Car snatcher jailed 25 years

A Galamsey operator who snatched a taxi from the driver at gun point at Roman Ridge in Accra has been sentenced to a 25-year jail term with hard labour.

The convict, Nathaniel Cudjoe Sosu, pleaded guilty to the charges of conspiracy to rob and robbery before the court, presided over by Mr Francis Obiri.

Cudjoe Sosu, together with two other accomplices who are currently at large, stopped the taxi and asked the driver to take them to Roman Ridge.

Upon reaching their destination, the convict and his accomplices subjected the driver to severe beatings and ordered him at gun point to surrender the car keys.

Delivering sentence, the trial judge said robbery was becoming rampant in the country, saying the increase in robbery would also drive away investors, hence the need for the youth to be adequately educated on its dangers and consequences.

He said people who engaged in robbery should not be pampered in society and urged the public to volunteer information to the police that would lead to the arrest of criminals.

Prosecution told the court that the complainant was the taxi driver who lived in Accra, while the convict was a ‘galamsey’ operator residing at Bonsa a suburb of Tarkwa in the Western Region.

He said on December 12, 2011, the driver was cruising for passengers when the accused person, together with two accomplices, stopped him at Danquah circle.

He said they asked the victim to take them to Roman Ridge where they managed to snatch the taxi.

Prosecution said the police traced the taxi to Bonsa where the convict was arrested.