A taxi driver, who pretended to be a stream god and defiled a 15-year-old girl in a bush, has been sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment with hard labour by the Tarkwa Circuit Court in the Western Region.  

Raphael Agyiri, 22, pleaded not guilty to the charge of defilement.  

Prosecuting, Chief Superintendent of Police Alex Odonkor told the court presided over by Mrs Hathia Ama Manu that the complainant is related to the victim and both lived in Bogoso, while Agyiri is a resident at Kokoase, all in Prestea Huni-Valley Municipality.  

He said on June 2, 2022, at about 6:30 pm, Agyiri met the victim in a bush close to a stream at Adjeikrom, a suburb of Bogoso, when she was on an errand.  

The prosecutor said Agyiri professed his love for the victim and adopted a strategy to instil fear in her so he could have sexual intercourse with the victim.  

Chief Superintendent Odonkor said the convict then posed himself as the gods of the stream that flows around the area and warned her that if she failed to have sex with him, she will die in two weeks.  

He said the victim, who became frightened as she had not seen Agyiri before, cried out for assistance, but no one came to her aid. 

The court heard that the convict then dragged the victim to a nearby bush and forcibly had sexual intercourse with her, after which he escorted the victim to her house and later absconded. 

Chief Superintendent Odonkor said when the victim got home, she started experiencing vaginal and lower abdominal pain, and she recounted every detail of what happened to the complainant and the grandmother.  

On June 4, 2022, at about noon, the victim saw Agyiri around their house, quickly informed the complainant, and he was arrested and handed over to the police in Bogoso for investigation.  

Prosecution said a medical form was issued to the complainant on behalf of the victim to seek treatment and report. 

The report, which was returned to the police endorsed by the medical officer at the Wassa Akropong Government hospital, indicated that the victim had been defiled. 

After the full trial, the court found Agyiri guilty of the offence and he was sentenced accordingly.  

Additionally, the court ordered him to pay a compensation of GH¢10,000 to the victim.