Three persons in police custody in Walewale in the North East Region have tested positive for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

The three were in a group of 10 who were being prepared for transfer to the Tamale prisons when a pre-departure COVID-19 test was conducted on them and the result confirmed the three as positive cases.

They have since been quarantined in new police cells.

The North East Regional Police Crime Officer, Superintendent Reuben Dugah who confirmed this to Graphic Online said the inmates were responding to treatment at the isolation center.

The West Mamprusi Municipal COVID 19 team has since commenced contact tracing of persons and officers who have had contacts with the said inmates for their samples to be taken for testing.

He explained that the Walewale Health Directorate COVID-19 team last week took samples of ten inmates in the cell for testing for COVID-19 upon request and the results came out that three of them were positive for COVID-19.

“Our new way of dealing with prisoners is that if you want to take prisoners from police custody to prison custody, you must necessarily take them through a mandatory COVID-19 test and so based on this, the Walewale District Command made a request to the Municipal Health Directorate to conduct COVID-19 tests of some inmates [who were] due to be taken to the Tamale Prisons.

Samples were taken from about 10 prisoners who are in police custody and submitted to the laboratory for testing. Results came out indicating that three of them had tested positive. Immediately they have been isolated to a station where we have a free cell.”

He said the cell has since been shut down for fumigation while the inmates have been moved to different cells.