Farmer gets five years jail sentence for assault

A 32-year-old farmer who attacked and assaulted an electricity meter reader at Domeabra in the Ahafo Ano South West District, has been sentenced to five years imprisonment by the Nkawie Circuit Court.

Michael Frimpong was said to have assaulted the official of the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCO) who had gone to his house to disconnect an illegal power connection to the house.

He pleaded guilty to charges of stealing, self-reconnection and assault on a public officer and was convicted on his own plea by the court presided by Mr Michael Johnson Abbey.

Police Chief Inspector Jonas Newlove Agyei told the court that the complainant was the meter reader of NEDCO stationed at the Domeabra community.

He said on February 22 this year, at about 1030 hours, the complainant together with a team of officials from the company embarked on a mass disconnection exercise for defaulting customers at the Domeabra Township.

The prosecution said when the team got to the house of the convict, it was detected that he had reconnected the electricity power which had been disconnected from his meter for non-payment of bills.

The team therefore decided to disconnect the power again but the convict together with two other accomplices, who are at large, got angry and attacked the team, whipped them with cables and other objects.

Chief Inspector Agyei said the complainant who was severely beaten while on the electricity pole trying to disconnect the cables, sustained serious injuries in his eyes, back and other parts of the body.

The prosecution said a report was made to the Tepa Police who in their investigations detected that the convict owed the company about GHc 2, 600 in electricity bills, before he was disconnected.

Chief Inspector Agyei said the convict was arrested from his hideout at Mantukwa village on March 21 this year, upon a tip-off and in his cautioned statement admitted the offence.