In January 1997, Kwame Mainu was at Kumasi University in Ghana encouraging to run a brief class for smaller enterprises on accounting with personal computers. As he was expecting a Kumasi-centered prescription drugs cartel to revive their initiatives to recruit couriers from Kumasi academics going to the Uk, a British underneath-cover agent, Tam Gordon, experienced been attached to Kwame’s crew from Warwick College. It was thought that the cartel prepared to conceal cocaine in carved wood coat hangers and Kwame believed that he could find out where by the coat hangers were to be built.
Kwame drove Tam in the outdated Land Rover to the informal industrial place acknowledged as Anloga, a place dominated by carpenters and woodworkers of all sorts. Behind the workshops, charcoal burning kilns were in perpetual operation, filling the air with gases that stung noses and caused eyes to redden and flood. Kwame unsuccessful to come across a path in between piles of timber, stacks of wooden products and solutions and enormous potholes crammed with h2o from previous evening’s fantastic storm. ‘It’s not far from right here, we can wander,’ Kwame said, ‘but I am going to have to get out on your aspect if I am to preserve my socks dry.’
Strolling was just about as tricky as driving because a appreciable pedestrian traffic dominated the least muddy tracks concerning the obstacles. Carrying head-masses of extended picket planks, chairs and tables and huge sacks of wooden shavings, the bare-footed locals in shorts produced no concessions to visitors who were a lot less suitably dressed. ‘I hope this will be well worth it,’ called Tam, as he slithered and cursed and watched Kwame attract at any time further in advance.
Kwame was heading for SRS Engineering, the workshop wherever the coat hanger forming devices had been made. He was about to switch off the street when he realised that Tam, trailing driving, might not see in which he experienced long gone. He waited for Tam to puff and perspire his way to where by he was standing. ‘It’s appropriate listed here,’ Kwame explained, leading the small distance to the SRS workshop and knocking on the open up doorway of the manager’s office environment. As generally the welcome was cordial.
‘What can we do for you?’ Solomon Djokoto questioned.
‘Can you tell us about the device for building hollow wood coat hangers,’ Tam replied.
‘The wooden is fashioned in two identical halves, but they necessary one particular machine to variety the exterior and another machine to sort the within.’
‘Is there any likelihood of seeing the devices?’
‘I question if they would demonstrate you. They regard them as industrial techniques.’
‘Are they below in Anloga?’
‘No, but not significantly absent, – around the Hanabis sawmill and the Shell filling station.’
‘I know the location,’ claimed Kwame.
As they ended up about to depart, a thought struck Kwame. ‘Do you nevertheless have the primary sample? He requested Solomon. ‘No, they insisted on using it away when the equipment have been gathered, but I nonetheless have my sketches.’
‘That’s high-quality,’ claimed Tam, ‘Do you mind if I get a photograph?’
‘Go ahead,’ mentioned Solomon.