JOSHUA KWADWO ASARE & ANOTHER v. THE REPUBLIC
2015
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
- ADJEI, JA – PRESIDING
- CECILIA H. SOWAH, JA
- HENRY KWOFIE, JA
Areas of Law
- Criminal Law and Procedure
- Constitutional Law
2015
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The appellant was convicted and sentenced to thirty years in prison by the High Court, Koforidua, for robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery. The appellant and two others planned and executed a robbery, during which the victim's taxi, money, and phone were stolen. The appellant's guilty plea, accompanied by an explanation, was not properly considered by the trial court. The appeal court found that the trial court erred by not treating the appellant's plea of 'guilty with explanation' as a plea of not guilty and by failing to provide proper weight to the defense offered. Consequently, the conviction and sentence were set aside without ordering a retrial.
ADJEI, J.A:
This appeal is against conviction and sentence of thirty (30) years imposed on the appellant herein by the High Court, Koforidua on 3rd March 2009. Charges of conspiracy to commit crime to writ robbery contrary to sections 23 and 29 of the criminal and other offences Act 29, 1960 and robbery contrary to section 149 of Act 29, 1960 and assault were preferred against the three accused persons. The third accused person was at large and was therefore not tried.
The brief facts of the case were that the 1st accused person, the appellant herein was as at 23rd February, 2009, unemployed while the 2nd accused person was a driver by profession. The three accused persons held a meeting to rob the victim, Annor Adisha of his Opel Astra Taxi cab with Registration mark AS 1826 Y. The Victim worked on that day at kukurantumi Township. When the victim parked the taxi cab at the lorry station waiting for passengers, the first and second accused persons approached him and chartered the taxi to Ankasse, a village near Kukurantumi. On the way, one of the accused persons decided to urinate and told the driver to stop. It was around 8.20 pm, the driver sensed danger and decided to turn to kukurantumi. All these while, three other persons who were accomplices of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd accused persons had laid ambush at where one of the accused persons wanted the driver to stop for him to urinate. According to the facts presented by the prosecution, the 1st accused person then slapped the driver when they found that he was returning to Kukurantumi. The 2nd accused person who sat at the front seat also held the steering wheel to remove the ignition key, struggling ensued between the driver and the 1st and 2nd accused persons and in the process, the three accomplices who had laid ambush also joined in the struggle. They overpowered the driver, chased him to the bush and sped off the taxi cab with sixty Ghana cedis and a mobile phone belonging to the victim. They sent the taxi cab to Suame in Kumasi to sell at a cost of GH¢1, 500.00. The purchaser, suspected a foul deal informed the police. The Police arrested 1st and 2nd accused persons while the other three people absconded.
The record of Appeal suggests that both accused persons pleaded guilty simpliciter to all the counts. However, the trial High Court Judge decided to take his explanation. It gives an indication that the 1st accused person pleaded guilty with explanation and was asked to offer his explanation to t