Judge Boots Out Case after 50 Adjournments

An Accra Circuit Court yesterday struck out a robbery case which had been adjourned 50 times.

The trial judge, Justice Obiri, who appeared fed up with the excuses from the prosecution indicated that neither the investigator nor the complainants who claimed they had been robbed have stopped coming to court.

He said under the circumstances, he had no other option than to free the accused as it appeared the complainants had no interest perusing the case.

Sadat Anul Musah, aka Under, and one Nasiru Mohammed Tanko, aka TK, both unemployed were standing trial for allegedly robbing the complainants of one Dell computer lap top valued at GH¢1200, five mobile phones valued at GH¢650 and a cash sum of GH¢300, all totalling GH¢ 2150.

At the initial stages of the trial, the prosecutor had told the court that the complaints, Benjamin Nii Boi Tagoe, Eddy Kwadwo Mensah, Emmanuel Kwasivi Tsadi, Michael Appiah and Nana Osei Asibey Bonsu are residents of Dansoman whilst the accused persons are unemployed and have no fixed place of abode.

According to prosecution, at about 10:00pm on August 31, 2012, the complaints were browsing the internet at Allied Media Services Café at Tunga, a suburb of Dansoman when the accused persons entered the place with a Coca Cola bottle.

The prosecutor said Sadat then broke the bottle, pointed it at the complaints and ordered all of them to move to the corner of the café or else be butchered with a broken bottle.

The police officer said the complaints sensing danger moved to the corner as ordered by Sadat, adding that he (Sadat) then collected all their five mobile phones and one Dell computer laptop from them and also broke into a drawer where their daily sales are kept and took away GH¢ 300 from it and gave them to Nasiru, and all took to their heels.

The prosecution further added that the complainants gathered courage and raised an alarm for help and Sadat was arrested with the help of some Good Samaritans while Nasiru managed to escape with their items.

The prosecution said Sadat led the police to the hideout of Nasiru at Adabraka where he was arrested and a when a search was conducted on him, one of the complainants' mobiles phones was found on him.

By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson & Christiana Mpra Adjei