THE REPUBLIC vs SPAYN NARH @ STUTTGART WOODS
2025
HIGH COURT
CORAM
- HER LADYSHIP, COMFORT KWASIWOR TASIAME, JUSTICE OF THE HIGH COURT
Areas of Law
- Criminal Law and Procedure
- Technology Law
2025
HIGH COURT
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
This case involved multiple charges against Philip Spayn Narh, including sexual extortion, non-consensual sharing of intimate images, and unlawful possession of narcotic drugs. The accused used various online personas to coerce a 19-year-old complainant into sexual acts, which he recorded and shared without consent. The court found the accused guilty of sexual extortion, non-consensual sharing of intimate images, and unlawful possession of narcotic drugs, but acquitted him on the charge of publication of obscene material. The court emphasized the seriousness of these offenses, particularly in the context of increasing cyber-related crimes. The accused was sentenced to a total of 12 years imprisonment for his crimes, with the sentences to run concurrently.
The accused was arraigned before this Court on 27th July, 2023 and charged with the following offences: Sexual Extortion under section 66(1)(a) and (b) of the Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038), Nonconsensual Sharing of Intimate Images under section 67(1) of Act 1038, one count of Publication or Sale of Obscene Material contrary to section 280 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), and three counts of Unlawful Possession of Narcotic Drugs contrary to section 37(1) of the Narcotics Control Commission Act, 2020 (Act 1019).
BRIEF FACTS
The brief facts of this case are that the Complainant, Nuertey Rachael Dede Yomor, is a 19yearold Senior High School graduate and lives with her parents at Kpone, while the accused, Philip Spayn Narh @ Sharon Stuttgart Woods is a 26yearold plumber and hair stylist, residing at Bawaleshie near Dodowa with his father. In the latter part of the year 2020, the Complainant was introduced to the accused by a girl known as Delphine whom she met via Telegram, an online social media platform. The suspect created the impression that he was a female GermanAmerican by name Sharon Stuttgart Woods, who was into financial services and had come to Ghana to do business. He further portrayed himself as a philanthropist, with a passion to help black girls achieve their dreams and could assist the Complainant travel abroad to further her education at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT.
The Complainant disclosed her interest in IT, stating her ambition to become a web developer with a longterm goal of creating Artificial Intelligence.
In December 2020, the accused informed the Complainant that she had arrived in ' ' Ghana and arranged to meet with the Complainant at a hotel in Dodowa in order for them to get acquainted with each other. On 8th December 2020, while on her way to the said location, the accused sent her a text that ' she' had been summoned for an urgent meeting and that the Complainant should wait at ' her' driver s brother s place ' ' at Bawaleshie. Unknown to the Complainant, the said driver s brother was actually ' the accused. When she arrived at the said location, the accused, sent another message, compelling the Complainant to have sex with the said driver after which it would be recorded, to test her loyalty, as a precondition to assisting her in getting a place at MIT. The accused coerced the Complainant into having sex with him and he recorded it. The complainant, distressed by the circumstances surrounding h