Accra, April 7, GNA – Trial of a 74-year old Pharmacy Assistant accused of having sex with a 13 year old girl at Chorkor, a suburb of Accra, has begun at an Accra Circuit Court.
Stephen Okuley Nii Tetteh, a former Assemblyman of Chorkor-Galilee in Accra, charged with defilement, pleaded not guilty.
Tetteh has been admitted to bail in the sum of GH₵60,000.00 with two sureties, who are to be public servants earning not less than GH₵2,500.00 monthly.
When sitting resumed at the Court on April 7, this year, the complainant and mother of the victim mounted the witness box to give her evidence.
Led in evidence by Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Kofi Atimbire, said the complainant told the Court that she was a fishmonger and mother of the victim and she knew the accused person.
According to the complainant, she knew the accused person as a former assemblyman of Chorkor Galilee.
The complainant identified her witness statement in court and relied on content of the statement.
Complainant’s statement was admitted in evidence by the court and the complainant was cross-examined by accused’s lawyer.
The matter has been adjourned to April 8, for further cross-examination of the complainant.
The facts as narrated earlier by Police Chief Inspector Atimbire are that the complainant and victim as well as the accused live in the same house at Galilee-Chorkor.
Prosecution said Tetteh, was fond of sending the victim on errands and had been giving her money for the service.
Prosecution said the accused took advantage of the situation and was secretly having sexual intercourse with the victim at the blind side of the complainant.
The Prosecution said on January 25, this year, the complainant came back from town and did not see the victim in the house.
He said being worried about the victim’s absence, the complainant searched everywhere in the area for the victim but to no avail.
Chief Inspector Atimbire said the complainant received information later that the accused person came and called the victim.
The prosecution said the complainant then went straight to the accused person’s door and called the victim several times but there was no response.
Prosecution said the complainant then opened the door leading to the accused person’s porch and entered.
He said as soon as the complainant proceeded to the sitting room and called the victim’s name again, the accused person hurriedly came out from his bedroom pulling his pair of shorts up and picked up a remote control device and started pressing it.
According to the Prosecution, when the complainant asked the accused where her daughter was, the accused in turn asked her to go and search for her daughter if indeed the victim was in his room.
Mr Atimbire said the complainant then saw the cloth which the victim had wrapped around her waist when she left her in the house earlier, in the accused’s sitting room.
The Prosecutor said the complainant at this point knowing very well the accused person had hidden the victim somewhere in the room, entered his bedroom, saw the victim’s pants and shorts lying in the bedroom.
He said the complainant searched there until she saw the victim hiding under the accused’s bed with her top dress rolled up and not wearing any underwear.
Prosecution said the complainant pulled the victim from under the bed and wrapped the victim’s waist with her cloth found at the accused’s bedroom and went to the Chorkor Police Station to lodge a complaint.
Prosecution said a medical report form was issued to the complainant to send the victim to the hospital for treatment and the accused subsequently charged.
GNA