<<Print>>

A British-Jamaican who was found in possession of a firearm and five rounds of ammunition without lawful authority has been sentenced to 12 months� imprisonment with hard labour by the Accra Circuit Court. Gregory Blake Ellary was also fined GH�3,600 in default of which he would serve two years� imprisonment. He is reported to have pulled the revolver and threatened Maxwell Odame, a motorbike dealer, at Caprice in Accra on August 25, 2015, after refusing to pay the cost for the repair of his motorbike. He was charged with two counts of possessing a firearm and ammunition without lawful authority and threat of death. He pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm and ammunition, but not guilty to the second count. Sentence Passing sentence, the judge, Mr Aboagye Tandoh, said the court took into consideration the plea of the accused and the fact that he had spent 13 days in custody since his arrest on August 25 this year. He said the sentence was meant to serve as a deterrent to those who illegally handle firearms and ammunition, since such acts had repercussions on the safety of the public. He ordered the police to destroy the firearm and the ammunitions retrieved from Gregory in the presence of the registrar of the court. Counsel�s plea Earlier, the counsel for the convict, Mr George Tetteh Wayo, told the court that his client was an industrious mushroom and snail farmer who some Ghanaians had only wanted to take advantage of. The lawyer, who said Gregory pulled out his gun in self-defence when the complainant attempted to prey on him as a foreigner, however, described his conduct as �a mark of youthful exuberance that is wrong�. �Initially, my client had a good case but the case took a twist when he pulled out a gun when he was charged extra money,� he said, and prayed the court to only fine him for his misconduct. Background Prosecuting, Deputy Superintendent of Police Mr Kwaku Bempah told the court that the complainant was a mechanic residing in Amasaman, while the accused was a musician living at Krokobitey, a suburb of Accra. He said about a month ago, the accused bought a BMW motorbike with registration number M-15-GR 1052 from the complainant�s master, one Malik Abed. He stated that on August 24, 2015, the dealer called the accused to go for the engine of his motorbike which he had repaired. On August 25 this year, Gregory went to collect the engine at Caprice and on arrival the dealer asked him to pay GH�500 being half the cost of the repaired engine. �Gregory agreed but decided to first test the motorbike but the dealer asked to sit behind Gregory for the test,� he said. �The accused who had diabolical mind brought the complainant to North Kaneshie and stopped on a section of the road and told him to run for his dear life, else he would shoot him,� the prosecutor said. According to him, the dealer did not take him seriously until Gregory pulled out a revolver loaded with five rounds of ammunition, cocked it and pointed the gun at him. �The accused then decided to run away with the motorbike but the complainant defied all the accused�s threats and struggled with him, attracting a witness to the scene,� Mr Bempah said. He said after the witness had listened to both parties, he escorted both Gregory and the complainant to the police station where the complainant made a report to the police.