Washing bay attendant jailed five years for stabbing colleague over missing car key

A washing bay attendant has been sentenced to five years in prison after admitting to stabbing his colleague during a dispute over a missing car key at La in Accra.

Samuel Arthur pleaded guilty to causing harm and was convicted by an Accra Circuit Court, presided over by Mrs. Sedinam Awo Kwadam.

During sentencing, the court considered Arthur’s immediate admission of guilt, his plea for mercy, and his show of remorse. However, given the severity of the injury inflicted, the court handed down a five-year prison term.

Chief Inspector Daniel Ofori-Appiah, leading the prosecution, recounted that the victim, Alfred Adom Adjei, worked alongside the accused at a washing bay in Labone.

On February 17, 2025, a customer dropped off his car for a wash, entrusting the ignition key to Adjei. After the car had been cleaned, the key went missing, leading to suspicions among the workers that Arthur had taken it. When confronted, he denied any involvement.

Angered by the accusation, Arthur pulled out a 14-inch knife and chased Adjei around the premises. Despite efforts by other workers to restrain him, he eventually caught up with the victim and stabbed him in the chest.

Adjei suffered severe bleeding and was quickly rushed to the Police Hospital for medical attention. Witnesses alerted a police patrol team, who arrived at the scene, arrested Arthur, and recovered the knife used in the attack.

Further investigations revealed that Arthur had taken the key deliberately to inconvenience Adjei due to a prior misunderstanding between them. After his arrest, he led the police to where he had hidden the key.

Following his guilty plea, the court found Arthur culpable and imposed a five-year prison sentence.