Accra — THE WAGING war against narcotic substance in the country is progressing steadily as State Attorneys yesterday, arraigned a Police Officer attached to the Accra Regional headquarters of the Police Service and a car dealer before an Accra Fast Track Court in connection with some missing slaps of cocaine retrieved from suspected drug barons.

Maxwell Antwi, a car dealer at Nyamekye, a suburb of Accra and General Lance Corporal (G/L/CPL), Ekow Russell are facing three counts of handling narcotic substances namely cocaine.

While Antwi is charged with one count of possession of narcotic drug without authority, G/L/CPL Russell is facing three counts of possessing narcotic drug without authority, supply of narcotic drug and engaging in prohibited business related to narcotic drug.

The accused persons have pleaded not guilty to all three counts and the court, presided over by Justice S.Y. Anim, an Appeal Court judge sitting as a High Court Judge, remanded the suspects in custody to re-appear on July 9, 2007.

Legal brains of defence counsel are made up of Mr. Musah Ahmed for the 1st accused person and Capt. Nkrabea Effah Darteh (rtd.) for the 2nd accused person.

Briefing the court on the facts of the case, State Attorneys, Evelyn Keelson and Marina Atuobi indicated that on March 27, 2007, Antwi, 1st accused, was arrested by a Police Officer from the CID Headquarters on suspicion of possessing narcotic drug.

According to the State Attorneys, a search conducted on Antwi revealed some whitish substance suspected to be cocaine and upon interrogation, the suspect noted that the substance was part of some 900grammes of similar substance that Russell, 2nd accused, gave to him to sell on his behalf.

It was the case of the State Attorneys that Antwi had already sold some quantities of the drugs and given the proceeds to Russell and was attempting to sell the rest when he was arrested.

Prosecution further noted that when Russell was arrested, he confirmed that he gave the substance to Antwi to sell for him after he got the substance from some Nigerian drug dealers he arrested.

Meanwhile, State Attorneys say the substances found on Antwi had proved positive as cocaine, a narcotic drug after laboratory analysis.

Investigations further revealed that on January 16, 2007, upon receiving information from an informant and some Nigerians that one, Sebastian Uba was dealing in drugs, Russell accompanied the informants and led some of his colleagues from the Monitors Unit of the Regional Headquarters to arrest the said Sebastian in his house, prosecution informed the court.

State Attorneys additionally indicated that on the way, Russell directed his colleagues to wait and monitor the operation from a distance whilst he together with the Nigerians moved into the house of Sebastian to arrest him.

Investigations revealed that Russell arrested Sebastian with about eight slabs of substance suspected to be cocaine, prosecution told the court, indicating that one, Matthew, a brother to Sebastian was also arrested.

Prosecution held that Russell handed over the suspects to his colleagues but kept the slabs of cocaine in the vehicle used in effecting the arrest indicating that when his colleagues had sent the suspects to the police station, the former and the Nigerians drove in a different direction heading towards Achimota with the eight slabs of cocaine.

State Attorneys contended that on their way, Russell distributed the drugs, giving five slabs out of the slabs of cocaine arrested to the Nigerians and handed over a slab to his superiors, when he got to the Regional CID office, suggesting that he had seized only one slab from Sebastian.

Prosecutor told the court that on January 30, 2007, the suspect, Sebastian Uba escaped while in the custody of Russell, who had been instructed to take the suspect to the Regional CID for investigations.

State Attorneys have indicated that they would provide six witnesses to prove their case before the court.