Couple face sentence for son's injuries

February 8, 2014 (Page 44)

THE couple, who allegedly inflicted wounds on the fingertips of their 10-year old son for stealing will be sentenced on February 18, 2014.
 Morrison Adeti, a lotto operator and his wife Adekor Morrison, a labourer, have both pleaded guilty to two counts of causing harm and abetment of crime.
  The couple, who had earlier pleaded pleaded not guilty to the charges changed their plea at the court's sitting in Accra today.
They were alleged to have punished their son for stealing some coins and pieces of meat from their soup.

Lawyer pleads
Lawyer for the couple, Mr Augustine Asafo-Agyei,   pleaded with the court to have mercy on his clients with the reason that they had shown remorse.
He also indicated that the victim was their son who needed his parents around.
Counsel further submitted that the two were first time offenders who needed to be given a second chance to reform.
The court, presided over by Ms Ellen Vivian Amoah, took note of counsel's pleas and adjourned the case to February 18, 2014 for judgement.
 The two are currently on a GH¢ 40,000 bail with justification each.
 In granting the bail, the court took into consideration the existence of family relations between the victim and the couple.


 Facts of the Case
 Prosecuting, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Mrs Sarah Acquah, told the court that the complainant was a journalist with TV3 Network in Accra while the accused persons are resided at MacCathy Hills in Accra with their children, including the victim.
On January 4, 2014, at about 6 am, Adeti confronted and accused the victim of stealing pieces of meat and some coins and threatened to teach the victim a lesson if he failed to tell the truth.
The victim, however, denied the offence but Adeti would have none of that and proceeded to cut the tips of all the victim's fingers with a blade.

Victim bleeds

 The victim bled and wept bitterly while Adekor, who was present during the act, asked the victim to wait for her to attend to him later.
According to the prosecution, the couple allegedly left the victim to his fate to attend to their respective works. A Good Samaritan who saw the victim called the complainant on phone at about 7:30 pm.
The complainant rushed to the scene and after ascertaining the truth, informed the police at Odorkor and a team of police personnel were dispatched to the area to arrest the couple.
The victim was also sent to the Police Hospital for medical attention.