From John Bediako
Adama Dogo, aka America, leader of an armed criminal gang, was shot dead by the police at Ashaiman near Tema yesterday. The action of the police came barely a day after one of their colleagues from the command – Constable Micheal Kporyi – was shot dead by criminals riding a motorbike. The police suspect ‘America’ to be the kingpin behind numerous contract killings in the country.
The Chronicle’s investigations revealed that ‘America’, who claimed to have links, created an empire of gangsters, who he used for his nefarious activities upon a request and subsequent payment of the contract sum.
The Chronicle gathered that sometime this month, motorbike patrol policemen on duty at Tema Community 9 engaged two criminals in a fierce gun battle, with one of the cops being shot in the thigh by the gunmen.
The wounded policeman, however, managed to return fire, killing the gangster instantly.
The deceased gangster was reportedly one of the ‘America’s’ boys, and upon hearing of his death, ‘America’ swore to revenge by eliminating policemen every other day, and to crown it with a senior police officer. He, according to police sources, also swore to make Tema very uncomfortable for the Regional Police Commander for the loss of two of his men at the instance of the police.
On Monday, June 12, 2017, at about 21:00 hours, Constable Kporyi of the Tema Rapid Deployment Force (RDF), while on a motorbike to a duty point, was sprayed with bullets upon reaching Yellow Signboard, opposite the UBI filling station near Michel Camp, by unknown gunmen.
Police investigation linked ‘America’ and his criminal armed gang as being responsible for the Constable’s killing. Barely 24 hours later, a squad of crack armed policemen stormed Washington, a suburb of Ashaiman near Tema, to a supposed fortress of the gang, led by ‘America’.
Information gleaned from police sources indicated that ‘America’, who apparently got wind of the police operation in his area, climbed the roof of his building and hid himself in the ceiling.
A search conducted by the police in his rooms yielded no fruitful results, as there was no sign of his presence. The Chronicle gathered that the police had initially wanted to retreat after failing to locate ‘America’ in the house.
They, however, changed their mind, and instead, decided to fire tear gas canisters into the rooms. The trick worked to perfection, as Adama Dogo, after inhaling and experiencing the effects of the chemical, suddenly descended from his hideout in the ceiling.
Armed with a sub-machine gun (SMG), he reportedly cocked and aimed at one of the policemen, but his action was too late. The police quickly opened fire, which was too much for him, and he dropped dead. His SMG was loaded with 20 rounds of ammunition.
Two AK47 assault rifles with 12 rounds and other ammunition were retrieved from one of his rooms. His wife was among five suspects who were apprehended during the operation.
The Chronicle’s in-depth investigation revealed that ‘America’, a Burkinabe, first settled in the Asante Regional capital, Kumasi, where he started robbery activities.
He was alleged to have masterminded the killing of a policeman in Kumasi and took his rifle away.
That weapon was later retrieved, when police battled an armed group and traced the gun to be that of the late policeman in Kumasi. He then escaped to Tema, where some people engaged him to fight their cause in land and chieftaincy disputes.
‘America’ established a camp in the enclave of Gbetsile, Appolonia and Kubekro, near Ashaiman, which he literally declared a republic, in the sense that the police had openly stated that they had no mandate to enter the jurisdiction and effect arrests.
In the said republic, the group reportedly operates an armoury, where he stores different kinds of sophisticated weapons such as AK47s, SMGs, G3s, pistols, revolvers, pump action guns and locally-made ones.
He, at a stage, started selling land his masters wanted him to guard and pocketing the proceeds, an action that resulted in friction between himself and the followers from Ashaiman, leading to a rebellion in their camp, resulting in the deaths of some members of the group, including one Lartiokor in November 2013.
He, therefore, went to Kumasi and recruited gangsters, and beefed it up with some from Nima, Fadama and Kasoa, who he used to terrorise innocent citizens in the Accra-Tema Metropolis. The Chronicle source at the Police Headquarters in Accra, intimated that the killing of ‘America’ was welcome news.
According to the source, he was not surprised that the operation that felled him was leaked, but it was too late for him to escape. He stated that ‘America’ had been on their radar, suspected of masterminding a number of dastardly acts.
These included the murder of the boss of a soft drink bottling company in Accra, assassination of the Chief of Sota, near Dodowa, and three of his subjects, a little over a year ago on the Dodowa-Afienya road.
Others are the shooting of one Mr Tetteh of Appolonia, burning of his vehicle and house, because he fell out with a group in a chieftaincy dispute in that locality.
‘America’ and his boys were also on contract at Tokpo, near Asutsuare, to eliminate the current Paramount Chief of Osudoku, Nene Animle, when a few years ago, the Osudoku Paramount stool became vacant, following the demise of Nene Klagbordjor.
His activities were allegedly, according to the Police Headquarters source, extended to Anloga in a chieftaincy dispute. Dogo is also alleged to have masterminded the killing of a Dutch lady at New Sebrepor in 2014, not forgetting the murder of a former Airforce officer at New Dawhenya.
Meanwhile, the Tema Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) George Tuffuor, in an interview with The Chronicle, sounded a warning to criminals to find different vocations.
According to him, the action against ‘America’, who promised to make Tema an uncomfortable working ground for him, should serve as a good lesson to them, as the jurisdiction has no place for them.
Information available has it that remnants of his group, who are suspected to have fled to Somanya, Nima and Kasoa, and in some cases, Aflao, have promised to stage surprise attacks from their new bases, in retaliation for their boss’ death.
Stay tuned!
From John Bediako Adama Dogo, aka America, leader of an armed criminal gang, was shot dead by the police at Ashaiman near Tema yesterday. The action of the police came barely a day after one of their colleagues from the command – Constable Micheal Kporyi – was shot dead by criminals riding a motorbike. The […] Read Full Story
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