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A 26-year-old fisherman has been sentenced to 36 months� imprisonment with hard labour by the Odumase-Krobo Circuit Court for escaping from lawful custody. Atsu Datsumor pleaded guilty to the charge but pleaded for leniency which was not accepted. The Presiding Judge, Mr Asmah Akwasi Asiedu, took a rather serious view of the behaviour of Datsumor, since the officers who were supervising him would have either lost their jobs or would have been reduced in rank, if he had not been re-arrested. He, therefore, sentenced him to serve as a deterrent to other prisoners who would want to follow his footsteps. According to the court, the punishment had nothing to do with his previous sentence by the Ada Magistrate Court. Chief Inspector John Akuetteh, the prosecutor, said the complainants were prison officers from the Akuse Prison, while Datsumor was a convict serving a prison term at the same prison. He said in November 2012, Datsumor was arrested by the Kasseh Police in Ada for stealing a motorbike. He was, therefore, arraigned before the Ada District Magistrate Court, convicted and sentenced to 18 months� imprisonment with hard labour. The prosecutor said on May 6, 2013, Datsumor and three other prisoners were assigned to undertake an external labour under the supervision of the complainants to dry rice in Akuse town. According to Chief Inspector Akuetteh, during the course of the work, Datsumor asked permission to attend to the call of nature but escaped and went home. He said a wireless message was sent to all the police stations to be on the lookout for Datsumor. The prosecutor said Datsumor was re-arrested on May 30, 2013 and handed over to the Ada Police. He said on hearing of the arrest, the prison authorities at Akuse dispatched a team of officers who went for him. Datsumor, who was identified by the prison officers, admitted committing the offence in his caution statement and was put before court.