Agbovi Harrison, a 20-year-old motor rider, and Hlortsi Raphael, 23, an auto mechanic, have been sentenced to 15 years each in hard labour by a Sogakope Circuit court for robbery.

They pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit a crime, to wit robbery, and robbery

but the court found them guilty after concrete evidence attested to the crime

Chief Inspector Seidu Kodua, a Police prosecutor, told the court presided over by Isaac Addo that on January 23, last year, at about 1600 hours, the convicts were arrested by a mob at Kpevi, a community near Gornikope within Akatsi South after attacking a commercial motor rider of his Sanya motorbike with registration number M22VR 121 at Kpevi.

He said on the day of the planned activities, one of the suspects hired the services of Edro Tobias, a commercial motor rider from Datsiedu near Ziope.

Chief Inspector Kodua said the pillion rider upon reaching a planned location, attempted to strangle the rider with a rope with support from other accomplices who emerged from the bush, where they succeeded in snatching the motor away from the victim.

However, the prosecution said luck eluded the convict after the bike developed a fault at Avadre junction, which compelled them to push the motorbike into a nearby bush, which some youth in the area suspected to be a stolen one and went on a search mission ostensibly to retrieve the bike.

Chief Inspector Kodua said the convicts were apprehended by the agitating youth and handed over to the Police, where they were arraigned.

The convict, through their counsel, pleaded not guilty to the charges leveled against them but were later found guilty after a full trial was conducted.

Another suspect, according to the Police at Akatsi, is currently at large while efforts are underway to apprehend him.