An unemployed man has been charged by a Circuit Court in Accra, capital of Ghana, West Africa, for allegedly stealing 11 prepaid meters valued at $2,600 belonging to power distribution company, ECG, at Nungua, a suburb of Accra.
The court presided over by Her Honour, Mrs. Afia Owusua Appiah charged the accused person with stealing contrary to section 124 of Act 29/60.
According to report filed by Kasapafmonline.com, the accused person, Edward Abeiku, who is a resident of Nungua, however pleaded not guilty to the charge of stealing pressed against him by the court.
The brief facts of the case as presented to the court by prosecutor Inspector Samuel Ahiabor were that, the complainant in the case is Mr Samuel Korley, the Nungua District Technical officer of ECG while the accused person, is unemployed and a resident of Nungua.
Inspector Ahiabor told the court that, the Kpeshie Divisional Police Command has been receiving rampant complaints of theft of ECG prepaid meters within Nungua and its environs.
The command, he said “has been informing the District Office of ECG about the occurrence and both offices have been on the lookout for the perpetrators of the crime.
He told the court that, “on April 22, 2020, the command received information from a witness Michael Afotey that the accused person and two others (yet to be arrested) have stolen some electricity meters and kept them in a room.
According to him, the “Police proceeded to the said location where the accused person was arrested with one of the stolen ECG prepaid meters in his hands.
“A search conducted in the room of his accomplice, Robert Annang Adu close to the scene of the arrest revealed four pieces of prepaid meters belonging to ECG.
“When the accused person’s room was subjected to a search, another three faced ECG prepaid meter was retrieved.”
The prosecutor told the court that, “the accused mentioned Robert Annang Adu and Abeiku as his accomplices.”
“Police investigation revealed that from January to early April the accused person and his accomplices have stolen several ECG prepaid meters officially assigned and installed for some applicants with Nungua township and re-assigned them to unsuspecting members of the community at the cost of GHc600 per meter.
According to him, the complainant, Mr Samuel Korley, identified the prepaid as properties of ECG which were among 60 pieces of meters reported stolen.
“During investigation, the accused further led police and officials of ECG through Nungua township and pointed out additional five pieces of ECG prepaid meters which were among numerous meters the group have stolen from victims and re-installed them for the unsuspecting customers.
“The meters were disconnected and removed. In all 11 pieces of stolen ECG prepaid meters were retrieved during investigation,” the prosecutor informed the court.
The accused person, he said, “was charged with the offence and put before the court while efforts are being made to arrest the two accomplices.
However, the court granted him bail in the sum of GHc60, 000.
In addition to the bail conditions, he is to provide three persons to stand as sureties, one of them the court said must be a public servant earning not less than GHc2, 500 per month.
The case has been adjourned to June 15, 2020.
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com