alhaji Abu, who is wanted for abetment of crime.
All the suspects are currently at large.
Presenting the facts, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Issah Achiburi said the complainant, Mr Rawlings, was an engineer and researcher residing at Adjiringanor in Accra, while Abotsi was an aluminium fabricator living in Kasoa.
On February 19, 2026, at about 1545 hours, the complainant arrested Abotsi and handed him over to the CID Headquarters in Accra, reporting that Abotsi and a group of men had attacked him and his associates at Achimota Mile 7 and made away with their one kilogramme of gold.
ASP Achiburi said during the attack, the complainant struggled with Abotsi, arrested him and took him to the Police Headquarters.
The court heard that preliminary investigations revealed that Akasi Cudjoe, a witness in the case, was the Chief Operating Officer of Agape Mining Limited at Spintex, Accra.
The prosecution said Razak had earlier contacted the company and negotiated the sale of one kilogramme of gold to them.
The witness then called the complainant to help verify the authenticity of the gold before the transaction.
On February 19, 2026, at about 1400 hours, the complainant, Cudjoe and Razak met at the Next Guest House at Achimota Mile 7 for the testing and transaction.
After the complainant confirmed the gold to be genuine, the witness and an associate, Ogugua Onjiegu, paid an agreed amount of GH¢900,000 to Razak.
ASP Achiburi said immediately after the payment, Razak called Boakye, who was already on standby with others in a Toyota Corolla parked about 50 metres from the guest house.
The suspects, dressed in T-shirts branded “Ghana Goldbod Task Force,” rushed to the scene where the transaction had taken place.
The prosecution said Razak quickly entered the vehicle with the money and drove off together with Boakye and Boateng.
Abotsi and Arko allegedly arrested the complainant and the witness, subjected the complainant to severe beatings, and took the one kilogramme of gold from him while pretending to escort them to the Police Headquarters.
However, the complainant became suspicious and requested their identification cards.
At that point, Boateng reportedly jumped out of the moving vehicle and fled with the gold.
The complainant then struggled with Abotsi and managed to arrest him.
ASP Achiburi said frantic efforts were underway to arrest Razak, Boakye, Alhaji Abu and Boateng to face justice, adding that investigations were ongoing.
Counsel for Abotsi, Mr Andrew Vortia, prayed the court to grant his client bail, arguing that Abotsi had pleaded not guilty, had a fixed place of abode and was gainfully employed.
He said bail was a fundamental right and that the accused could stand trial while on bail with reliable sureties.
However, the prosecution opposed the bail application, stating that Abotsi could assist the police in apprehending his alleged accomplices.
The prosecution assured the court that investigations would be expedited.
