An Accra Circuit Court has handed a combined 5-year jail term to two individuals for possession and circulation of nude photos of a JHS student.
The court presided over by Mrs. Abena Oppong Adjin-Doku found Desmond Appleton and Elvin Boakye Agyeman Nana Kofi guilty despite pleading not guilty, the Ghanaian Times newspaper reports.
They were charged with conspiracy to commit crime to wit child pornography, procurement of child pornography, possession of child pornography and the publication of child pornography.
Desmond Appleton and Elvin Boakye Agyeman Nana Kofi were handed 36 months and 24 months respectively, both in hard labour.
Speaking to the Ghanaian Times newspaper, The Director of the cybercrime unit of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), ACP Gustav Herbert Yankson said that Agyeman went to the victim’s school to sell branded T-shirts and struck acquaintance with her in January 2017.
They communicated on Telegram and Agyeman asked his 14-year-old victim to send him nude photos of herself in April 2017 — she obliged. Agyeman sent the photos to Appleton.
Appleton began chatting the victim and also requested more, threatening to circulate the ones in his possession if the victim does not add more. The victim sent 10 photos and videos.
When Appleton returned with more demands, the victim uninstalled the app to cut communication.
The victim’s teacher saw the photos and videos and alerted her parents in July 2017.