A Tarkwa Circuit Court has sentenced a 33-year-old driver accused of trying to sell off his car owner’s vehicle for GH￠80,000 without his approval to seven years imprisonment in hard labor.
The suspect, Vincent Fisher, who resides in Kasoa in the Central Region, denied the offense when he appeared before the presiding judge, Mrs. Hathia Ama Manu.
Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Joseph Lartey said Amobi Chukwu, the complainant, is a driver and a resident of Lagos, a town in Nigeria.
He said about two months ago, the complainant gave his Toyota Sienna vehicle with registration number AGL 152 GN to Fisher in Lagos for transport business.
Fisher started driving between Lagos and Accra, but after a month, he told Chukwu that he wanted to marry in Ghana and pleaded to use the car for weeks.
Chief Inspector Lartey said the complainant agreed and on August 5, 2023, Fisher brought the vehicle to Ghana but after completing his program, he failed to resume work. However, Chukwu contacted him on the phone many times.
He said Chukwu, who realized all was not well, decided to check the tracking device he installed on the vehicle on August 21, 2023. He realized the vehicle was in Manso Amenfi in the Western Region, but the convict insisted it was in Accra.
Based on the information, Chukwu came to Ghana to look for his vehicle and on August 23, 2023, he made a report at the Regional Police Command, where police officers were detailed to assist him.
He said that with the aid of the tracking device, the police found the vehicle parked near a house at Manso Amenfi with registration number AP 525-22, insurance, roadworthy certificates, and a “for sale” sticker affixed to the windscreen with two mobile phone numbers.
The court heard that Fisher was picked up and the vehicle was retrieved and sent to the Regional Police Headquarters for inquiries.
