The Odumase Krobo Circuit court has once again made its stance clear on cocoa smuggling, as it sentenced one Issifu Nyandi to seven years in prison for attempting to transport bags of cocoa beans from Ghana to Togo.
Issifu was arrested by the Anti-Cocoa Smuggling Taskforce while on board a Ford Transit Bus with the intention of smuggling the cocoa beans to Togo. The taskforce intercepted the bus and found six bags of cocoa beans concealed in poly sacks.
Upon interrogation, Issifu admitted to owning the contraband and revealed that he bought the cocoa beans from Koforidua and was planning to sell them in Togo. He was subsequently handed over to the Akosombo Police and later arraigned before the Odumase Krobo Circuit.
The charges against Issifu included purchasing cocoa without authority, attempting to smuggle cocoa beans, and attempting to export ungraded cocoa beans. The penalty for these offences could result in a custodial sentence of between five and ten years without an option of a fine.
Issifu pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to seven years in prison by Judge Kwesi Apiatse Abaiddu. This conviction comes after two other recent convictions for cocoa smuggling in the same court, indicating a worrying trend of cocoa smuggling in the country.
The sentencing of Issifu Nyandi sends a strong message to would-be cocoa smugglers that the law will be enforced to protect Ghana’s cocoa industry.
