Mamponteng (Ash), June 3, GNA - The Mamponteng district magistrate's court on Thursday sentenced an ex-convict to seven years' imprisonment in hard labour for stealing.

Akwasi Fosu alias Apah, who previously served a three-year jail term for the same offence, was convicted on his own plea. He pleaded guilty to unlawful entry, stealing, illegal possession of firearm and threat of death.

Prosecuting, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Francis Mensah, told the court, presided over by Mr Uuter Dery, that the complainant in the case, Mr Sarpong Duah, had recently detected the loss of kente weaving yarns from his store at Ntonso in the Kwabre district. ASP Mensah said subsequent loss of the yarns compelled the complainant to hatch a plan to track down the culprit.

He said one day, Mr Duah pretended to have travelled to Accra but returned unnoticed to hide in his store, locked the door from inside and removed the keys.

The prosecutor said Fosu, who thought the complainant had travelled outside the town went to the store with a locally-manufactured pistol and with a duplicate key opened the store and started packing some of the yarns into a sack.

ASP Mensah said Duah then raised an alarm but the convict bolted after threatening to kill him.

The court heard that Duah went into hiding until he was spotted and arrested last month.

Meanwhile, the court has ordered the police to destroy the locally manufactured gun and a live cartridge retrieved from Fosu when he was arrested.