A Koforidua circuit court presided over by Mrs Mercy Adei-Kotei has sentenced three men to 20 years imprisonment each on two counts of conspiracy to commit a crime, to wit defilement and defilement.

They are Yaw Preko, 25-year-old Cobbler; Adamu, 19-year-old driver's mate; Awudu Kamilu, 18-year-old Head Porter, all residents of Nkawkaw in the Kwahu East District.

Two others, Junior and Sarfo, are at large.

The facts of the case as presented to the court by Assistant State Attorney Mr Dickson Donkor was that on March 5, 2017, at about 1400 hours, the 14-year-old victim (name withheld) an iced-water seller at the Nkawkaw Lorry Park was returning from the house of one Isaac who had promised her some money to help in her iced-water business and met Yaw Preko, the first accused who called her and proposed love to her.

According to the prosecution, the girl refused the proposal, Yaw Preko then called the other accused persons and followed her, caught up with the victim and forcibly covered her mouth with their hands and carried her to a nearby bush.

The five accused persons laid the victim on muddy ground and had sex with her in turns until the victim became unconscious and could not cry out for help.

The first accused then suggested to the others that they should kill her based on which, Adams, the 19-year-old driver's mate held the victim's neck tightly to suffocate her to death and in the process threw her into a nearby stream after they had mistaken her to be dead.

Shortly afterwards the complainants, in this case, Mr Kofi Boateng and Yaw Duah, both drivers at the Nkawkaw new lorry station came across the victim and rescued her.

A report was then made to the police leading to their arrest while the victim was issued a medical form for medical treatment.