A robbery attack at Buduatta Junction on the Kasoa-Winneba Highway over the weekend, July 6, led to some four passengers sustaining gunshot wounds after the armed group opened fire.

According to reports, the armed group blocked the road and began robbing commuters at gunpoint. A Toyota Hiace minibus came under fire when the driver attempted to stop, resulting in gunshot injuries to four passengers.

The injured are currently receiving treatment at the Winneba Trauma and Specialist Hospital. So far, the Police have managed to apprehend one of the suspected robbers.

Suspects apprehended are expected to be charged with the offence of robbery contrary to Section 149 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), as amended by the Criminal Offences (Amendment) Act, 2003 (Act 646).

The recent incident forms part of a series of highway robberies reported in the Gomoa East District, particularly between May and June.

Previous attacks occurred near Potsin and Okyereko Junctions. Police believe the gang shifted their activities to Buduatta Junction due to increased security in other hotspots.

Officers from the Formed Police Unit and the Kasoa Divisional SWAT team responded swiftly to the scene. The affected vehicle was later escorted to the Gomoa Dominase Police Station.

While returning from the operation, police spotted two suspicious individuals near the Onion Market. One escaped into the bush, but the other was arrested. Three mobile phones believed to belong to the victims were found on him.

The suspect was identified by the driver and some of the passengers and was transferred to the Central East Regional Police Command for further investigation.

Amid the surging robbery incidents, the police in Gomoa Dominase bemoan limited logistics and personnel, which are affecting their ability to deal with rising cases of highway robbery.

The authorities within the locality have therefore called on the government and the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Christian Tetteh Yohuno, to urgently intervene.

In the first half of the year, the Ghana Police Service has managed to secure convictions against individuals who engaged in armed robbery.

On July 1, an armed robber, Paul Avortide, was jailed for 19 years with hard labour for robbery by the Ho Circuit Court.

The 25-year-old convict, on May 21, at about 4:00 am, at Tsikpota near New Housing, Ho, with a machete in his hand, robbed Ogechi Chidiebere, a Nigerian resident, of her Gh¢3,000 and her Tecno Spark 30c mobile phone valued at Gh¢2,500 when she was on her way to attend antenatal care at the Ho Municipal Hospital.

Last month, a 36-year-old Nigerian national, Stanley Afaku, wassentenced to 10 years imprisonment by the Sekondi Circuit Court.

The convicted notorious armed robber will be deported by the Ghana Immigration Service upon completion of his jail term. On 23rd February, the convict and his accomplice, Samuel Nickson (unconfirmed whether he has been jailed), attacked Nash Arthur, a security guard at Effia-Nkwanta Regional Hospital in Sekondi, at gunpoint.