Two brothers have been jailed a total of 20 years by the Accra Circuit Court for helping a gang to rob a forex bureau operator of $100,000.
Hamza and Mohammed Salou were found guilty of abetment of crime and were each slapped with a 10-year jail term by the court, presided over by Mr Aboagye Tandoh.
Hamza, who was an errand boy at the forex bureau, together with his brother, is said to have relayed information on a transaction between his boss and a client to two robbers.
Based on the information, the gang subsequently attacked the forex bureau operator with firearms and robbed him of the said amount.
Luck, however, eluded the robbers, as their operation was foiled by a policeman who witnessed the incident and engaged the gang in a shootout.
A member of the gang, Shaibu Ibrahim, was arrested, prosecuted and sentenced to a 27-year jail term.
The other member, known only as Kwesi, however, escaped.
Call exchanges
In passing the sentences, the court held that there was ample evidence of more than 264 call exchanges between the robbers and the two brothers.
Hamza was found to have communicated with the robbers more than 110 times, while Mohammed was found to have done so more than 154 times.
“Checks at MTN showed that there were many call exchanges between Hamza and Mohammed and the robbers. Even on the day of the incident, there were more than 25 call exchanges,’’ the court said.
Do not ruin your employer
The court further said the 10-year jail term would serve as a deterrent to people who were employed but tried to destroy the businesses of their employers.
“This is to warn people who are employed not to find ways and means to destroy the businesses of their employers,’’ it said.
The court praised the investigator in the case, Detective Inspector Frazer Nutako, for his diligence during the investigations.
“What he presented to the court was far better than what most investigators present to this court. He ensured that whatever information was provided to him was seriously investigated,’’ it said.
Facts
The facts, as presented by the prosecutor, Chief Superintendent Duuti Tuaruka, were that the complainant is an owner of a forex bureau at Rawlings Park in Accra.
On May 17, 2016, the complainant, he said, had a call from a customer who needed $100,000 to transact business. The operator quickly mobilised and directed the customer to go to the First Atlantic Bank, Liberia Road Branch in Accra, for it.
He said the complainant sent one Kadri to the bank with a motorcycle where he transacted the business with the client, since there was heavy vehicular traffic.
“While the transaction was going on, Hamza and Mohammed were monitoring it. As a result, they gave information to Ibrahim and Kwesi to lay ambush at the bank,’’ he said.
The prosecutor said Kadri, after the exchange with the customer, left the bank with GH¢390,000 in a bag and was about to jump on his motorbike when the robbers attacked him.
“The robbers fired at him four times on the left thigh and ordered him to surrender the bag, but he refused. They snatched the bag but luck eluded them when a policeman engaged them in a shootout, during which Ibrahim was hit in the stomach,’’ he said.
C/Supt Tuaruka said Kwesi managed to escape, leaving behind his wounded gang member and the money.
Credit: Graphic.com.gh
