Crime & Punishment of Tuesday, 28 February 2023

Source: GNA

Election 2024: Driver jailed nine months for accusing NDC of hoarding weapons

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The Assin Fosu District court has sentenced a 32-year-old driver to nine months in jail for deceitfully accusing a police officer and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Party of contracting him to transport and stockpile weapons to cause mayhem in the 2024 polls.

The convict, Ebenezer Asare, pleaded guilty to the charge and begged for leniency in a court presided over by Major Illiasu Iddrisu.

Prosecuting, Sergeant Matilda Boabeng mentioned Smith Danquah, the National 1st Vice-Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) as the complainant and a resident of Assin-Fosu.

The Prosecutor said on Sunday, February 5, the convict went to the residence of Danquah and claimed to have a piece of very crucial information for him after identifying himself as a driver of a KIA Truck who plied the Budumburam to Assin-Dompim highway in the Fosu Municipality of the Central Region.

The Prosecutor said the convict told the complainant that some NDC bigwigs had contracted him to transport firearms and ammunition from Budumburam to Assin-Dompim ahead of the 2024 elections.

According to the prosecutor, the convict also accused the Superintendent Daniel Kwabena Darkoh, the Crime Officer of the Central North Regional Command, had assigned him to escort the NDC team with the alleged weapons to Assin-Dompim and gave his number to confirm that.

The prosecutor said, days later, the convict demanded an amount of GH¢200.00 from the complainant for having volunteered such vital information of which the complainant obliged.

The Prosecutor said the convict remotely promised to keep updating the complainant about the movement of the team transporting the weapons but went into hiding thereafter.

However, on Thursday, February 9, the convict was spotted at Assin-Nyankumasi where he was arrested, and he admitted that his action was to solicit money from unsuspecting people including the complainant.