NURUDEEN ABDUL-GANEW v. THE REPUBLIC
2021
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
- CECILIA H. SOWAH, JA (PRESIDING)
- ANTHONY OPPONG, JA
- ANGELINA MENSAH-HOMIAH, JA
Areas of Law
- Criminal Law and Procedure
2021
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The appellant ran a premeditated fraud in Wa by calling a merchant from an MTN number, falsely claiming to be the driver of Honourable Alban Bagbin—then MP for Nadowli and now the Speaker of Parliament—and stating he had been sent to purchase school uniforms worth GHC 23,250 for children in the municipality. On subsequent calls he requested funds to repair a purportedly broken-down vehicle; the complainant remitted GHC 1,450, GHC 1,500, and GHC 2,100 (total GHC 5,050), after which the appellant switched off his phones. Investigations connected him to similar offences handled by the Wa Regional Police CID. Convicted of defrauding by false pretences and money laundering, he received five-year sentences on each count, to run concurrently. On appeal for sentence reduction, the Court of Appeal applied KWASHIE v. REPUBLIC and statutory maxima, emphasized deterrence and recidivism, rejected personal-circumstance pleas, and dismissed the appeal, affirming the sentences.
ANTHONY OPPONG, JA
The appellant was convicted of the offences of defrauding by false pretences contrary to section 131 of Act 29 and money laundering contrary to section 1(1)(A) of Act 874. He was sentenced to 5 years on each of the offences; the sentences were to run concurrently.
The appellant is dissatisfied with the sentence, contending by his notice of appeal that the learned trial judge overlooked certain basic considerations in passing the sentence and thus ended up imposing harsh sentence.
The appellant is before the court pleading for reduction of the sentence.
What did the appellant do for which he was arraigned before the Trial Court, Wa to answer the charges alluded to supra?
On 9th June 2018, at about 9.30pm, the complainant received phone call from MTN number 055233697. It was the appellant who had called complainant. He informed the complainant that he was the driver of Honourable Alban Bagbin, (now Speaker of Parliament) who was the Member of Parliament(MP) for Nadowli Constituency and that he had been sent by the MP to buy school uniforms worth GHC23,250.00 from the complainant’s store at Wa Central market to give it to the children in Wa municipality. That was an excellent bait thrown at complainant!
The complainant swallowed the bait hook line and sinker and so when the subsequent days the appellant called on the complainant to send him money to fix his car that had allegedly broken down on the road, the complainant, without any suspicion, gleefully sent various sum of money totaling GHC5,050.00 to appellant; he sent GHC1,450 on 10th June 2018, GHC1,500 and GHC2,100 on the 11th June 2018.
The complainant came to his senses after he sent all those monies to appellant who switched off his phone numbers. It was after that that the complainant realized that he had been swindled and made a complaint to police.
In the course of investigations, the appellant was arrested in a similar case, employing the same modus operandi against some others which matter was being handled by Wa Regional Police CID.
The appellant admitted committing the offenses before the police and when he was arraigned before the court he honourably pleaded guilty to the offences.
The offence of defrauding by false pretenses is a second degree felony. Section 131 of Act 29 states that whoever defrauds any person by any false pretense shall be guilty of a second degree felony. The commission of that crime makes one liable for a term of imprisonment not exceeding te