51-year-old man jailed for sexually abusing girl, 6

The gender-based Circuit Court in Accra presided over by Her Honour Mrs Christina Cann has sentenced a 51-year-old waste collector who inserted his fingers into the private part of a six-year-old girl to three years imprisonment in hard labour.

The convict, Daniel Martey Commodore Okine who was charged with indecent assault, pleaded guilty when his plea was taken.

But pleaded with the court to show clemency on him by dealing leniently with him because it was the first time he had committed such an offence.

He told the court that his wife has passed on and he has no one to support him.

Mrs Cann while sentencing the accused said the court has taken into consideration his plea, his age and his plea for clemency.

The court said in order to preserve the sanctity of girls and serve as deterrent to others who may harbor such intentions, it would hand down a stiffer punishment to be a lesson to others.

Brief facts

The brief facts of the case as presented to the court by prosecuting, Detective Sergeant Opoku Aniagyei were that the complainant is a trader and mother of the victim .

He said, the complainant lives at Chorkor while the accused also resides in the same vicinity.

According to the prosecutor, in the afternoon of August 10, Okine spotted the victim who was on her way to buy toffees in the area and he took advantage of the situation, and lured the victim to a spot close to a bath house and inserted his finger into the victim’s vagina and afterwards gave the victim GH¢1.00.

“Okine” he said told the victim not to inform anyone. He said however that, when the complainant was later bathing the victim, she showed signs of pain in her vagina and when the complainant asked what had gone wrong, the victim narrated her ordeal to her.

“The complainant,” the prosecution said “reported the matter to the Police at Mamprobi, in Accra, where she was given a Police medical report form to seek medical examination for the victim.”

In the afternoon of August 11, this year, the prosecutor said the victim spotted Okine in the area and pointed him out leading to his arrest and later escorted to the Mamprobi Police where he was detained.

The prosecution said “Accused admitted the offence in his caution statement”.