Court orders suspect transferred to prison custody

Mamponteng (Ash), Jan 27, GNA - The Mamponteng magistrate court on Thursday ordered Mathew Issifu, 24, who is standing trial for alleged armed robbery to be transferred from police cell to prison custody. This followed a request by the prosecution to the court to transfer the accused to prison custody following three escape bids he made while in police custody.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Thomas Fokuo told the court presided over by Mr Uuter P. Dery that since Issifu was remanded in police custody on January 11, this year, he made three escape bids without success.

"Your worship but for the vigilance of police personnel on duty, the accused would have escaped from police custody", he told the court. The prosecution told the court that on his first attempt, Issifu tried to escape through the ceiling of the police cell whilst on the second and third attempts, he feigned sickness to win the sympathy of the police but to no avail.

Issifu is standing trial for allegedly robbing one Yaw Agyekum of 25,000 cedis and his mobile phone at Hemang near Mamponteng in early January.

His plea was not taken and will re-appear on February 08. According to the prosecution, Issifu, who is a taxi driver, picked the complainant who was going to Kumasi and branched off the main Mamponteng-Kumasi trunk road.

Ke headed towards Hemang where he (accused) and his three accomplices robbed the complainant at gunpoint. Mr Fokuo said luck eluded him as he was arrested at his hideout and after thorough search, a locally manufactured gun and two empty shells and a bunch of keys were found on him.