Ice water seller jailed for child stealing

Deborah Ansah, an ice water seller, who stole a three-month old baby girl at Avenor in Accra and sent her to Achiansa Nubesu near Suhum in the Eastern Region, has been sentenced to two years imprisonment.

The Circuit Court, however, ordered that Deborah, 19, should serve her sentence in a Juvenile Girls Correctional Centre.

The court, presided over by Mrs Ruby Naa Adjeley Quaison who convicted Deborah on her plea, noted that, she has shown remorse.

According to the court, Deborah said she would not repeat the act, adding that, she did not know that it was an offence to steal somebody’s baby.

It noted that Deborah is unemployed and needs to learn a trade. The court therefore, directed that at the Correctional Centre she should be made to learn a trade of her choice.

Deborah’s conviction came after the court had ordered the Police to send her to Social Welfare to conduct checks on her background before the sentence. Deborah was therefore sentenced after the Police submitted the report.

Charged with child stealing, Deborah aged 19, has pleaded guilty.

Doborah, aka Rukaya Ataa, contended that a spirit tormented her to replace her dead boy with the complainant’s baby.

Detective Inspector Judith B. Asante said the complainant; Alhassan Aminatu, is unemployed and lives at Avenor with her husband and their three month old baby girl.

The convict also resides at the same vicinity with the complainant.

According to Inspector Asante, the complainant underwent a caesarean surgery to have her baby and, therefore, could not do things on her own.

Prosecution said the accused, therefore, decided to offer assistance to the complainant by doing household chores for her.

On February 26, at about 1000 hours, the complainant after feeding her baby went to sleep, and left the convict and another who were playing Ludo game.

Prosecution said, the convict took the complainant’s baby and told a neighbour that they were going to the market.

When the complainant woke up, her baby was nowhere to be found and she reported the matter to the police at Tesano, Accra.

During investigations, prosecution said, it came to light that Deborah took the baby to Achiansa Nubesu, a village near Suhum, and informed her family that she had given birth.

Following a tip-off, prosecution said Deborah was arrested and, during investigations, she said she was being tormented by a spirit to have her dead baby replaced by the complainant’s daughter.