The suspects, aged between 18 and 65, included five women.

They were arrested when police personnel from the operations unit of the command visited suspected dens of criminals in areas such as Tudu in the Central Business District, spots behind the Vodafone office, near the Kwame Nkrumah Interchange, and the Arts Centre.

Fifty-one unregistered motorbikes, allegedly used by the suspects for committing various forms of crime, were also impounded during the swoop which began about 5a.m. and ended at 8a.m.

“More police swoops shall be targeted at the hideouts of criminals to frustrate activities of criminals,” said the Accra Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Mr Patrick Adusei Poku, when he launched the command’s Father Christmas operations in Accra last Monday.

The Father Christmas operation is rolled out by the Ghana Police Service every year before and after the Christmas season, as a strategy to ensure that the yuletide is devoid of criminal activities.

This is because some criminal elements take advantage of the Christmas period, which is characterised by a number of activities, including annual gatherings, church activities, conventions, musical concerts, trading, especially in the commercial centres to engage in criminal activities.

Addressing a parade mounted by 230 policemen and 30 officers from the various districts and divisions in Accra, Mr Adusei Poku said 1,200 police personnel would be deployed throughout the region to combat the negative activities of criminals.

“The deployment shall be made on the streets, lorry parks, roads and highways to manage traffic and also within the communities. We intend to make ourselves visible to give the public the assurance of safety and security so that they can go about their daily activities in a peaceful atmosphere,” he said.

Additionally, Mr Adusei Poku said police personnel would be deployed to shopping malls, public gathering centres, merry making joints, places of worship, hotels and other public places.

Advice

He used the occasion to advise the public, especially traders whose business transactions involved the use of huge sums of money, to seek police assistance when necessary.

To other business operators such as mobile money vendors, utility bills payment joints, credit care agents, he told them to take basic security precautions and endeavour to report strange characters who loitered around their business areas to the police.

To ensure a peaceful Christmas, the Greater Accra Regional Commander advised the public to be security conscious by ensuring that their personal security was not compromised, jubilating in moderation and assisting the police with information on any suspicious criminal activity.

The personnel of the various units including SWAT, Motor Transport and Traffic Department (MTTD), the recently launched Rovers Unit, which uses motorbikes to fight crime, displayed their skills to show their preparedness towards ensuring a peaceful Christmas celebration.