The Tarkwa Circuit Court has sentenced an 18-year-old small-scale miner to 10 years imprisonment with hard labour for stealing mining equipment worth GH¢11,990.  

Mohammed Razak, who was recently jailed by the same court for a similar offence, pleaded guilty to the charge of stealing.  

Presenting the facts of the case, the prosecutor, Chief Inspector Abraham Ayitey told the court, presided over by Mrs. Hathia Ama Manu, that the complainant Thomas Tetteh is a small-scale miner and a resident of Wassa Japa in the Wassa Amenfi East constituency.  

He said Tetteh owns a small-scale mining site at Wassa Japa but one month ago, he halted his mining activities because of a water shortage and dismantled all his mining equipment.  

According to the prosecution, Tetteh kept the equipment at his site and planned to transport it to a place where it would be safe.  

Chief Inspector Ayitey said the next day Tetteh went to his site only to realise his Changfa diesel engine valued at GH¢8,000, pumping machine valued at GH¢1,700 and crusher valued at GH¢3,700 had disappeared.  

The prosecutor said Tetteh started making enquiries about the stolen items within the Wassa Japa community and that led him to the arrest of Razak. 

He dragged him to the Wassa Akropong police station, reported the matter, and handed him over to the police for investigation.  

Chief Inspector Ayitey informed the court that Razak said he sold the equipment to a scrap dealer at Wassa Adiembra but when the police led him to help retrieve the stolen items, they could not trace the said scrap dealer.