A 22-year-old motor mechanic and Bolt driver has been sentenced to 25 years in prison with hard labour after pleading guilty to robbing a passenger at Mantey Farms in Adenta.
Emmanuel Kofi Mensah was convicted on his own plea by the Adenta Circuit Court, presided over by Justice Angela Attachie, after the court heard how his attempt to sell one of the stolen items led to his arrest.
Mensah committed the robbery on September 23, 2026, after picking up the victim, Yvonne Dzane Dzifa, from Madina Zongo Junction for a trip to Adenta.
According to the prosecution, Dzifa expected to alight at Adenta Barrier, but Mensah allegedly continued driving towards the Adenta-Dodowa road after locking the vehicle’s doors.
He later drove to Mantey Farms, where he stopped and demanded Dzifa’s handbag and other belongings.
When she resisted, Mensah allegedly pulled out a cutlass, threatened her and dragged her from the vehicle.
The prosecution said he repeatedly struck the victim as she held onto her handbag before cutting her left wrist and little finger, forcing her to release it.
The stolen handbag contained an iPhone 17 Pro Max valued at GH¢18,000, an iPhone 12 valued at GH¢3,500, GH¢3,200 cash and other personal belongings.
Mensah allegedly later contacted another man, who arrived at the scene on a motorbike.
During the confrontation, Dzifa managed to retrieve a backpack from the front seat of the vehicle before escaping into nearby bushes.
The two men reportedly pursued her with the cutlass but were unable to retrieve the backpack.
Dzifa eventually climbed over the fence of a nearby house and remained there until the following morning, when the landlord alerted the Police.
She was rescued and subsequently taken to the Pantang Government Hospital for treatment after sustaining a deep cutlass wound to her wrist and little finger, as well as bruises on her body.
The stolen iPhone, however, became the key link that led investigators to Mensah.
The prosecution said Mensah went to an Apple shop at Madina Zongo Junction the following day to sell the iPhone 17 Pro Max.
The shop owner reportedly noticed the victim’s photograph on the phone and became suspicious that it was stolen.
The owner subsequently caused Mensah’s arrest and handed him over to the Police.
A search of Mensah led to the recovery of the cutlass allegedly used during the robbery, which had been concealed in his shorts.
Chief Inspector Maxwell Lanyo, who led the prosecution, told the court that Mensah admitted the offence in his caution statement and pleaded for forgiveness.
The court also heard that Mensah claimed the Bolt vehicle belonged to a Nigerian friend but could not provide the identity of the vehicle’s owner or the alleged accomplice who arrived at the robbery scene.
Police investigations are continuing to identify and arrest the second suspect.
