The Ghana Police Service has deployed its special Anti-Armed Robbery Squad (AARS) to the Eastern and Bono East regions to clamp down on the increasing activities of armed robbers in those regions.

The AARS special force is to boost the capabilities of the two regional commands to ruthlessly fight robbery and other violent crime on highways.

The acting Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr George Akuffo Dampare, deployed 227 policemen and senior officers, including 126 personnel, for the Eastern Region, with 101 personnel headed for the Bono East Region.

The team for the Eastern Region is led by the Director-General, Administration, Commissioner of Police (COP) Mr Christian Tetteh Yohonu, and assisted by the Director-General of Operations, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Mr Mohammed Fuseini Suraji.

The team for the Bono East Region is led by the Director-General in charge of Information Communications Technology (ICT), Commissioner of Police (COP) Mr Edward Tabiri.

The acting Director-General of the Public Affairs Directorate of the Ghana Police Service, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP),Mr Kwesi Ofori, gave the details in an interview with the Daily Graphic yesterday after the deployment of the special squad.

He gave an assurance that the police are prepared to rid the country of armed robbers and called for the cooperation of the general public during the exercise in the two regions.

ACP Mr Ofori said: “They are under instruction to deal ruthlessly with criminals in the two regions and their surrounding areas”.

He said while in the regions, the special squad would patrol and mount snap checkpoints to maintain high visibility and do more public engagement with communities to support ongoing police activities aimed at reducing crime in the jurisdictions.

The special Anti Armed Robbery Squad, he said, would also launch intelligence-led attacks on criminal elements in both regions and protect traders and economic activity in the area.

The acting Director-General of the Police Public Affairs Directorate appealed to the public not to feel intimidated by the heavy police presence.

“We entreat members of the communities living within these regions to assist the police in ridding their communities of criminals. The police will stop at nothing to keep you safe and secure,” he stated.