Motor rider in court for supporting armed robbery
By Helena Selby
A fridge mechanic is standing trial at an Accra circuit court for allegedly aiding in an armed robbery incident. The accused person, Christopher Adjei Adjeitey, allegedly aided one Sampson Annan, alias ‘Shamawu’, who had already been sentenced to 15 years imprisonment, to rob a drinking bar operator in the middle of the night.
He allegedly waited on a motor bike, while Sampson attacked the victim with a cutlass. Sampson succeeded in snatching the victim’s hand bag after cutting the victim severally on her right arm. The robbers, however, fled on the motor bike when the victim began screaming.
The accused person was arrested from his hide out upon a tip off by Sampson, who was arrested earlier.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge of abetment of crime contrary to section 20 (1) and 149 respectively of Criminal Code Act 29/60, before the court, presided over by Mr. Francis Obiri. He has been remanded into custody to re-appear before the court on November 1, 2012.
The facts of the case are that on May 5, 2012, at about 2:00am, the accused person rode an unregistered motor bike from Labadi to Korle Worko, to visit his friend, also an ex-convict, Sampson Annan.
The prosecutor, DSP Riendolf Agyemang told the court that Sampson, who was armed with a sharp cutlass, joined the accused person on the unregistered motor bike and rode to town.
According to him, they stopped the victim at Asuogyaman Company Limited junction, when she was heading towards Kantamanto from her house, to open her drinking spot.
He said the accused person immediately parked the motor bike on the road side and Sampson Annan alighted and attacked the victim with the sharp cutlass, and snatched her hand bag containing GH¢34 and other items.
“Sampson held the victim‘s black hand bag under her left armpit and pushed her on the ground. The victim resisted and in his bid to snatch the hand bag from her, slashed her severally on her right arm while she was on the ground”, he added.
The prosecutor stated that all along, the accused person, who had the intention of abetting with Sampson to rob the victim was waiting on the motor bike.
DSP Agyemang recounted that the scream and shout of the victim attracted the attention of some taxi drivers to her, but Sampson managed to join the accused person on the waiting motor bike and fled the scene.
He further narrated to the court that while they were fleeing the scene, a taxi driver who witnessed the robbery chased them and hit the motor bike on its right fender, and they fell in a gutter, but still managed to escape.
The prosecutor mentioned that the unregistered motor bike was retrieved, adding that Sampson was arrested on the same day and during investigation he mentioned one Adjei, who is at large, as his accomplice.
“Sampson was arraigned before an Accra Circuit court presided over by Miss Audrey Korcuvie Tay on August 8, 2012 for the offence of attempt to commit crime. He pleaded guilty and was rightly convicted to 15 years in hard labour,” he emphasized.
He said on September 7, 2012, the accused person was arrested at his hide out at Labadi, a suburb of Accra.
Short URL: http://thechronicle.com.gh/?p=47318