The Criminal Court 1 of the High Court in Accra has sentenced former footballer Richard Appiah to life imprisonment for the murder of two children at Abesim in the Bono Region.
The sentence followed a unanimous guilty verdict by a seven-member jury after weeks of trial proceedings.
Presiding judge Justice Ruby Aryeetey delivered the sentence on Tuesday, February 25, 2026, after counsel for both the prosecution and defence addressed the court.
Appiah, who previously played for Okumapem FC, was convicted of the killing of 12-year-old Louis Agyemang Jr. and 15-year-old Stephen Sarpong in August 2021.
The court heard that the bodies of the boys were discovered in a locked room in his house at Abesim. One was found lying in the room, while the other had been placed in a refrigerator.
A pathologist told the court that one of the boys died from strangulation, while the other died due to severe blood loss.
During the trial, the convict admitted causing the deaths but raised a defence of insanity, claiming he was suffering from schizophrenia at the time and did not understand the nature of his actions.
The prosecution rejected this argument, insisting the killings were intentional.
State attorneys argued that his attempt to conceal the bodies and join search efforts showed awareness and deliberate conduct.
The prosecution called five witnesses, while the convict testified in his own defence and called his father as a witness.
