A tiler in the Ashanti Region has been sentenced to ten years in prison with hard labour for robbing a trader of 40 ice creams and a purse containing a cellphone and GHC25.
Simon Blay, 28, pleaded guilty to the charge and was sentenced on his own plea by the Asante Bekwai circuit court.
Detective Chief Inspector Stephen Ofori told the court, presided over by Mark Tair-ima Diboro, that Sarah Ofori and Blay were neighbours at Feyiase.
He said on 15 September 2021, at about 2pm, Ofori was going about her normal business when Blay called her on the pretext of buying ice cream.
The prosecution said the convict took advantage of the quietness of the area and, wielding a pair of scissors, robbed the ice cream seller of her sale items, as well as a purse containing a cellphone and GHC25, coming to a total value of GHC112.
Chief Inspector Ofori said Blay took to his heels after the robbery. Ofori then made a formal complaint to the Feyiase police.
Sim card switch
When the police visited the scene of the crime, they found the ice cream container about 100 metres away from the scene.
The prosecution said the following day local residents, on hearing about the incident, arrested Blay and handed him over to the police.
A physical search of the man led to the discovery of the stolen cellphone, into which he had inserted his own sim card, replacing the victim’s.
Blay led the police to his house after admitting the crime and the police found Sarah Ofori’s sim card in his room during a search.
Inspector Blay said police investigations showed that the convict was standing trial with others for alleged unlawful entry and the theft of a 17-inch television set.
He said Blay had committed the robbery of Sarah Ofori’s property right after he was granted bail by the court in the earlier theft case.
Asaase Radio 99.5 – tune in or log on to broadcasts online
99.5 in Accra, 90.7 in Ho, 98.5 in Kumasi, 99.7 in Tamale, 89.5 in Tarkwa and 106.9 in Walewale
Follow us on Twitter: @asaaseradio995
#AsaaseRadio
#TheVoiceofOurLand
