Asante Bekwai: The Asante Bekwai Circuit Court has sentenced two soldiers to ten years imprisonment each in hard labour for kidnapping and robbing a small-scale miner of GHC96,500.00. Air-force Lance Corporal Alfred Mensah, 33, and Lance Corporal Matthew Amoako, 28, both denied conspiring to rob and kidnap Mr. Andrews Asante. They were taken through a full trial and found guilty.
According to Ghana News Agency, three of their accomplices, identified only as Frimpong and Francis, both soldiers, as well as Francis Acheampong, 41, a driver, are still at large. Detective Chief Inspector Eric Twum narrated to the court presided over by Mr. Isaac Appeatu that Mr. Asante, the complainant, is a small-scale miner residing in Ametubuom, a suburb of Asiwa. Meanwhile, Mensah and Amoako are Air Force officers based in Accra and Tamale, respectively, but were both on a course in Accra.
Acheampong, the driver, worked with a car renting company in Accra, while Frimpong and Francis, also military personnel, were based in Kumasi. Prosecutors stated that Acheampong, after meeting the soldiers on November 25, 2023, knowing they were going on a robbery expedition, led them to the secretary of his company. He informed the secretary that Mensah, Amoako, and Frimpong were going to effect an arrest at Konongo, thus renting a Mitsubishi Pajero with registration number GS 3236-17, which Acheampong was assigned to drive.
Detective Chief Inspector Twum detailed that they set off from Accra around 1400 hours, and upon reaching Konongo, they picked up Francis, all wearing military uniforms. Frimpong, who claimed to be a native of Asiwa, led them to Ametubuom, a community near Asiwa, to the complainant's residence around 0130 hours, where they shouted his name, banged on his gate, and demanded that he come out.
Out of fear for his life, Asante initially refused to come out until the gang attacked his friend, Kwabena, whom his wife had called to rescue them. Police reported that the convicts turned their anger on the complainant when he eventually came out, pushing him back into his room, where they assaulted him and demanded GHC400,000.00 for his release. Unable to meet their demands, the complainant borrowed GHC10,000.00 from his mother-in-law, who lived in the same house, and surrendered it to them.
The gang, still unsatisfied, continued beating the complainant as they demanded more money. His mother-in-law obliged and provided an additional GHC20,000.00, wrapped in a black polythene bag, which she handed to the robbers. Prosecutors said Amoako pushed the mother-in-law back into her room upon realizing she had more money, ransacked the room, and retrieved GHC40,000.00. They then ransacked the complainant's room, taking GHC15,000.00, and seized GHC7,000.00 from Kwabena, as well as the ignition key to the motorbike he came with, to prevent him from chasing them.
Despite having obtained GHC96,500.00 in total, the gang forcibly pushed the complainant into their vehicle and held him at ransom. Detective Chief Inspector Twum explained that as the complainant was in the vehicle, Mensah searched him and removed GHC4,500.00 from his pocket. Police were alerted to the incident and signaled the group to stop, but they ignored the police and sped off.
The police shot at the vehicle, but they continued until reaching a broken bridge at Anwiam. Unable to cross, they abandoned the vehicle and continued on foot into a forest, still holding the complainant hostage. Some members of nearby communities were also alerted and began searching for them. As the gang attempted to navigate out of the forest with their victim and stolen money, Mensah and Amoako appeared in Anumso Town at about 0430 hours, seeking a getaway vehicle, but were arrested by the townsfolk and handed over to the police.
Frimpong and Francis, waiting for Mensah and Amoako, eventually abandoned the complainant and fled through the forest when they did not return. Prosecutors noted that the two arrested soldiers later admitted their offenses and disclosed their accomplices' identities. Mensah informed the police that the townsfolk had taken their stolen money. One body armor, the complainant's walking aid, and Kwabena's motorbike ignition key were later retrieved from their hideout in the forest.
