Asamankese (E/R), April 26, GNA- The Asamankese Circuit Court has sentenced Fuseini Awudu, unemployed, to 25 years imprisonment in hard labour for robbing a family of over three millions cedis of funeral donations. He pleaded not guilty.

Prosecuting, Police detective, Chief Inspector Osei Owusu told the court that on October 5 last year, Awudu, together with another person, now at large, invaded and robbed a house at Omenako, near Suhum, with guns.

The prosecutor said the victim, Joseph Darko Markaya, a staff of the Ghana Postal Company, Koforidua, on that day performed the final funeral rites of his late mother.

He said at about 2.00 am while the family and other mourners had retired, they heard some bangs on the main door, followed by a gunshot. The prosecutor said the inmates woke up only to find that they had been taken hostage by armed men who ordered them to surrender all monies they collected at the funeral.

The masked armed men subsequently searched the house from room to room and succeeded in getting away with a coloured television set, a camera and cash of over three million cedis belonging to the complainant.

During the raid, however, Awudu removed the mask, which made it possible for some of the victims to identify him as he ordered his colleague to shoot the complainant but it was ignored, the prosecution added.

Chief Inspector Owusu said a report was made to the police and Awudu was identified by witnesses as one of the suspects and arrested. In another development, Awudu received additional two years jail sentence for attempting to escape from lawful custody on January 7, this year.

He tried to escape by jumping over the counter at the Suhum Police Station but was chased and re-arrested.