[2021]DLSC10765 • May 26, 2021 • Supreme Court
OBENG GYEBI vs. THE REPUBLIC
The appellant was tried at the High Court, Kumasi, for conspiracy to commit robbery and robbery arising out of an armed robbery at Boate near Obuasi on 1 January 1999. The robbers entered the house of Kofi Tawiah, assaulted occupants, and stole cash and gold valued at about ¢54.5 million old cedis. The appellant was convicted and, on 18 August 2000, sentenced to life imprisonment under section 2 of the Suppression of Robbery Decree, 1972 (N.R.C.D. 11), which then governed punishment for armed robbery. He later appealed contending principally that the sentence was harsh and excessive, that he was a first offender, that mitigating factors were not considered, and that he had reformed in prison. Portion of judgment: opening paragraphs under the introductory narrative and the section headed “BACKGROUND.”
read moreUpon a cursory glance, this Appeal appears to be a normal appeal against a sentence by a convict. However, upon closer inspection and a lot of introspection, this matter transforms into one of immense jurisprudential importance with the very essence and nature of justice at the heart of the main issue that this set of facts raises. This is an appeal against the judgment of the Court of Appeal upholding the life sentence handed to the Appellant by the Kumasi High Court on the 18th day of August, 2000 for having committed the offences of Conspiracy and Robbery. At the time of the sentencing of the Appellant, the law governing the sentencing of people convicted of Armed Robbery was the Suppression of Robbery Decree, 1972 (N.R.C.D. 11). The relevance of this point will become increasingly obvious in the course of this opinion. The Appellant, who represents himself, argues that the life sentence imposed on him is harsh and excessive given the circumstances surrounding the case as wel...