Four individuals accused of stealing Biometric Voter Registration kits from the Electoral Commission (EC) are facing charges of theft and dishonest receipt of stolen property.
They are currently in police custody.
The accused include three EC employees—Philip Lartey, Benyamin Fianyi, and Joseph Blankson Adumadzie—and a student named Clifford Yeboah.
The three EC staff members are charged with theft and conspiracy to steal, while Yeboah faces a charge of dishonest receipt.
All four have pleaded not guilty. It’s alleged that five Dell laptops, components of the stolen Biometric Voter Registration kits, went missing.
Investigations led to the recovery of three HP laptops from Yeboah and a printer and three biometric verification device chargers from Fianyi.
The theft reportedly occurred on March 9, 2024, during the relocation of materials from the commission’s former headquarters to a warehouse. Fianyi and Adumadzie are said to have conspired to steal HP printers.
Adumadzie allegedly stole a printer from a kit box and passed it to an accomplice (“A2”), who then took three biometric verification device chargers. Another accomplice (“A1”) allegedly took three HP laptops from the kit boxes.
Earlier, five EC officials were suspended pending investigation for their suspected involvement in the theft of Biometric Verification Devices (BVDs).
These individuals have been handed over to the police to aid further inquiries.
Dr. Serebour Quaicoe, the Director of Electoral Services at the EC, disclosed these developments while providing an update on the situation regarding the missing devices.
He stressed the importance of involving law enforcement to conduct thorough investigations into the matter.
