Crime & Punishment of Tuesday, 16 July 2019

Source: ghananewsagency.org

Farmer in trouble for threatening ex-lover

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The Enchi District Magistrate court has convicted to a fine a thirty-four-year-old farmer, Kwaw Kwadu, GHs 1,200 for threatening to kill his ex-lover on four separate occasions.

Kwadu in default would serve 12 months imprisonment in hard labour.

Even though Kwadu pleaded with the trial judge, Mr Eric Baah Boateng to be lenient with him since he was a first time offender, he was ordered to sign a bond to be of good behaviour for 24 months or in default serve 24 months in prison in hard labour.

He had earlier pleaded not guilty to causing unlawful damage and threat of death.

Detective Sergeant, Joseph Kwadwo Agyare, told the Court, that the complainant, in the case Madam Regina Abeka is a farmer and ex-lover of the convict.

The prosecution said about a month ago, Kwadu who resided in the same house with the complainant at Kwahu, near Enchi, proposed love to her and she accepted the offer, but a week later, the complainant’s mother saw the two and advised her daughter to quit since they are related by blood.

He said Regina broke the news to the convict, who became offended and threatened severally to kill the complainant if she ends the relationship.

Detective Agyare said Kwadu seized the complainant’s belongings couple of times and but witnesses intervened before he released the items to her.

According to the prosecution, the persistent threats from the convict compelled the complainant to seek refuge in a farm cottage.

He said this was after the complainant’s brother Kweku Abeka and a witness in the case, who had gone to Kwahu heard of the challenges his sister was encountering and sent for her to come and live with him so that he could take care of her two kids.

He said on 23, July last year, at about 1930 hours, the convict visited the complainant and pleaded with her to spend the night with him, of which she responded in the affirmative due to fears.

The prosecution said the next day at about 1530 hours, while the complainant was asleep with the brother and her two kids, they noticed smoke emanating from the room.

He said they forced the door opened and realized that someone had set the door ablaze but managed to quench the fire and returned to bed.

He said at about 0430 on the same day, a local information center at Kwahu announced that a house was being gutted by fire and therefore needed assistance from people within the community.

The Prosecution said the complainant on hearing the news quickly woke his brother and both rushed to her house, and to their surprise, met people trying to extinguish the fire to safeguard the complainant’s belongings.

He said complainant, who suspected Kwadu, reported the incident to the Omanpe police and the convict was subsequently apprehended to assist in investigations.