THE REPUBLIC vs. PRINCE ADU GYAMFI & ANOR [2015]DLHC3958

Date	2015-05-26
Suit No.	CASE NO.CC/764/14
Citation No.	[2015]DLHC3958

HER LADYSHIP ANGELINA MENSAH-HOMIAH (MRS.)

[2015]DLHC3958
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >THE REPUBLIC<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>PRINCE ADU GYAMFI &amp;
ANOR<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;[HIGH COURT(COMMERCIAL
DIVISION), KUMASI]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

CASE NO.CC/764/14&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;DATE: 26TH MAY, 2015<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

HER
LADYSHIP ANGELINA MENSAH-HOMIAH (MRS.)<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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</div><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;">Prince Adu Gyamfi (aged
20 years) and Rafiu Adams (aged 17 years), were first arraigned before the
Circuit Court, Kumasi in February, 2014. They have now been charged with
conspiracy to commit robbery and robbery, contrary to Sections 23(1) and 149 of
the Criminal and Other offences Act, 1960, Act 29. They pleaded not guilty to
the charges, hence the instant trial.<o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;">A summary of the
facts leading to this case are as follows: &nbsp;In the night of 18/02/2014, the two accused
persons raided the room of the complainant at Kronum, a suburb of Kumasi.&nbsp; At gun point, they took away the
complainant's two HP laptop computers valued at GHS 2,400.00, two Samsung
phones valued at GHs 300 and cash of GHS 44.00. They were however arrested by
the police patrol team in the Dechemso area at about 2am on 19/02/2014 on
suspicion of being criminals.&nbsp; The
accused persons led the police to Abidjan hotel Room 19 at Dechemso where two
laptops, two modems and a locally manufactured pistol were found. At the police
station, the Complainant identified the said laptops and modems as his and also
identified the accused persons as those who had robbed him. <o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;">Under our laws, the
ingredients of these offences can be found in sections 23(1) and 150 of Act 29
as follows:<o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;">Section 23 (1):<o:p></o:p>"Where
two or more persons agree to act together with a common purpose for or in
committing or abetting a criminal offence, whether with or without a pervious
concert or deliberation, each of them commits a conspiracy to commit or abet
the criminal offence."<o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;">Section 150:<o:p></o:p>"
A person who steals&nbsp; a things is guilty
of robbery if and for the &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; purpose of
stealing he uses force or causes harm to any other &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; person, or if he uses a threat or criminal assault or harm &nbsp; to &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; any
other person, with intent to prevent or overcome the &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; resistance of the other person to the stealing of the
thing."<o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;">Thus, the
prosecution is enjoined by sections 11(2) and 13(1) of the Evidence Act, 1975
NRCD 323 to prove the guilt of the accused persons beyond reasonable doubt. If
the prosecution fail in this duty, the accused persons are entitled to be
acquitted.<o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;">In discharging this
onerous burden, four witnesses testified for the prosecution. PW1, Renold
Boateng , is the complainant. He testified that on 18/02/2014 at about 10:30pm
he was in a room with his friend by name Alfred. The door was not locked. A1
entered the room and pointed a pistol at them and demanded money. A2 also
entered the room and said if the occupants did not have money, they should give
them their machines. PW1 said A2 collected his laptop and that of his friend as
well as their mobile phones. A1 searched the pockets of PW1 and made away with
an amount of GHS 44.00. &nbsp;Continuing, PW1
said between 9am and 10am the following day, he heard a radio announcement to
the effect that A1 and A2 had been arrested and detained at the Sofoline Police
Station so he went there and told the police that they had robbed him of his
laptops and phones at gun point the previous night. The police interrogated the
accused persons and they admitted the offence. PW1 further told the court that
he identified the laptops and phones at the Police Station as well as the
pistol which A1 had used to attack him. In cross-examination, the accused
persons denied the attack but PW1 who said he took a good look at them was able
to describe their apparel and they could not discredit that piece of evidence.<o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;">PW2, Alfred Owusu,
said in his evidence that he was in the room with PW1 when the accused persons
attacked them. He corroborated the evidence of PW1 as regards the respective
roles played by the accused persons during the robbery. However, PW2 said he
was not available in the morning so it was PW1 who went to the police station
to identify the items and the accused persons upon hearing of their arrest on
radio. He also said he cross-examination that he took a good look at the features
of their attackers and could identify them. <o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Arial Unicode MS&quot;">One of the
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