A 43-year-old former security guard of Unicorn Credit has appeared before an Accra circuit court for allegedly stealing 10 air conditioners belonging to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) worth GH¢45,000.
According to the accused, Gad Azankoto, he stole the items to make for some amount of money the company owed him.
The prosecution, led by Chief Inspector Edward Afful, told the court that the accused and five accomplices currently at large, on August 6, 2015 conspired and robbed the warehouse of Unicorn Credit and made away with the air conditioners.
Gad is facing an additional charge of causing harm to Felix Osei, a security guard on duty at the warehouse at the time of the incident.
Appearing before trial judge Aboagye Tandoh, he denied the offence and was remanded into police custody until August 24, 2015.
Earlier, the defence counsel applying for bail, said the facts of the prosecution did not support the charges.
He said on the day of the incident the accused was at home and could not have been at the scene of the crime.
According to the defence lawyer, the accused, when granted bail, would be in court to stand trial and also have people of substance to stand surety for him.
Opposing the bail, Chief Inspector Afful was emphatic that Gad had to be remanded because the prosecution was still investigating the case, insisting that the grant of bail could interfere with the investigation.
Mr. Tandoh ordered the prosecution to complete the investigation by August 24 for the trial to commence.
The facts of the case are that the complainant, Nii Nortey, 35, is a resident at Haatso while the accused also lived at Ashaiman and worked as a security guard of the company’s warehouse at Klagon near the Tema Motorway in Accra.
Chief Inspector Afful said at about 1:30 am on the said day, six armed men, including the accused, armed with AK47 rifle and five cutlasses, attacked two night guards at the warehouse.
He said the other security man escaped leaving Mr. Osei, a day security guard, who was sleeping in the resting office.
Chief Inspector Afful stated that Osei struggled with the robbers but he was overpowered and butchered by the gang.
The police officer said the robbers tied Osei with a rope and dragged him about 300 metres and left him at the main gate and broke into the 40-footer container in the warehouse with a cutter and made away with the air conditioners.
jeffdegraft44@yahoo.com
By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson