Driver jailed 60 months for stealing employer’s vehicle

Kofi Sakyi, a taxi driver who absconded with his employer's taxi valued at GH¢75,000, has been sentenced to 60 months imprisonment by an Accra Circuit Court.

Sakyi, a.k.a. Mosquito, was sentenced after the court found him guilty of stealing at the end of the trial.

The court, presided over by Isaac Addo, passed down the sentence, saying the accused was a first-time offender and had been in custody for some time.

It, however, noted that the vehicle in question was not found.

The prosecution, led by Chief Inspector Jonas Lawer, said the complainant, Fatima Ali, was a businesswoman living in Accra New Town. At the same time, the accused person, Kofi Sakyi Isaac, a.k.a. Mosquito, was a taxi driver living close to the complainant's residence.

The prosecution said that in September 2023, Sakyi approached the complainant, who owned a Hyundai i10 taxicab with the registration number GS 5447-22 valued at GH¢ 75,000.00, to give him the taxi for work.

The court heard that the complainant gave the taxi and its ignition key to the accused person, who immediately started work.

The prosecution said Sakyi had been taking the complainant's daughter to school at Haatso-Accra and back home after school as his additional duty.

On January 21, 2024, the prosecution said the complainant was expecting the accused person to pick up her daughter to school, but he did not show up.

According to the prosecution, the complainant contacted Sakyi by phone. However, he gave excuses, saying that the car had developed a mechanical fault and that he was fixing it.

Later in the afternoon of the same day, the complainant again called Sakyi to pick up her daughter from school, but to no avail because he had turned his phone off.

The matter was reported to the police on January 25, 2024, and intelligence gathered indicated that the accused was hiding in Agona Kwanyako in the Central Region.

On January 31, 2024, the investigation was extended to Agona Kwanyako. However, it was later detected that Sakyi had a hint of the police and moved to Takoradi.

The prosecution said that on February 5, 2024, at about 1:30 a.m., intelligence led to Sakyi's arrest at his hideout at Agona Swedru.

During interrogation, Sakyi denied the offence in his cautioned statement and said he was attacked at Kwame Nkrumah Circle by two unknown guys who requested his service to North Kaneshie.

The prosecution said Sakyi led the police to the scene but could not identify where the alleged incident occurred.