An Accra circuit court on Monday sentenced four men to 50 years in jail each, on four counts of conspiracy to commit crime and robbery.

The convicts, Lance Corporal Martin Agyare, Iddrisu Ato, an ex-Soldier, Agbeko Mensah, a businessman and Hanson Tawiah, a driver, were to serve 20 years for conspiracy and 30 years for robbery. The sentences are to run concurrently.

The Court presided over by Francis Obiri said there were so many bad nuts in the security service and they need to be punished. Mr Fred Kusim Adwendaogo, State Attorney, told the Court that on April 15, 2012, the complainant went to the Agricultural Development Bank at Achimota Mile 7 to withdraw an amount of $700.

He said after withdrawing the money and was heading towards Achimota on a motorbike, he was intercepted by the convicts at Achimota Neoplan in a Kia Rio taxi.

The prosecution said at gun point, one of the convicts, who was armed with an AK 47 rifle, ordered the complainant to surrender the money on him. He said the convicts collected the money from him and thereafter pushed him into their taxi.

Mr Adwendaogo said they drove him to Tesano, at the De George car garage and gave the complainant’s motorbike to him without the money. “The convicts asked him (the complainant) to follow them to the police station but they bolted with the money,” he added.

He said the complainant later reported the incident to the Police. He said on May 22, 2012, with the help of Police informants, the convicts were arrested when they planned to embark on another robbery.

“After investigation, the convicts were charged with the offence,” he said.