A 47-year-old teacher and ex-convict has been sentenced to a 48-year jail term by an Accra Circuit Court for defiling a seven-year-old girl.
According to a report by graphic.com.gh, the court, presided over by G. A. Inkumsah-Ishun, found Sokah Phidels Load, who has a prior conviction for a similar offense, guilty of defiling the victim after a trial.
The prosecutor, Police Chief Inspector Edna Aningah, noted that the convict was sentenced to 25 years' imprisonment for defilement in 2011 but served only 15 years and was released in 2020 after the sentence was reduced following an appeal.
Sokah is said to have gained employment at a basic school without the school's knowledge of his criminal background.
According to the prosecution, the complainant is the father of the victim, who lives with his daughter in Accra, while the convict lived on the premises of the school and had been employed there for just three weeks.
"On February 6, 2025, at around 7:15 a.m., the victim's father dropped her off at school. Sokah, who was then in his office located in the Administrator's Block, observed the girl entering the common hall to place her drink in the school's fridge. He called her to his office under false pretenses," the prosecutor explained.
The prosecution told the court that when the victim entered Sokah's office, he asked her to show him her underwear, which she did. The convict then took the victim to a teachers' washroom, instructed the minor to sit on the water closet, and angrily told her to remove her underwear and cover her face.
The victim complied but peeked at the teacher through her uniform and saw Sokah open his trousers, kneel, and insert his finger and penis into her private parts, causing her to scream.
Sokah covered her mouth and warned her not to tell anyone, threatening to cane her if she did.
The victim later confided in another pupil, the sister of her classmate, who reported the incident to the school authorities.
Upon realizing the matter had been reported, Sokah fled and went into hiding.
"A complaint was lodged with the police, and the victim was issued a medical form and taken for examination at a hospital," the prosecutor stated.
Chief Inspector Aningah told the court that efforts to reach Sokah were initially unsuccessful until he sent a voice note to the school, acknowledging that he had heard the police were searching for him, but he still refused to surrender.
The prosecutor added that the police eventually traced his hideout to Santeo, a community in Accra.
She stated that surveillance, aided by his identification card, was mounted in the neighborhood, leading to his arrest on March 13, 2025.
"After a thorough investigation, Sokah was charged with the offense and brought before the court," the prosecutor concluded.