87-year-old man jailed for 20 years with hard labour for unlawful carnal knowledge of nine-year-old girl

The Ghanaian police have secured a 20-year prison sentence with hard labour for an 87-year-old man who was convicted of defiling a nine-year-old girl at Ofankor, a suburb of Accra.

Preliminary investigations by the police indicate that on August 29, the complainant returned from work and noticed stains on the clothing of her nine-year-old daughter. Upon questioning the child, she disclosed that the accused person, Yaw Gahornu, had allegedly subjected her to repeated acts of carnal violation between July and August 2026.

Further investigation also revealed that the suspect allegedly lured the child to his sleeping quarters and threatened to execute her if she disclosed the alleged abuse to her mother.

The accused person, Yaw Gahornu, was charged and arraigned before the Gender-Based Violence Court at the DOVVSU Headquarters, where he was found guilty and sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment in hard labour for the offence of defilement.