Rawlings' Aide is Lying - Ex-IGP

Former Inspector General of Police, (IGP) Peter Nanfuri has categorically denied ever speaking to Victor Smith, the Special Aide to Ex-President Rawlings, on the serial murder of women that griped the country prior to the 2000 general elections.

Mr. Victor Smith, who describes himself as a journalist cum politician, yesterday published in “The Weekly Standard” a paper of which he is the Managing Editor, that in 2001, Mr. Nanfuri had come to him (Smith) to complain and lament that President Kufuor had interfered in and impeded investigations into the said serial murders that gruesomely took the lives of 34 Ghanaian women.

Mr. Smith alleged further that Mr. Nanfuri, who was then IGP, claimed he had gone to brief President Kufuor on the state of investigations into the murders, and was poised to follow a lead on it to Togo, when the president told him to abort the operation and rather seek directives from a junior Police Officer, Superintendent Asante Apeatu, who now heads the Criminal Investigative Department (CID) but was by then a Supt. In the criminal laboratory.

Speaking to the Weekend Crusading GUIDE, Mr. Smith said he stood by what his paper had published.

The main source of Mr. Smith’s allegation, Mr. Peter Nanfuri was contacted by this paper yesterday and he said he had never ever in his life spoken to him (Smith) on the issue of the said serial killings.

“Oh! He is imagining it. It is not possible. Even if I had met with the President to discuss that investigation, I would not do anything like that. If I had discussed something with the president, why would I go and discuss it with Victor Smith?” Mr. Nanfuri questioned in an interview with Weekend Crusading GUIDE.

The ex-IGP who was also a former capo of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) was quick to rationalize that as a professional security officer, it would be illogical for him to have gone to Victor Smith with such an information even if it ever existed.

“What was his capacity? What was his interest? I have never met him in 2001 or on any occasion at all to discuss such an issue. He is a friend but I do not remember meeting him and discussing anything with him in that interest.

“I know what I am about. I do not want anybody to bring politics into my life so I do not discuss matters concerning investigations.

“I mean what have I got to discuss with (Victor Smith) on Security matters”, Mr. Nanfuri noted and said though he had not read the said story, he had heard it on radio and would soon react appropriately.