Accra, Oct. 26, GNA - Two out of four men who played various roles in kidnapping of a 19-year-old female porter, Mahart Seidu from Tema Station in Accra to Walewale for a proposed marriage were on Friday convicted by an Accra Circuit Court.

Nabilla Banmarugu, 37, an uncle of the victim was sentenced to six years imprisonment for kidnapping and assault by chaining, Ibrahim Tia, a 25 year-old porter will serve a four-year jail term for abetting to kidnapping and assault by chaining. This was after the court, presided over Mrs Georgina Mensah Datsa found Banmarugu, married to two women and a father of six and Tia who is also married to two women and a father of two, guilty and convicted them accordingly. Convicting them after a month's trial, the court said it took into consideration, the nature of the crime and circumstances of the accused, effects on the victim and the community or society reactions to the crime committed. "In fact, chaining a person is against the person's human rights since the act was cruel and inhuman. Chaining reminds us of slavery," the court said. The court had earlier acquitted and discharged Amadu Seidu, the victim's father and Zingey Haruna, the driver of the Mercedes Benz whose vehicle the victim was chained to. Seidu the victim's father was being held for compulsion of marriage. Mahart was chained to a seat of the bus set to be transported to Walewale into a forced marriage but was rescued by men from the Accra Central Motor Traffic and Transport Unit (MTTU) of the Ghana Police Service.

The prosecution had told the court that Nabilla purchased tickets from Tia, a loading boy at the Tema Station, for two passengers travelling to Walewale. The prosecution said Nabilla left the station and returned after a brief moment to tell Tia that the person he was travelling with was not willing to go and asked for his assistance to convince her to board the vehicle.

Although Tia was able to convince Mahart to come to the station, she declined to board the vehicle. At that point, the prosecution said, Nabilla, with the assistance of Tia, forced the victim into the vehicle.

While Tia was loading the bus, he detected that the victim was struggling to get out and alerted Nabilla who managed to secure a chain and padlock with which he chained the victim to the seat. Chief Inspector Lawrence Gbele said investigations revealed that it was Seidu, Mahart's father who sent Nabilla to Accra to bring his daughter to her marital home.