The Sunyani High Court has sentenced a soldier to 75 years imprisonment with hard labour for his involvement in the robbery of the Brong-Ahafo Catholic Co-operative Society for Development (BACCSOD) at Wenchi.
Staff Sergeant Alhassan Hamid, 42, of the Sunyani Third Battalion (3BN) was sentenced accordingly when he changed his plea from not guilty to guilty on two counts of conspiracy to commit crime and robbery.
Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Christopher Tawiah said that Hamid was among six hardened armed robbers arrested by the Sunyani Police Patrol Team at the Yawhima Police barrier.
He said the Police upon a tip off, arrested the robbers in a taxi cab at 0300 hours on their return from an operation at Wenchi on Thursday February 26, 2015.
The other suspects were Sheriff Adams, also known as Alhaji Fresh, aged 31, Osei Kufuor, aged 32, Kwadwo Francis, 35, Edmund Bawuah, 27 and Kwabena Yeboah, 32 years.
ASP Tawiah explained that the gang tied up the watchman, broke into the premises and stole money and items, and later dumped the watchman at the outskirts of the town.
He said an unspecified amount of money, four mobile phones, two pistols, knives, a crow bar, a military uniform, cartridges and other offensive weapons were later found on them.
ASP Tawiah added that Hamid and Francis were also identified by their victim, Tunguri Abu, an Ivorian, whom they robbed.
They stole his suitcase containing some valuable items including a Laptop computer and a cash of 1.5 million CFA Francs, when he arrived in Kumasi on Tuesday, February 24, 2015.
The Regional Public Relations Officer disclosed that Adams and four others also on June 13, 2014, robbed Tonket Limited, a Nestle products distribution company in Sunyani and nearly killed the company’s accountant.
He said the five were arrested and remanded in prison custody for sometime but were granted bail by a Circuit Court at Fiapre, near Sunyani.
ASP Tawiah said the group after their bail later robbed some financial institutions in the Region, including the Sunyani Agency of Derma Rural Bank and the Bechem Agency of Bomaa Rural Bank.
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Source: GNA
