Driver gets 17years for robbery

Kwabena Boakye, a driver, has been sentenced to 17 years’ imprisonment by an Accra Circuit Court for robbing two people of their mobile phones worth GH¢4,500.

Kwabena conspired with one Eric Adabre, a mechanic at Abeka Night Market, a suburb of Accra to rob the complainants of the belongings.

The prosecution, led by Chief Superintendent Duuti Tuaruka, said that the two paddies robbed one Assumpta Adom Dickens, a designer of his Samsung Galaxy A3 phone worth GH¢1,500. They also robbed one Madison Caruso of his iPhone 6S valued at GH¢3,000.

One Julius Kafui Papah, an installer, was also charged with possession of stolen item- iPhone 6S at North Kaneshie in Accra.

Kwabena and Papah, who appeared before a court, presided over by Aboagye Tandoh, admitted charges of conspiracy to rob and robbery and possession of stolen items respectively.

The trial judge accordingly sentenced Kwabena to serve as a deterrent to others.

The court fined Papah GH¢4,800 or in default serve a six-year jail term.

Eric, however, denied the charges and was remanded until May 15.

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The court also ordered the investigator to send Eric to a hospital to verify his age.

Narrating events leading to the arrest of the accused persons, C/Supt. Tuaruka said Kwabena and Papah are co-tenants.

He said on April 22 at about 11pm, the accused persons, who were on separate motorbikes and two others, now at large, attacked the complainants near Fadama Night Market.

The victims, who were looking for a taxi cab to go home, were ordered by the accused persons to surrender their mobile phones or lose their lives.

C/Supt. Tuaruka noted that due to the threats, the complainants immediately handed over their phones to Kwabena and his accomplices, who bolted away.

The court further heard that two days later, the iPhone 6S, which had a tracker, was traced to Papah and it was retrieved, indicating that during interrogations, he (Papah) claimed Kwabena gave it to him.

The prosecution said upon investigation, Kwabena, and Eric were arrested and the Samsung phone was also retrieved by the police.