Anastasia Ekudi, a 40-year-old trader, has been convicted by the Hohoe Circuit Court for stealing an ‘Infinix Smart 6 Plus’ mobile phone valued at GH₵1,200.

Ekudi, who appeared before the court on December 15, 2023, pleaded not guilty, was fully tried, found guilty, and was sentenced to six months in prison.

Prosecutor Chief Inspector Charles Aziati told the court, presided over by Mr. Michael Johnson Abbey, that the complainant and the convict were both traders.

He said the complainant owned a shop in front of her house where she sold provisions, and the convict normally visited the complainant’s shop to buy things.

Chief Inspector Aziati said on December 14, 2023, the convict visited the complainant in her house to buy soap worth GH₵2, adding that the complainant led the convict to her shop and sold the soap to her.

He said the convict paid for the soap and walked away, and it was at that moment that the complainant detected the theft of her Infinix Smart 6 Plus mobile phone valued at GH₵1,200, which she had placed on a table in front of her shop.

Chief Inspector Aziati said the complainant immediately suspected the convict as the one who stole her phone and informed a neighbor nearby her shop to call her phone number so that she could locate her phone.

He said the phone was called, and it went through, but there was no response. Not long after, one Godsway, a mobile money merchant and a witness in the case, returned the complainant’s neighbor’s call with his personal mobile phone and asked them whether their phone was missing.

Chief Inspector Aziati said the complainant replied to the witness that her phone had been stolen, which was why she was calling the phone but received no answer.

He said the witness told the complainant that a woman, who happened to be the convict, brought a mobile phone to him to remove the SIM card for her, and it was during this process that the call came through.