A 22-year-old bicycle repairer at Koforidua who stole a big metal cooking pot full of “Fanti” kenkey valued at GH¢125 has been sentenced to six years’ imprisonment by a Koforidua circuit court.
The convict was reported to have stolen the kenkey fresh from fire for a big ‘party’ in their hideout at Mile 50, a suburb of Koforidua.
He pleaded guilty to the charge of conspiracy to commit crime and stealing.
Kwabena Ofori who claims to be a fitter with two other accomplices, Kwabena Nyarko, 25, and Kwaku Mintah, 26, went to the house of Grace Atsu who had left the kenkey on fire for sale the next day in the middle of the night and carried away the heavy pot also valued at GH¢45 together with the ‘stuff’ and sent it to their hideout, an uncompleted building in the area where they feasted on it.
Before the ‘kenkey operation’, the three had gone to steal a goat, fowls, yam and charcoal from various locations and prepared hot soup to ‘box’ with the kenkey.
The two accomplices have however been granted bail in various sums with sureties by the court presided over by Her Lordship Wilhemina Hammond for further investigations, after both pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The facts of the case as presented in court by the prosecutor, Chief Inspector Moses Ayao, are that three different complainants living at Mile 50 reported to the police almost at the same time that their kenkey, goats, fowls, charcoal, yam and bicycle had been stolen from their homes overnight.
According to the prosecutor, the police started investigating the matter and got a tip-off that some guys who live in an uncompleted house at Mile 50 and suspected to be wee smokers were enjoying unusually large meals of kenkey with soup everyday.
According to the prosecutor, the police went to the area and saw the three guys happily enjoying a massive meal of kenkey and goat soap.
Chief Inspector Ayao continued that as soon as the police got to the place, Kwabena Ofori pulled a machete from nowhere and threatened to cut into pieces any policeman who would attempt to arrest him.
The prosecutor said when the police intentionally decided to retreat, the main accused bolted but the police gave him a hot chase and arrested him.
When a search was conducted in his room, they found the pot of kenkey with the rest of the uneaten kenkey and a young lady suspected to be the fiancée of Ofori there.
The girl managed to run away but the police arrested the other two accomplices and the charges of stealing and conspiracy to commit crime were preferred against them.
The two accomplices explained to the court that they were recruited by Ofori for the construction of a building foundation and that they did not know how Ofori came by the kenkey and the other stolen items even though they also took part in the feast.
They were bailed with sureties and are to appear again on July 24.
Source: GhanaWeb
