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The Central Regional Police Command as of the third quarter of 2014 recorded 14,688 criminal cases as against 15, 016 n the previous year, showing a decrease of 328 cases. Robbery during the first, second and third quarter of 2013 was 124 cases against 35 cases this year, showing that the number of robberies recorded during the first three quarters of 2014 had reduced by 72 per cent. Deputy Commissioner of Police Mr Ransford Moses Ninson, the Central Regional Police Commander, said this when Mr Mark Owen Woyongo, the Minister of Interior, addressed a durbar of security agencies under the Interior Ministry in Cape Coast. The durbar, which was attended by personnel from the Ghana Police Service, Prisons, Fire Service, Immigration and the Nationals Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), formed part of the Minister�s two- day familiarization tour of the region which also took him to the Ankaful Maximum Security Prison. Rape cases also reduced by 31 percent but defilement increased by 3 percent. He said the Command achieved the reduction in crime cases as a result of effective and efficient use of the conventional methods of policing. He said many of the robberies were in Kasoa, Agona Swedru and Dunkwa-On-Offin which are fast growing communities near Kumasi and Accra and are experiencing the spillover of crime experienced in those cities. DCOP Ninson said the Regional Police Command, in collaboration with its sister security agencies and other stakeholders, had remained resolute to curb robbery and other criminal activities. He said another disturbing factor which was dissipating valuable national human resource was the carnage on the roads. He said the issue of road traffic accidents was complex and needed to be tackled by all stakeholders. At the end of the third quarter of 2014, a total of 792 road traffic accidents were recorded resulting in 162 deaths as against 897 accidents and 207 deaths recorded during the same period last year, showing a 13.3 per cent reduction in road accidents and 22 per cent in deaths. He attributed the decline to the periodic joint education and enforcement exercises by the MTTUS, the Road Safety Commission, and DVLA. DCOP Ninson said the region has been relatively calm over the period and that through the efforts of the command, in collaboration with the traditional authorizes, they have been able to resolve some chieftaincy disputes including the Abubonko chieftaincy problem which had lingered on for more than 20 years. He said they appreciated the strenuous efforts being made by the government to re-tool all the agencies under the Ministry of the Interior but that they were still saddled with problems which include lack of both residential and office accommodation and inadequate fuel supply to enhance operation mobility. Others are the lack of buses for operational activities and Black Maria to convey prisoners to and from court, lack of vehicle accessories to service vehicles and lack of office equipment and stationeries. For his Part DCOP James Amankrah Yeboah, the Commander of the Ankaful Maximum Security Prison, said the facility lacked CCT cameras, body scanners, lack of operational vehicles, inadequate budgetary allocation and residential accommodation and well as a generator .