Court convicts driver for theft

An Accra Circuit Court on Friday convicted Isaac Cudjoe, a driver for stealing a travelling bag containing items valued at GH¢35,610.00.

Cudjoe who pleaded guilty to the offence was convicted on his own plea.

However, the Court presided over by Mrs Susana Eduful deferred his sentence to January 28, 2020 and remanded Cudjoe into police custody.

Prosecuting, Police Inspector Samuel Ahiabor told the Court that Mr Kwame Appiah-Kubi is the complainant and a trader who lives at Bantama, a suburb of Kumasi in the Ashanti Region.

He said Cudjoe on the other hand is a taxi driver in charge of a Nissan Almeira with the registration number GG 249- 17 and a resident of Otinibi in the Greater Accra Region.

Prosecution said on November 26, 2019, at about 2300 hours, the complainant picked up some parcels in five different travelling bags at the Kotoka International Airport sent to him from Germany.

Inspector Ahiabor said after picking the parcels, the complainant hired Cudjoe from the Airport First Bus Stop to the VIP Bus Terminal at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle in Accra.

The Prosecution said when Cudjoe was loading the five bags into his taxi cab, he put four bags at the back seat and one in the boot and set off to the Nkrumah Circle with the complainant on board.

Inspector Ahiabor said when they got to the VIP Bus terminal, Cudjoe discharged four of the bags leaving the other one in the boot of his car.

He said that bag contained four pieces of S9 Samsung Chrome mobile phones valued at GH¢21,600.00; eight pieces of Zara men’s body spray valued at GH¢1,512.00; quantity of children’s dresses and shoes valued GH¢6,000.00.

The Prosecution mentioned the other items were as three wrist watches valued GH¢942.00; six Sure deodorants valued GH¢75.00; six Holland wax prints valued GH¢942.00; and seven ladies’ dresses valued GH¢1,445.00.

The rest were three ladies’ jump suits valued GH¢282.00, a travelling bag valued GH¢300.00, a cash of 400 Euros equivalent to GH¢2,512.00, all to the tune of GH¢35,610.00.

He said Cudjoe then drove off with the bag.

Inspector Ahiabor said when the complainant got to Kumasi and realized that he had left one of the bags in the cab, he came back to Accra and reported the case to the Airport Police.

He said the Police circulated the model and registration number of the said cab within the region for assistance to trace Cudjoe but to no avail.

He said on January 18, Cudjoe was spotted at the Airport First Bus Stop driving a different taxi cab and was arrested.

The prosecution said during investigations the convict led the Police to his residence at Otinibi where the travelling bag and some children’s dresses were retrieved.