22-Year-Old Labourer Jailed 50 Years

AN ACCRA Circuit court has sentenced a 22-year-old labourer to 50 years’ imprisonment.

The labourer, George Jabal, is one of three suspected armed robbers who robbed a grocery shop at Greda Estate, Teshie, last Friday, October 26, at gunpoint.

The three accused persons were yesterday arraigned at the court presided over by Francis Obiri where Jabal pleaded guilty with explanation to two counts of conspiracy to commit crime and robbery.

His accomplices, Richard Elewosi Gagbe, a car washer and Dela Anani, an Aviation Security officer, pleaded not guilty to the offences and were remanded to re-appear in two weeks.

Jabal explained to the court that he was not part of the gang of robbers but saw what happened that day. He said his crime was going to steal the complainant’s box containing some coins in the heat of the event.

However, the court observed that armed robbery should not be encouraged in the society and therefore people in such criminal cats should not be allowed to live among the good people in society and subsequently handed him that jail term.

Presenting the facts, DSP Patrick Mokeh informed the court that the complainant was a businesswoman, resident at Greda Estate, Teshie and owned a grocery store within the same vicinity.

He narrated that on October 26, 2012, at about 8:30pm, the accused persons and one other currently at large, armed with an AK 47 assault rifle and other offensive weapons, attacked the complainant in her store.

The alleged robbers, in the process, allegedly inflicted severe injuries on her and also robbed her of a cash amount of GH¢440.

According to the prosecutor, before the robbers left the scene, they allegedly fired indiscriminately into the roof of the store to scare passers-by from pursuing them.

While the operation was on-going, the police received a distress call informing them of what was happening.

The police patrol team then rushed to the scene on time but the alleged robbers, on seeing it, took to their heels and managed to scale a fence wall into a certain house.

The prosecutor said before Jabal jumped over the wall, he dropped the AK 47 rifles he was holding.

The police, after combing the area for about three hours, arrested the accused persons and retrieved the AK 47 rifles No. 5614 with five rounds of ammunition.

DSP Mokeh indicated that the police were making efforts to arrest one of the robbers who sustained gunshot injuries and was currently on the run.