Two of the three individuals arrested by the Volta Regional Police Command for their involvement in an attempt to steal a transformer in Adaklu Tsrefe on October 5 have been sentenced by the Ho Circuit Court.

The two convicts, Sitsofe Agbodza (26 years) and Deladem Kodzo Tsrakasu (29 years), received five-year prison terms each after pleading guilty to theft and an attempt to destroy public property.

The third suspect, Abdul Wahab Seydou, a 20-year-old plumber, had his sentencing postponed for the next three weeks.

The circuit court judge ordered a social inquiry to be conducted on him, with the report to be submitted to the court within the specified time.

According to Benjamin Obeng Antwi, the Volta Regional PRO for the ECG, the judge based his decision on Mr. Wahab's age (below 21 years) and the fact that he was a first-time offender, which warranted the need for a social inquiry report.

The three suspects were initially apprehended by Adaklu Tsrefe residents and subsequently handed over to the Volta Regional Police Command on October 5 for their involvement in vandalizing an ECG transformer and stealing valuable components from it.

“As a company, we are committed to providing quality, reliable and safe electricity services for our customers but the activities of these individuals prevent us from delivering our core mandate. Once the transformer is stolen, power supply will be curtailed to customers and this will affect businesses, schools and even hospitals so we humbly appeal to the general public to assist us curb this menace,” he said.

“The transformer is the most expensive component in our network and the value for the damaged transformer at Adaklu Tsrefe by these suspects is 104,000 Cedis minus labor and other expenses which affects our operations as well as our financial health. This new transformer could have been sent to communities without power supply or even extend power to other areas”, he added.

The General Manager of ECG in the Volta Region, Christina Jatoe-Kaleo, has called upon the public to remain vigilant and assist in safeguarding ECG installations in their communities, residences, and towns.

“Lately people are even stealing the earth wires at our substations and service cables of our customers which normally result in outages so let’s all come together to fight this menace. If you see anyone suspicious working at any ECG substation or facility, kindly report to the nearest police station or ECG via 0302611611, the ECG PowerApp or any of our social media handles @ecgghofficial,” she said.