Police tasked to probe accused’s claims
The trial judge of the Agona Swedru Circuit Court, Ms Abigail Anima Asare, might have smelt a rat as she tasked the police to take immediate steps to fish out information about an American-based Dr Linda Kelvin Brown.
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The needed information, according to the judge, would enable the court know the veracity or otherwise of a seemingly incriminating allegation made against Dr Brown by Anthony Geraldo, 25, a man accused of having camped and sexually abused a 14-year-old school dropout at Winneba in the Central Region.
Jobless Geraldo, alias Sitso, had denied the charges of abduction and defilement and claimed that the said Dr Brown was his friend who had been supporting him with $3,000 monthly as he was not working, thereby prompting the judge’s order for the police findings into that allegation.
Geraldo, however, could not tell how many girls in that year group he had so far feted and for how long Dr Brown had been supporting him monthly (financially).
The court, however, adjourned the case and remanded Geraldo in prison custody pending further investigations until July 14.
The facts for the prosecution, according to Chief Inspector Ivy Agadia, indicate that on September 18, 2013, one Maame Esi, a friend of the victim, asked her to accompany her to visit her father at the South Campus area of the UEW but they did not meet him (the friend’s father).
“On their way home, they reached Geraldo’s house where Maame Esi felt thirsty and said they should go to Geraldo who was her friend for some water,” the prosecutor said.
According to the prosecutor, after the girls had taken the water and were leaving the room, Geraldo held and dragged the victim who was behind her friend, locked the door and ordered her to undress but she refused.
Chief Inspector Agadia said Geraldo slapped and stripped the victim naked whereupon he forcibly had carnal knowledge of her several times till the following day when the victim outwitted him with a request to go out and urinate.
The prosecutor said Geraldo gave the victim a piece of black and white cloth to wrap-up her body.
“And it was with that piece of cloth that the victim escaped as an exhibit to narrate her ordeal to her uncle, Joshua Mintah, who rushed to the police (Domestic Violence Victims Support Unit) with a complaint leading to Geraldo’s arrest,” Chief Inspector Agadia stated.