Goat thief Jailed for 4 years

A SUSPECT who threw the Koforidua Community Tribunal into momentary laughter last week with the explanation that he stole a female goat to start livestock farming, with the hope of alleviating his HIPIC condition, has been sent in to begin a four-year jail term.

Try as the man, Kwaku Teye Kwao, did to impress upon Judge G. K. Addai’s tribunal that he only intended rearing the goat, he was not successful as the court found the explanation too good to be true.

When disappointment replaced hope in Teye, he pleaded “guilty with explanation” but that did little to assuage the tribunal’s determination to punish him sternly for stealing the ?150,000 worth animal.

Kwaku Kwao is a farmer at Huhunya in the Yilo Krobo District and the complainant, Humphrey Kwasi Terkpetey, rears animals at Obawale also in the Yilo Krobo District, according to Chief Inspector Adzraku Ami, who prosecuted in the trial.

“On October 10, the accused visited Obawale and at 9.00pm the complainant detected theft of his goat so he started looking for it,” he said.

The police officer said it was not until October 26, a week after, before Terkpetey traced his missing goal to Huhunya. Sensing danger, Kwao, the suspect, began telling people that his goat was missing.

Soon the full picture of the trouble he had invited upon himself became clearer to him and he knelt down to plead with Terkpetey for pardon.

As Terkpetey would not hear of any tell-tales and crocodile tears, he lodged a complaint with the Huhunya Police and Teye Kwao was picked up.