Two on remand over diesel theft

An Accra Circuit Court has remanded two persons into police custody for allegedly stealing 54,000 litres of diesel valued at GH¢280,260.00, belonging to their employer.

They are Yakubu Awudu, a driver and Isaac Boadi alias Kojo, driver’s mate, their accomplice one Fataw Mohammed is currently at large.

Awudu pleaded guilty with explanation to conspiracy to commit crime, causing unlawful damage and stealing whilst Boadi pleaded not guilty to the same charges.

They will make their next appearance on July 17.

Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Musah B. Hamidu told the court presided over by Mrs Afia Agbenu that Mr Nazif Saani is the complainant in the case, and a businessman who deals in petroleum products, as well as a transporter.

He said in 2018, the complainant gave his DAF CF460 truck with the registration number GS 264-14 to Awudu to drive, where he (Awudu) employed Boadi as his mate.

The Prosecution said the accused had since been loading petroleum products to supply to some customers in different parts of the country.

Chief Inspector Hamidu said on June 24, this year, the truck was loaded with 54,000 litres of diesel valued GH¢280,260.00 at Tema to be taken to a customer at Yendi in the Northern Region.

Accused persons left Tema in the night and met the complainant at the Community 18 Junction on the Accra Tema Motorway where he gave them GH¢2,400.00 for their traveling expenses.

The Prosecution said when the accused persons got to the Accra end of the Tema Motorway, they were short of fuel and bought some in a gallon to pour into the truck.

He said whilst they were there, Mohammed now at large who is one of the drivers of the complainant came to meet them.

He said it was at that time that they hatched a plan to sell the fuel and burn the truck so they drove the truck to Tema and sold the fuel to one Nana Yaw.

The prosecution said they afterwards drove to Achimota and bought 75 litres of petrol and later drove the petrol tanker to a spot between Osino and Anyinam in the Eastern Region.

He said they drove vehicle into a ditch, poured the petrol on it and set it ablaze.

He said Awudu then called the complainant’s secretary and informed him that they have had an accident on their way to Yendi and the secretary, in turn, informed the complainant, who asked the secretary to go and attend to the accused persons.

Police Chief Inspector Hamidu said the complainant later followed up to the scene and found out that the 54,000 litres of diesel they were transporting was missing from the tank and Yakubu too was nowhere to be found.

He said when Boadi was questioned he confessed to the crime so he was arrested and handed over to the Criminal Investigations Department of the Ghana Police Service.

He said investigations later led to the arrest of Awudu at his hideout in Kumasi.