Two Jailed For Stealing Cigarettes

Accra,(Greater Accra Region) 13 Oct. A Circuit Tribunal in Accra today sentenced Kwaku Frimpong, 36, a wholesale keeper and Seidu Ikala, 60, a night watchman, to six years' imprisonment each for stealing quantities of cigarettes valued at 23.2 million cedis. They pleaded guilty to stealing and abetment of stealing the goods belonging to Danbri Company Limited, distributors of Pioneer Tobacco products. In the dock with them were Kwame Atakron, 28, and Kwasi Kumi, 20, both unemployed, charged with the same offences. They have pleaded not guilty and were each granted five million cedis bail with one surety to be justified. They are to appear before the tribunal on October 27. Police Inspector Emmanuel K. Dunyo told the tribunal that Mr. Joseph Yaw Safoa, managing director of the company, detected that 67 cartons of State Express 555, 243 cartons of Embassy, 1,791 cartons of Diplomat and two cartons of Tusker, all valued at 23.3 million cedis had disappeared from the wholesale. Inspector Dunyo said on October six, this year, a report was made to the police and Frimpong was arrested. In his cautioned statement to the police, Frimpong admitted having taken stock with the complainant and observed the shortages. On October eight, a witness in the case spotted Atakron and Kumi at about 2300 hours packing away some of the cigarettes from the watchman's room which shared a common wall with the company's warehouse. Frimpong and Ikala were arrested on the same day and during investigations, they admitted the offence.