A Tarkwa Circuit Court on Friday sentenced Kojo Owusu, a 24-year-old galamsey operator, to 50 years imprisonment in hard labour.
He was sentenced for robbing his employer of GHC 40,000, 50 pounds of gold worth GHC 48,000, four mobile phones, one digital camera, medicated glasses, driver’s license and a bunch of keys.
He pleaded not guilty.
Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Oscar Amponsah, told the court presided over by Mr. Justice Obeng Asante, that the complainant, Lousi Kwame Amoah, is a small-scale miner at Prestea.
[contextly_sidebar id=”pDj465oMM71Mw7MnBnvrZhwcMaOeoim7″]He said Owusu and the complainant lived in the same neighborhood at Prestea and was employed by the complainant in his small-scale mining firm.
Chief Inspector Amponsah said the second, third and fourth accused whose names were only given as Bala, Mustapha and Poppy, are a mechanic and illegal miners respectively who resided in Kumasi in the Asante Region.
He said at about 1730 hours on October 20, Owusu asked permission from the complainant to visit his sick child in Kumasi.
At about 0130 hours on October 23, Owusu, Bala, Mustapha and Poppy came to Prestea from Kumasi without the knowledge of the complainant.
The convict led his accomplices, wearing masks and armed with pistols, machetes and axes, to enter the complainant’s room through a bath room window while he and his wife were asleep.
The Prosecutor said the complainant woke up while the accused persons were in the room and when he confronted them, they subjected him to severe beating and he sustained injuries.
Chief Inspector Amponsah said Owusu, Bala, Mustapha and Poppy bolted with the items leaving behind two bags, a matchet and an axe.
When a search was conducted in the bag by the Police, an HTC mobile phone belonging to Owusu was found.
The Prosecutor said on October 25, Owusu was arrested at Aboabo, a suburb of Kumasi, and he was handed over to the police at Prestea.
When Owusu was questioned at the Police Station, he said they stole GHC 21,600 and not GHC 40,000 and 50 pounds of gold as alleged by the complainant.
Source: GNA