A 39-year-old carpenter, identified as Peter Asamoah, has been sentenced to 20 years imprisonment with hard larbour, for defiling a nine-year-old girl in Yareyeya, a community in the Prestea Huni-Valley Municipality.
The minor victim is the daughter of the 34-year-old ex-lover of the suspect, GNA reports.
Peter Asamoah, who pleaded guilty with an explanation, was convicted by the Tarkwa Circuit Court, presided over by Mrs. Hathia Ama Manu.
The convict alleged that he was under the influence of alcohol and pleaded with the judge to temper justice with mercy.
According to Police Chief Inspector Owusu, on November 7, 2024, the complainant went to the farm and left the victim alone.
He said Asamoah took advantage of her absence, lured the victim into his room, and forcibly had sexual intercourse with her.
The prosecutor said that while the act was ongoing, the victim groaned in pain, and cried for help, and a witness named Kwakye rushed to the scene and found Asamoah having sex with the victim.
Out of fear of being punished, the victim failed to inform the complainant when she got home, but on November 10, 2024, she narrated the incident to the complainant.
Chief Inspector Owusu said the witness also informed the complainant, and she confronted Asamoah. He admitted the offense and pleaded for forgiveness.
The complainant informed a police officer who was around, and he arrested and handed Asamoah over to the Western Central Regional Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) office in Tarkwa and lodged an official complaint with the police.
He said a police medical form was issued to the complainant to send the victim to the hospital for examination, treatment, and a report.
The form was submitted duly endorsed by a medical officer at the Apinto Government hospital, revealing that the victim had been defiled.
