A Ministry of Lands staff grabbed for extortion has been jailed for 15 months.
The convict, Gabriel Sarpong, an Information Technology specialist, is said to have collected monies from illegal miners and other mining-related activities in excess of two hundred thousand Ghana cedis (¢200,000).
He did this on the blind side of the ministry, using Deputy Minister George Mireku Duker’s name.
He pleaded guilty to defrauding by false pretences, which is the second charge.
He was therefore convicted on his own plea.
Mr Sarpong, however, denied any wrongdoing on the first charge of falsely pretending to be a public officer.
Counsel for the convict Muda Ade Lawal prayed for the court to hand his client a non-custodial sentence.
He said the convict was a civil servant and a good citizen who had been diligently working in the ministries but was “pushed by the devil” to commit the act.
Mr Lawal pleaded with the court to show mercy, adding that the convict was a young man with many services to render to the nation if given a chance.
“He is an IT specialist and, if given a custodial sentence, will mix with hardened criminals, which will make him worse off,” he added.
The prosecution, led by ASP Evans Kesse, said he leaves the judgment to the judge’s discretion.
The court presided over by Evelyn Asamoah subsequently sentenced the accused person to 15 months in jail in hard labour for count two, which is defrauding by false pretences.
The case has been adjourned to 12 October 2022 for trial to commence for the second charge.
