A 47-year-old educationist and ex-convict, Sakah Phidelis Lord, has been sentenced to 48 years in prison with hard labour for defiling a seven-year-old pupil shortly after she was dropped off at school by her parent.
The sentence was handed down by Her Honour Dora G. A. Inkumsah- Eshun (Mrs.) , presiding over the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) Court at the Police Headquarters in Accra, following a full trial.
According to the facts presented by Chief Inspector Edina Aningah, the ex-convict had been appointed head of the victim’s school only three weeks prior to the incident.
She told the court that the incident occurred on February 2, 2025—exactly five years after the convict had been released from prison, where he served a 15-year sentence for defiling a 12-year-old girl.
The court further heard that Sakah Phidelis Lord was initially sentenced to 25 years in prison, but the term was later reduced to 15 years upon appeal.
The prosecutor added that after securing employment, the convict secretly took up residence on the school premises without authorization.
Therefore, when the complainant dropped the victim off at the school at approximately 7:15 am, she was spotted by the ex-convict.
Sakah Phidelis Lord accosted the victim at the common hallway while putting her drink in a fridge. The convict called the victim to his office and asked her to show him her panty, which she innocently did.
As narrated to the court, he then took the victim to the teachers’ washroom and instructed her to sit on the water closet and angrily asked her to remove her panty and cover her face.
The convict forced the victim to watch him while peeing before abusing her with his finger and manhood.
He also covered the victim’s mouth during the act and warned her not to tell anyone, threatening to flog her if she did.
Nevertheless, the victim mustered the courage to confide in her sister, a class five pupil, who then informed the school authorities. The victim was called to the Director’s office after school, where she narrated her ordeal.
The complainant became aware of the incident when he arrived to pick up the victim and her sister, by which time the convict had already gone into hiding.
Upon receiving this information, the complainant reported the matter to the police, A medical form was issued for the victim to undergo examination and receive care.
After several unsuccessful at tempts to contact the convict, he eventually sent a voice note to the school, stating that he had heard he was on the police wanted list.
He was eventually arrested on March 13, 2025, while hiding inside a container at Santeo, a suburb within the Kpone-Katamanso District in the Greater Accra Region.
Following investigations, he was arraigned be-fore the court.
