Ex-seaman in court for stealing a mobile phone

Cape Coast Dec.10, GNA- Drama unfolded at a Cape Coast circuit court, when a 56-year-old ex-seaman, Ato Amonoo Acquah who has been charged with stealing a Nokia mobile phone, told the court that he had a vision whiles in police custody not to drink again.

He added that that he would never drink any alcoholic beverage again in his life since it was doing more harm than good to him. Acquah, who said he comes from a Christian home and could not tell why he had taken to drinking, pleaded guilty and was convicted on his plea.

His sentence was however deferred to January 4 2008, to enable his sister to buy a new mobile phone for the Complainant since Acquah could not trace the one he stole.

He was granted GH=A21,000.00 bail to reappear on January 4 2008. Prosecuting Chief Inspector Hope Azasoo told the court presided over by Mr Asiedu-Badu that both the complainant, Mr Kweku Awortwe and Acquah live at Saltpond and that the suspect goes to the house of Awortwe to drink.

He said on December 2, 2007 at about 12:30 hours Acquah went to Mr Awortwe's house to drink and saw him asleep with his phone lying beside him and he stole the phone.

He said when Awortwe later woke up and realized that his phone was missing he raised an alarm and a witness in the case told him that it was Acquah who stole the phone.

Chief inspector Azasoo said Awortwe then called his phone and Acquah answered the call saying the phone was with him and that he would return it. The prosecutor said Acquah failed to return the phone with the excuse that it was stolen from him when he went to another bar to drink. He said when Acquah's sister heard of the theft, she bought a new phone to replace it, but Mr Awortwe did not accept it because it was a different type, so she asked for time to enable her to replace it with the same model.