Scrap dealer jailed three months for stealing metals in Kumasi

A 30-year-old scrap dealer, Yakubu Zakari, has been sentenced to three months’ imprisonment by the Kwadaso Circuit Court for stealing metal items at Bomso in Kumasi.

Zakari, who lives at Aboabo, pleaded not guilty to the charge of stealing but was found guilty after a full trial presided over by Mr. Jephthah Appau.

According to the prosecution, led by Police Chief Inspector David Opoku Kwabi, the complainant, Obeng Abayie, a trader at Bomso, spotted Zakari carrying a sack containing four metal bracings in front of his shop around 2:20 p.m. on January 13, 2025.

Suspecting the items were his, Mr. Abayie hurried home and discovered that his garage door had been damaged and four metal bracings were missing. He immediately pursued the suspect and caught up with him at Bomso Top High, where Zakari was attempting to load the stolen items into a tricycle.

The complainant raised an alarm, attracting the attention of police officers on patrol, who promptly arrested Zakari. A search conducted at the Bomso Police Charge Office uncovered several items in his possession, including a frying pan, a cutlass, four metal bracings, a pinch bar, a hammer, parts of a standing fan, and four iron rods. The total value of the items is yet to be determined.

In his caution statement, Zakari denied stealing the items, insisting he had purchased them from two unidentified young men at Bomso. However, he failed to provide any proof of purchase or assist the police in tracing the supposed sellers.

Following investigations, the suspect was charged with stealing and subsequently convicted by the court.

The presiding judge noted that the sentence should serve as a deterrent to others involved in similar acts of theft and urged residents to collaborate with law enforcement in safeguarding community property.