An Accra High Court on Wednesday, November 1st, convicted six people from two secessionist groups in the Volta Region to varied prison sentences.
The six were found guilty and given sentences for belonging to secessionist groups, attending and taking part in their meetings, and receiving donations from prohibited associations in Mepe, Battor, and Juapong.
Among the secessionist groups were the Homeland Study Group Foundation and the Western Togoland Restoration Front (WTRF).
A retired teacher named Gabriel Godfred Govina was given a three-year prison term, and as a condition of his parole, he had to either pay a fine of ₵3,600 or serve three months in jail.
The penalty imposed on Benjamin Gbadago was 24 months in prison, GH₵2,400 in fines, or four months in prison if he failed to appear.
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Cephas Zodanu, a WTRF Secretary, was found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison and GH₵2,400 in fines for accepting separate contributions from members. Zodanu faces a five-month jail sentence if he fails to pay the fee.
Roland Ametepey was fined GH₵2,400 and sentenced to three years in prison. He will also spend four months if he fails to pay the fine.
Cosmos Havor, a traditional monarch known as Togbe Adzaklo, was convicted to 24 months in jail and fined GH₵4,800.
Six months were imposed on Vincent Ramseyer Atsu-Gadey’s sentence.
The six were remanded for their sentencing on Wednesday, November 1st, after being found guilty earlier. But four others were found not guilty by the court.
They are Divine Nyadzinyor, Excel Liberty Aheto Kuegbesika, Godwin Awudza, and John Gbedemah.
The court stated that, in determining the sentence, it took into account the mitigating reasons made by each of the defence attorneys, the fact that the accused were first-time offenders, and the assumption that some of them had served time in prison.
The trial judge, Mrs. Justice Mary Ekue Nyanzuh, said that the defendants should have known better given their position and that the public was concerned about their behaviour.
It was reported on September 25, 2020, around morning, that convicts had blocked roads with logs, sand, and cement blocks and set fire to tyres, creating inconvenience to drivers.
A few WTRF detainees also overran the Aveyime and Mepe Police Stations, liberating prisoners from their cells, forcing entry into the Armoury, and taking police officers and their families hostage.
In the end, they made off with the ammunition and firearms from the Police Station.
