A swoop conducted by the Northern Regional Police Command to clamp down on criminal activities in the Tamale Metropolis and its environs has resulted in the arrest of 30 suspected criminals.
The suspects were rounded up in their hideouts in some forest reserves within the metropolis which had become a safe haven for criminals, last Saturday morning.
The operation formed part of activities by the command to rid the metropolis of criminal activities, including robberies and car snatching, which were on the rise in the region in recent times.
They were believed to be behind series of car snatching and highway robbery incidents in the area.
Items including substances suspected to be Indian hemp, motorbikes, machetes, crowbars, among others, were retrieved from the suspects.
During the operation, the police also burnt down camps and structures erected in the reserve that were housing the suspects.
Briefing
Briefing the media, the Northern Regional Police Crime Officer, Superintendent Bernard Baba Ananga, said the suspects would be screened and those found culpable of crimes would be put before court.
According to him, most of the criminals in the metropolis had been planning their operations in the forest while those from other regions used the place as their hideout anytime they committed crimes.
He, therefore, called on the residents who had been attacked by any criminal in recent time to help identify the suspects.
Swoop
This is not the first time such an operation has been carried out in the Aboabo forest which is noted to be the abode of criminal gangs and a 'no-go-area’ for residents of the metropolis.
In February this year, the regional police command carried out a similar operation and rounded up about 50 suspects who were subsequently screened and prosecuted.
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