Suspects Dive Into Volta Lake and Leave 3,752 Slabs of Suspected Hemp Behind
Whoever was paddling the canoe near Agorta Island on the night of November 4 chose the river over arrest. When Marine Police closed in at about 11:10 p.m., the occupants went over the side and disappeared into the water, leaving behind a boat loaded with sacks that officers now say held nearly 3,800 slabs of suspected Indian hemp.
The Tema Regional Police Command says the chase began with a tip that a shipment of narcotics was moving across the Volta Lake toward Ada. Marine officers first went to Mepe, in the Volta Region, only to find that the people they were after had already left by canoe. They doubled back to Big Ada, set up the pursuit from there, and caught up with the vessel at Agorta Island.
Nobody was in custody by the end of the night, but the abandoned canoe gave police plenty to work with. It was towed to the Marine Police Base at Ada, where a search turned up 53 sacks of suspected narcotics, outboard motors, 30 yellow gallons of petrol and premix fuel, and a cutlass, among other items.
The sacks were emptied and counted at the Regional CID in Tema the next day, November 5. The tally came to 3,752 compressed slabs of dried leaves, each wrapped in cello-tape, which police suspect is Indian hemp. The slabs are being kept as exhibits until they can be formally examined.
In a statement dated November 11 and signed by ASP Dede Dzakpasu, the Command’s Head of Public Affairs, police confirmed that no arrests have been made. They said they are working to identify and track down those responsible, and they appealed to residents to come forward with credible information that could help.
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