By Gifty Amofa
Accra, Sept. 21, GNA – Police investigations have established that Barbara Asantewaa Kodua, who operates the social media account “Ghana Jollof”, is a friend of Salomey Awiti Bafoh, a nurse remanded by an Accra Circuit Court for two weeks over abetment of crime, to wit, publication of false news.
Commissioner of Police (COP) Lydia Yaako Donkor, Director-General of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service, disclosed this at a press conference on Friday.
She said the Police had established interactions and money-transfer transactions between the two, while Salomey had admitted during investigations that they were friends.
COP Donkor said the development came to light after the Police, in collaboration with the National Signals Bureau, monitored their activities for some time before Salomey’s arrest.
She said the monitoring formed part of efforts by the Police to clamp down on illicit online activities.
The Police observed that the TikTok account bearing the name “Ghana Jollof” was used to make offensive and inciteful comments and publish videos containing false information that had the potential to cause fear and panic.
COP Donkor cited an instance in which the account claimed that there had been a near coup d’état at the Jubilee House.
She said Police intelligence further established that Salomey assisted in distributing such videos and recruited others to circulate them.
The CID Director-General said the Police also discovered that some influential personalities in society were allegedly sponsoring the dissemination of the content, with evidence including mobile money transfer records that would be tendered in court.
Salomey had, on some occasions, shared the money with Ghana Jollof and other accomplices, while Ghana Jollof had also done the same, she said.
COP Donkor said the Police were pursuing investigations to identify the sponsors and other persons involved in sharing the alleged illegal content.
She advised the public to exercise caution in their online discourse and help create a safe digital space for all.
GNA
Edited by Agnes Boye-Doe