Jail Break In Tamale

The Northern Regional Police Command has announced a GHC 2,000 reward for any person who would divulge vital information leading to the arrest of Johnson Kombian aka Burger, who broke jail over the weekend.

Burger, a notorious criminal, was serving a five-year jail term in Tamale Central prisons for breaking jail on two occasions and was also being tried for robbery and threats on the lives of residents before he absconded.

ACP Awuni Angwubutoge, who announced the reward, told DAILY GUIDE the miscreant was believed to be in possession of sophisticated weapons since he failed to give them leads to where he had hidden those he stole from some soldiers he gunned down.

He called on residents within the eastern corridors of the region to furnish the police with information for his immediate arrest since his presence outside was a threat to their personal security, warning that Burger is deadly.

The police boss expressed worry at the way the prison authorities dealt with him leniently, leading to his escape, indicating the difficulty under which the police underwent before arresting him.

ACP however hinted that a serious search would be conducted to track down the jail breaker who thought he had outsmarted the security agencies in the region, calling for collaboration for his re-arrest.

Johnson Kombian alias Burger, 32, who is the leader of a gang, it would be recalled, was on the wanted list of the police after he reportedly terrorized some residents in the region.

He was also said to have been involved in about 8 high-profile criminal activities but was arrested last year upon vigilance from the police.

His arrest gladdened ACP Awuni who said his continuous existence posed a threat to the security of travelers.

According to a diary of his criminal activities, Kombian enjoyed the support of some accomplices when he embarked on his nefarious activities and was earlier arrested in January 8, 2005 for robbing a bank at Garu in the Garu-Timpani district of the Upper East Region.

He was again arrested for possession of firearms without authority, in addition to stealing a fully-loaded AK47 assault rifle from the Nakpanduri police station and was put in jail in Gambaga and Tamale respectively.

Security sources said he broke jail at each instance and became more dangerous to commuters, residents and the business community wherever he was found or his presence felt.

To prove his criminal prowess, he single-handedly gunned down two uniformed military officers at Nakpanduri in 2007 and took away their weapons after a fierce scuffle.

Earlier last year, he was reported to have robbed several persons in Bimbilla and Nakpanduri at gun-point as well as kidnapping some of his victims for undisclosed ransoms in the process.

This was followed by murder attempts on one Mathias Jato on his hospital bed, after he robbed him at his house and inflicted multiple wounds on him.

His cup however became full when ACP Awuni, during a working visit to the Bunkpurrugu-Yunyoo district, tasked his men to track and hunt him down dead or alive.

In ensuring that he was grabbed, plain-clothed men of the Service were deployed to the area to mount surveillance on him, but he got wind of the security presence and fled to Bolgatanga.

With collaboration from the two regional commanders, he was finally busted and brought to Tamale where he was locked up for jail-breaking and awaiting the outcome of other charges.

But just when the police were about to heave a good sigh of relief, it was reported he had broken jail though prison authorities would not comment on circumstances leading to the escape.

DAILY GUIDE gathered that Kombian�s legs were in chains and was kept in a separate cell where he was serving a five-year jail term but close sources said evidence available indicate the suspect was aided to abscond.

Source: Daily Guide/Ghana