Prophet Nkansah jailed

• Posted on May 8, 2015May 8, 2015
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

Prophet Daniel Nkansah, a failed presidential aspirant of the New Vision Party (NVP) and founder of the New Vision Pentecostal Church in Accra, was yesterday handed a month’s jail term by An Accra Circuit Court.

The court, presided over by Justice Francis Obiri, found the controversial man of God cum politician guilty of the offence of conspiracy to cause unlawful damage although the prosecution had initially charged him for robbery.

Prophet Nkansah, his son, Daniel Boahene Nkansah Jnr, and eight others, two of whom were on the run, were facing six counts of conspiracy to rob and robbery.

The other accused persons were Joseph Tetteh, James Quansah Afful, Otukunor Sackey, Emmanuel Salami Azumah, Samuel Kweku alias Sammy Tuga and Richard Annor Baidoo aka Arnold.

The prophet and his accomplices, who were his church members, were said to have robbed Stephen Ped-Andam on February 1, 2014 of his Samsung S4, iPhone, Dell laptop with charger, cheque books, international driver’s license, certificates, iPad 32GB and a sum of GH¢55,000.

Prophet Nkansah, in alleged connivance with his son and the 10 others, made away with a Blackberry Q10 mobile phone and cash of GH¢500 belonging to one Geshon Essel, while another person, Billy Apeku Ken, also claimed his Samsung mobile phone, Dell laptop and cash of GH¢750 were missing.

The fourth complainant, Isaac Tetteh Korgbey, accused the man of God and the others of stealing his Dell laptop and Sony video camera. One Emmanuel Nana Kwaku Badu also complained of his missing wallet containing GH¢1,000 and I.D. cards.

Prophet Nkansah, his son and the others had all denied the charges.

Sentencing the accused persons, Justice Obiri said it was not the intention of Prophet Nkansah to rob the complainant and therefore discharged him of robbery.

He said the man of God had only engaged the other accused persons to either go and beat up the complainant or drive them away.

As a result, the trial judge sentenced Prophet Nkansah to a month’s prison term, in addition to a GH¢1,800 fine or in default serve a 12-month jail term.

The court said per the CCTV footage tendered in evidence, Sackey and Arnold were seen picking some items from the office of the complainant and accordingly, they were jailed 10 years each for the offence of robbery.

In the case of Tetteh, Azumah, Sammy Tuga and Arnold, the trial judge convicted each of them to two years each for the offence of conspiracy to cause damage and causing unlawful damage, to run concurrently.

The court handed Nkansah Jnr a day’s jail term with a GH¢1,200 fine or in default serve a year’s jail term for conspiracy to cause damage, adding that the accused was a student and so would be spared a custodial sentence.

Earlier, lawyers for the various accused persons had pleaded with the judge to deal leniently with their respective clients.

By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson