'I am guilty' Kombian pleads...

THE notorious criminal and two-time jailbreaker, Johnson Kombian, who is popularly referred to as the Nakpanduri Terror, was yesterday sentenced to six years’ imprisonment by the Accra Circuit Court.
Kombian, who recently caused a stir in the country by escaping from the Tamale Prison, pleaded guilty to escaping from lawful custody and was convicted on his own plea.
The hardened criminal, who is also alleged to have killed two policemen while on the run, will, in addition, complete the remaining five-year prison term he was serving before his escape.
Before the judgement was pronounced, counsel for the accused, Mr George Asameny, pleaded with the court to be lenient in its judgement.
Mr Eric Kyei Baffour, the trial judge, said Section 300, Act 30 of the Criminal Code imposes a maximum sentence of three years on a crime of jail escape and in the event that the criminal is re-arrested and charged with the same offence, the code allows the judge to enhance the sentence.
The notorious fugitive was arrested in Togo and handed over to the Ghana Police.
He was said to have been shot in the leg after a violent struggle with Togolese security officers and eventually handed over to the Ghana Police under heavy security at Aflao.
Before the police declared him wanted with a reward of GH¢3,000 for information leading to his arrest, Kombian was alleged to have killed a number of his robbery victims during his brutal operations at Nakpanduri, his last victims being two policemen, Constables Prince Agyare and Owusu Frimpong.
After killing the two policemen, Kombian escaped from the country through the northern border post to Togo and Burkina Faso.
From their intelligence report on his movements, the police contacted Interpol in Burkina Faso and also made available to them Kombian’s pictures.
According to a police intelligence report, Kombian, described as the brain behind a number of robberies, had earlier escaped from jail at the Tamale Prison on January 15, 2010 and crossed the border into Togo from his hideout at a small village near Nakpanduri.
The Ghanaian authorities again alerted Interpol in Togo and provided them with vital information on the fugitive, including copies of his picture, to facilitate his arrest.