Ataa Ayi gets 20 more yrs

Wednesday, September 17, 2008 (Second Lead Story)

THE Accra Circuit Court yesterday sentenced Ghana’s notorious armed robber, Aryee Aryeetey, alias Ataa Ayi, and three others to a total of 80 years’ imprisonment with hard labour for robbery.
Ataa Ayi, whose full name is Raymond Aryee Aryeetey and the three, namely Sarfo Sarpong, Michael Tagoe and Nana Osei, aka Razak, were found guilty of raiding the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) at gunpoint on May 19, 2004.
They were each sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for conspiracy and 20 years imprisonment for robbery. Their sentences are to run concurrently.
Ataa Ayi, who is already serving a 70-year sentence imposed on him in 2006 is currently facing trial in different courts on a string of cases involving him and other accomplices.
The convict, who has grown lean compared to his looks two years ago, looked indifferent after the sentence was imposed on him by a High Court judge who sat with additional responsibility as a Circuit Court Judge.
“I would have imposed a higher sentence if I had sat here in my capacity as a High Court judge,” the judge held.
The trial judge said Ataa Ayi and his cronies needed to be “flushed out of society” because they were the reason Ghanaians could not sleep in their homes peacefully at night.
The court further held that it was now common to see people rob during daylight.
According to the court, armed robbery was on the ascendancy and it was, therefore, important for the convicts to be flushed out of society.
The court said it took into consideration the prevalence of armed robbery in the country, the overwhelming evidence adduced against the convicts by the prosecution, the character and antecedents of the convicts among others before imposing the sentence.
The court congratulated the prosecution on calling eight witnesses within three days, thereby ensuring a speedy trial.
The prosecution was led by a State Attorney, Mrs Rebecca Adjalo.
Ataa Ayi and the other convicts were whisked away by armed prison officers and policemen to continue their sentence.
The facts of the case were that the chief cashier of the CAC and two other employees of the church went to cash GH¢5,625 from the Standard Chartered Bank, Osu branch, and were driving to the office when the accused persons chased them amidst gunshots to the premises but the complainants managed to run away with the money.
While looking for the chief cashier and the others, the accused persons chanced on some officials of the church counting some money in another room and robbed them of GH¢662 at gunpoint.
The convicts denied the offence.
Ataa Ayi has been shuttling from the Nsawam Prisons to the courts where a string of armed robbery cases in which he has been named are pending.