A 35-year-old mason, Charles Sedoh, has been sentenced to 35 years imprisonment with hard labour by the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) Court at the Police Headquarters in Accra for defiling his two biological daughters.

The court, presided over by Her Honour Annette Sophia Essel, handed down the sentence after the prosecution, led by Chief Inspector Opoku Aniagyei, prayed the court to consider the rampant nature of the offence and impose a deterrent sentence.

Chief Inspector Aniagyei urged the court to take into account the trust children repose in their fathers as guardians to protect and defend them.

Sentencing:

The accused was sentenced to 10 years on Count 1 and 10 years on Count 2, which are to run concurrently. He was also sentenced to 10 years on Count 3, 15 years on Count 4, and 10 years on Count 5, with Counts 3 and 5 to run concurrently. The sentences are to run consecutively, bringing the total to 35 years.

Further Orders:

The court further ordered that:

1. The victims be referred to the nearest government hospital or the Police Hospital, Accra, for clinical psychological therapy to help them overcome the trauma.

2. The Department of Social Welfare (DSW)6 should make provision for the care and protection of the victims.

3. The Ghana Police Service should rescue the children and keep them in a shelter until the DSW takes custody of them.

Facts of the Case:

According to the prosecution, the complainants are two sisters aged 18 and 15, both students residing at Oyibi. The accused is their biological father and lives in the same house with them.

The prosecution said the accused started having sexual intercourse with his eldest daughter in 2018 when she was 11 years old, and the abuse continued for seven years.

In 2021, he started abusing the second daughter when she was also 11 years old, for a period of four years.

The court heard that when the victims refused, the accused would beat them, deny them food, or threaten to stop paying for their education. When they told him they were unhappy, he promised to stop when they completed Senior High School.

On January 3, 2025, at about 12:00 p.m., he allegedly had sexual intercourse with the younger daughter, and on January 24, 2025, at about 2:00 a.m., he had intercourse with the elder daughter.

On January 31, 2025, the two sisters reported the matter to the Adenta Divisional DOVVSU, where police medical forms were issued for examination and treatment.

Four days after the report, on February 4, 2025, the mother of the victims brought a pack of Fiesta condoms to the police, which they accused had allegedly attempted to use on the eldest daughter after the report had been made.

The accused was arrested the same day, cautioned, and on February 5, 2025, both parties led the police to the crime scene at Oyibi.

The court noted the judgment is subject to appeal.

Source : Peacefmonline