A private security guard, Samuel Nortey Botchway, has been sentenced to a total of 28 years in prison by an Accra Circuit Court for stealing €5,740 from the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) Head Office at North Ridge, where he was stationed.
The verdict was handed down by His Honour Isaac Addo at Circuit Court 2 in Accra on Wednesday. Botchway, 40, was convicted on four charges — one of unlawful entry and three of stealing — under the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29). He pleaded guilty to all counts and was sentenced on his own plea.
Botchway was employed by Spy 4 Security Services and assigned as a permanent daytime guard to the NHIS headquarters.
His crimes were uncovered after repeated thefts were noticed from the office of Raymond Kwablatsey Avinu, the NHIS Director of Administration.
According to the case facts presented by Chief Inspector Jones Lawyer, the thefts occurred over several weeks between April and June 2025 while Mr. Avinu was away on official duty.
The first incident happened on May 17, when €3,300 was taken from a locked office drawer. A week later, on May 24, €1,300 was reported missing, followed by another €1,000 on June 19 — leaving just €40 from the original amount kept in the drawer.
Suspecting foul play, Avinu installed a covert surveillance camera in his office, which eventually captured Botchway stealing. The matter was then reported to the Nima Police.
Botchway was arrested shortly afterward and, during interrogation, admitted to stealing a universal access card from the office of the Head of Security. He used the card to enter Avinu’s office while he was away.
He confessed to using the stolen money to renovate his residence, purchase household appliances including a refrigerator and television, buy new clothes, and pay school fees.
While the court acknowledged that Botchway was a first-time offender who had refunded GH¢10,000 to the police during the investigation, the judge emphasized the seriousness of the offence, particularly given the betrayal of trust and deliberate targeting of a state institution.
As a result, Botchway received seven years imprisonment for each of the four charges, to run concurrently, resulting in an effective sentence of seven years.
