An Accra circuit court has sentenced a 30-year-old policeman, Lance Corporal Benjamin Tekutey to 15 years in prison for robbery.

He is said to have attacked three Chinese nation­als and robbed them of their mobile phones, money and car, to 15 years in prison.

L/Cpl Benjamin Tekutey alleged­ly committed the crime with a civilian friend, one Patrick Kobby, now at large.

Tekutey was facing a two-count charge of conspiracy to commit crime and robbery, offences he denied.

But the court presided over by Justice Francis Obiri found the accused guilty of the charges.

Sentencing the accused, the trial judge said he was not so enthused about policemen engaging in a robbery.

He said the accused person who is a police officer, had disgraced the Police Service whose motto is "Service with Integrity."

According to the trial judge, Tekutey, being a first offender, had shown remorse.

Earlier, George Asamanney, counsel for Tekutey, prayed the court to deal most leniently with his client who he claimed is a father of two young children.

He also urged the court not to hand the accused a long custodial sentence, especially as the nation continues to grapple with the issue of congestion at the prisons.

Ms Dora Quaye, a State Attorney, was of the view that the accused ought to be handed a harsh and stiffer punishment.

She opined that as a police officer Lance Corporal Tekutey was duty bound to protect the very people he robbed, adding that "he should have known better."

At the initial stages of the trial, the late DSP Patrick Morkeh narrated to the court that on August 4, 2013 at 10:00pm, the complainant, one Xiangmei Shen, an engineer with the Chinese Embassy, was driving a Nissan pick-up with registration number CD 2665 X from Spintex Road with two other Chinese nationals on board towards the Chinese Embassy at the Airport Residential Area.

On reaching the Tetteh Quarshie interchange, the accused and his friend allegedly dressed in police uni­form and armed with AK 47 assault riffle, robbed them of È»500, an iPad and two mobile phones and also snatched their Nissan vehicle.

The complainant subsequently reported the matter to the police.

The Osu District Commander later on night patrol duty spotted the Nissan pick-up parked opposite the Osu Post Office and brought it to the station.

The prosecutor informed the court that when an inspection was conducted in the vehicle, the police found a Nokia mobile phone which was left behind by the suspected robbers.

The mobile phone, according to the prosecutor, belonged to Kobby.

In the course of investigations, the police allegedly gathered that it was Tekutey, a policeman stationed at the Kaketoo Police Station under Ashaiman Division and a friend, Patrick Kobby, who had committed the robbery.