The Tarkwa Circuit Court has sentenced Abdul Rahman Awal, unemployed, to 15 years imprisonment with hard labour for stealing assorted items worth GH₵47,500.

He pleaded guilty to unlawful entry, causing unlawful damage, and stealing.

Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Joseph Lartey, told the court presided over by Mrs Hathia Ama Manu, that the complainant, Bishop Peter Asamoah Okyere is the presiding Bishop of Abiding Glory House Chapel International. 

He said the complainant and the accused person lived at Tamso-Estate and Tarkwa Zongo respectively, both in the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipality.

Prosecution said on January 20, this year, the complainant, and his family returned from a trip and detected that somebody had broken into their house.

The complainant reported the matter to the police the same day, and after assessing the situation, it was noticed that the person scaled the wall, caused damage to the burglar-proof and window to have access to their living and bedrooms.

He said the rooms were ransacked and the thief made away with a 55-inch Samsung flat-screen smart television valued at GH₵18,000, a 32-inch LG flat-screen television valued at GH₵5,000, a black HP laptop computer valued at GH₵4,500, gold jewelries made up of earrings, watches, necklace, and bracelets valued at GH₵20,000 all worth GH₵47,500.

The Prosecutor said the police later had intelligence that on January 17, 2023, a witness in the case brought the complainant's stolen black HP laptop computer to one John Kwaku Miezah, an elder of Abiding Glory House Chapel International.

According to Chief Inspector Lartey, the witness told Mr Miezah that, the accused came to him with the said HP laptop computer and collected a cash sum of GH₵300 under the pretext of taking his sick mother to the hospital, and promised to refund the money for the laptop computer.

The witness said after Awal left, he switched on the laptop computer and saw the logo of Abiding Glory House Chapel International on the screen.

He said after Mr Miezah had the information, he informed the complainant, and they made an official complaint at the police station.

Chief Inspector Lartey said Awal was later arrested and charged with the offence after assisting the police in their investigation.