Police on trial for armed robbery

Sekondi, June 10, GNA- A 31 year old Policeman constable is facing trial at the Sekondi High Court, charged with assault and robbery. He pleaded not guilty and has been remanded in prison custody to re-appear before the court on June 23. His other accomplice is however on the run.

Prosecuting, Madam Patience Klinogo Principal State Attorney told the court presided over by Justice Robin Batu that on January 30th 2007, Constable Daniel Amponsah, who was on duty at the residence of the District Chief Executive of Tarkwa, abandoned his post and went to the residence of one Vitalia Kuubetesob, an employee of the Tarkwa Goldfields at Cook Compound.

The prosecutor said Amponsah on entering the compound at about 0515 hours, a dog in the house started barking and alerted the victim and his family, who were having their morning devotion of an intruder. The entire family hid in the house, but one of the victim's daughter knew the voice of the suspect because she had interacted with him a few days earlier.

She said two armed men dressed in black, entered the house and started firing indiscriminately and then entered the victim's rooms, ransacked the drawers and bags and took away GH¢200. Some soldiers, who were on duty at the Goldfields area, heard the shooting and rushed to the scene and the pair on seeing the military vehicle abandoned an SMA riffle with 24 rounds of ammunition, one locally manufactured pistol with cartridges and other items and fled through the bush.

The prosecutor said the victim's daughter Gladys Kuubetesob, who had seen and interacted with Amponsah on January 26, last year in front of the Standard Bank at Tarkwa was able to identify the suspect at a parade out of eight other officers. Madam Klinogo told the court that investigations revealed that the suspect left his duty post at around 0430 hours and not 0530 hours, as he claimed. 10 June 08