Driver jailed 8 years for attempted kidnapping

An Accra Circuit Court has handed down an eight-year imprisonment sentence with hard labour to a driver, Godfred Ayittey, convicted of attempting to kidnap a father and daughter for ransom.

Mr Ayittey, who denied conspiring with Wang Liang in the preparation to kidnap the two, was found guilty after trial. Wang Liang is currently at large.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Emmanuel Nyamekye presented the case to the court.

The prosecution explained that on August 3, 2022, a witness, Richard Asomaning, reported to the Tema Police about Mr. Ayittey recruiting him via phone for a kidnapping operation.

Mr. Asomaning was also tasked with recruiting a competent driver for the operation.

DSP Nyamekye outlined that Asomaning, feigning interest, forwarded copies of his driver's license and Ghana card, along with those of his friend Peter Ofoe Agbovie, who he had recruited for Mr. Ayittey.

The witnesses then arranged a meeting with Mr. Ayittey to discuss the operation's details.

According to the prosecution, Mr. Ayittey mentioned the victims as Mr. Joseph K. Horgle, owner of J. K. Horgle Transport and Company Limited, and his daughter Elinam, Deputy Managing Director of the same company. Mr. Ayittey only communicated with the witnesses through phone calls and never met them in person.

Tema Police sought assistance from the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) for the investigation. Witnesses were interviewed at the NIB, revealing that a WhatsApp group platform was created by Mr. Ayittey for the operation. Mr. Ayittey provided GHS50.00 to Mr. Asomaning for surveillance, with initial photographs of the company's premises sent to the convict.

DSP Nyamekye detailed that Mr Ayittey asked Mr Agbovie to rent a vehicle while he procured guns for the operation. Ayittey was tracked and arrested on August 09, 2022, where he admitted to the offence, pointing to Wang Liang as the mastermind behind the kidnapping.

Investigations uncovered that Mr Ayittey had worked at the intended victim's company from 2017 to 2018 as a driver. Aware of the former boss's financial capability, Mr. Ayittey intended to receive ransom payment through Cryptocurrency to Wang Liang's account in China to avoid detection.

The accused had picked Mr. Asomaning's phone number from an online job site and initially contacted him for a driver position before changing the topic to kidnapping. After investigation, Mr. Ayittey was charged with the offence.