Farmer Sentenced to 20 Years for Attempting to Sell Son

A 53-year-old farmer, Bashiru Gambo, has been sentenced to 20 years of hard labor by the Tarkwa Circuit Court for attempting to sell his son.

Charged with trading a person contrary to section 2 (1) of the Human Trafficking Act 694 of 2005, Gambo pleaded guilty and sought leniency from the court. However, the presiding judge, Mrs. Hathia Ama Manu, delivered a severe sentence to serve as a deterrent to others, in light of increasing cases of missing persons.

Prosecutor Superintendent of Police Juliana Essel-Dadzie emphasized the rising incidence of disappearances and urged the court to impose a harsh penalty on Gambo.

The victim, Alexander Kyeremeh, a small-scale miner, resides at Manu-krom near Obuasi, while his father, Gambo, lives at Wassa-Abreshia near Wassa Akropong.

According to the prosecution, on June 27, 2024, police officers at Wassa-Nkonya received intelligence that Gambo was planning to sell his son. The officers then monitored Gambo and posed as buyers. Gambo negotiated a price of GH¢80,000 and promised to deliver his son to the buyers on July 1, 2024.

On the agreed date, Gambo led the buyers to Manu-krom and contacted his son to meet them at the roadside. Gambo identified his son from a distance and allowed him to join the buyers’ vehicle. Once the victim was in the vehicle, the buyers revealed themselves as police officers and arrested Gambo, taking him to the Wassa Akropong Police Station.

In his caution statement, Gambo admitted to the crime and claimed financial hardship drove him to make such a decision.

Source: GNA