FOOD VENDOR GETS 36 MONTHS JAIL TERM

By Felix Engsalige Nyaaba

A female  food vendor who pushed her colleague into a gutter   over a  road side space  to sell her food  at  the Cocoa Marketing Board  (CMB)  in Accra, two years ago, was yesterday  sentenced  to  36 months   imprisonment with hard labour  by an Accra Circuit Court .

The court presided over by Ms. Sedina Agbemava, also fined the convict 200 penalty unit (GHC2, 400) as compensation to the victim or in default serves additional 12 months jail term in prison.

The convict, Maame Afua Nekyiwaa, a food vendor went through a full trial and the court  yesterday found her guilty on the crime of causing unlawful harm.

She was charged of one count for causing unlawful harm to one Lydia Animwaa , who is also a food vendor,  but she denied the offence and was sentenced  to 36 months  for  the crime.

Delivering  her  judgment  yesterday,  the presiding judge, Ms Sedina Agbemava  held that the convict stood out as a person who was  primed to illegally take control  over  a public place and that her action amounted to inhuman  act and must face the  laws of the state.

She said , the  court took into consideration of the manner in which the convict perpetrate the crime, the evidence provided by the prosecution against her in court, among other things before imposing the sentence.

Ms Agbemava noted that the sentence would send a clear signal that women who are naturally vulnerable should be seen not to be treating their colleagues as what the convict did and would further served as a deterrent to other women who would attempt to commit such crime.

The judge who cited some law authorities as precedence before handing over the three year sentence said, the prosecution has been able to prove the guilty of the convict beyond reasonable doubt and that a prema-facie case has been dully proved the guilty of the mindset of the convict.

The prosecution case was that both the convict and the victim are all food vendors and sell their food on the road side opposite each other at the CMB area in Accra Central.

According to the prosecutor, Chief Inspector Adamu Awal, on November 18, 2009, at about 6: 00 p.m, both the convict and the victim all brought out their food to the road side as usual to sell.

He said, upon seeing the victim who was bringing her food  at the opposite side, the convict became offended , moved from her selling place and went to attacked the victim at her place  on the grounds that she do not see why the victim should also come and sell at the place opposite her .

 The prosecution noted that, a quarrel then ensued between the two and in the process the convict pushed the victim and her left leg slipped into one of the holes of the metal mesh which was used to cover the gutter.

He said, as a result the victim sustained extensive injuries but was rescued by some witness around the place.

The prosecutor explained that, the convict was arrested thereafter and sent to the police together with the victim.

He said, the police issued a medical form to the victim to attend Hospital and she was rushed to the Korle-Bu Hospital where she was admitted at the Reproductive Plastic Surgery and Burnt Unit (RPSBU) for over two weeks.

Chief Inspector Awal said, it was after investigation that the convict was charged for the offence and brought to court trial.