The Shama Magistrate Court has convicted a man, Baba Salihu to a 2-year prison sentence after he was found guilty of stealing cables belonging to the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) at Inchaban in the Shama District of the Western Region.
The GWCL in a press release said it had arrested a suspected cable thief at their station at Inchaban on Saturday, September 23, 2023.
The statement indicated that at about 10:00 am on that day, a senior Technical Assistant at the station, Solomon Kumornu, during his usual rounds at the station heard an unusual noise in one of their laboratories.
He traced the noise and found Salihu lying on the ceiling to avoid being arrested.
The statement further explained that Baba had already removed all the cables in the walls and was in the process of eliminating those on the ceiling when the noise caught the attention of Mr. Kuwornu.
The suspect initially told the court presided over by Ms. Patience Ablorh that he was 17 years old, however, it turned out that he was 18 years old when he was asked to produce his Ghana card in court to prove his age.
The court found him guilty and sentenced him to 2 years in prison.
The suspect was paraded before the court about a fortnight ago having broken into a container shop and was fined. He was able to pay the fine and escaped a six-month jail term.
Meanwhile, the Western and Central Regions Communications Officer of GWCL, Nana Yaw Barima said that his outfit is satisfied with the ruling of the court.
He believes the sentence will serve as a deterrent to others who have been stealing cables from the company, making water distribution a challenge in the region.
“We in Ghana Water Limited are quite satisfied with the swift and successful prosecution of this case as it will send a strong signal to his possible accomplices that GWCL is not a company to be taken for granted,” he said.