Bullion Van Attacks: Armed Forces Partner With Private Company To Assemble Armoured Cars For Banks

• Ghana has started assembling robust armoured vehicles for the safe transportation of bulk cash by banks and other institutions
• The company building the vehicles is a joint venture between a company managed by the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) and a Kenaki manufacturing
• The company was formed in response to fatal hits on cash-in-transit by armed robbers a few months ago

A Ghana-based company has joined forces with the military to build top-of-range armoured vehicles to enable banks and other institutions to transport bulk cash safely.

The company, DIHOC-KENAKI Manufacturing Company Limited (DIKMAC), believes the locally-assembled vehicles are robust enough to protect against robbery heists and other potentially fatal attacks.

According to a report by the state-owned Ghanaian Times newspaper, DIKMAC has been formed as a joint venture between an autonomous company managed by the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) called Defence Industries Holding Company Limited (DIHOC) and Kenaki manufacturing.

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Last Wednesday, February 1, 2023, president Nana Akufo-Addo inspected some of the newly built armoured vehicles when he visited the GAF ahead of their 2022 end-of-year activities.

Managing Director for DIKMAC Kenneth Akibate told the newspaper that an unnamed bank has already arranged to have one to transport cash in build.

Akibate explained that the vehicles were built in response to the incessant attacks on Bullion Vans by armed robbers not long ago.

He said the vans have been specially built "to help protect lives of the police escorts, bank workers and also safeguard cash and other valuables in transit."

DIKMAC’s specially built armoured vehicles have been endorsed by the Armed Forces Council, Akibate disclosed.

The Bank of Ghana, the police and the Ghana Association of Bankers all back the new locally-manufactured vehicles.

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Police drag 4 officers to court over Bullion Van attacks

Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh reported in a previous story that four police officers and one civilian who were accused of taking part in a series of bullion van attacks were put before a court in March 2022.

Police did not make their charges public but announced in a statement that the suspects would be arraigned on March 9, 2022.

The arrests of the five suspects and their arraignment were a major breakthrough for investigations into the attacks on cash-in-transit.

Source: YEN.com.gh