The inhabitants of Dagomba Line in the Asokore Mampong Municipality have accused the police in Kumasi of extortion under the guise of regular swoops.

They claim the police officers charge as much as GH₵500 per suspect arrested in such swoops. The swoops, they claimed, have led to the loss of two lives in the past years.

The residents are also agitated over the arrest of innocent people during the police operations.

“They come here frequently just to extort from us, it is thievery,” one resident, Baba said.

Dagomba Line is arguably the biggest slum in the Ashanti Region. With dwellers scattered along a part of Kumasi's main rail line, it is the hub of scrap dealers.

Like other slums in the country, there are suspected criminals and drug peddlers taking shelter there. The police often undertake swoops when they pick up information on suspects.

But some residents are agitated by the violent and arbitrary conduct of the swoops.

Baba, a scrap dealer who has lived in the slum for decades, was arrested during a swoop three weeks ago.

“I was on a bench in front of my shop with my girlfriend. I saw people running in my direction but I continued to sit. One of them arrested me and started searching me for drugs but they didn't find any on me. One of the senior officers told them to arrest me even though they didn't find anything on me”, he alleged.

But Baba claims to be innocent of engaging in drugs. After spending three nights in the police cell, he was bailed by his brother.

"When my brother came to bail me, he was told that the officer in charge is out. So one of them took GH₵20 to place a call to the officer in charge. He then charged us GH₵500 but after negotiations, they accepted four hundred cedis," he added.

According to him, his story can be corroborated by many in the community.

Also, 32-year-old Slahadeen Tafipe is the second person to have died during a swoop of the enclave in the last two years.

The youth are worried about the threat to their lives by the police excesses. By law, persons arrested in police swoops are expected to be investigated and put before court for prosecution.

Meanwhile, the Police in the Ashanti Region are yet to respond to the allegations.