Man in Accra sentenced to 25 months for setting three vehicles on fire — MyJoyOnline

Accra Circuit Court No. 10 in Ghana sentenced 35-year-old Emmanuel Lewis Ebuka to 25 months’ imprisonment with hard labour in a case involving a fire at an auto repair shop. The fire destroyed three vehicles. The court found the man guilty on three counts of unlawful damage to property.

Ebuka was sentenced to 25 months’ imprisonment with hard labour on each of the three counts, but he will serve the sentences concurrently. As MyJoyOnline reports, the man denied causing damage to property during the proceedings.

Details of the fire

According to Chief Inspector of Police Clement Takyi, in July 2025, Ebuka was seen sleeping in one of the vehicles parked near an auto repair shop in the Teshie-Fertilizer area. Workshop employees ordered him to leave and warned him not to return.

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The prosecution stated that at about midnight on August 8, 2025, the man returned to the workshop, entered a Chrysler Voyager with registration number GT 242 Z, and smoked inside it. According to the prosecution, he threw a cigarette butt into the cabin, causing the vehicle to catch fire. After he was noticed, Ebuka fled the scene, the prosecution claims.

Damaged vehicles

The fire spread to a Ford Ranger with registration number GW 2615 R, a Toyota 4Runner with registration number GS 1990 Z, and a Toyota Tacoma with registration number GC 1421-10. Auto mechanic Joshua Nii Kuntso Alabi and workshop employees attempted to extinguish the fire before the Ghana National Fire Service arrived.

The Chrysler Voyager, Ford Ranger, and Toyota 4Runner were completely destroyed, while the Toyota Tacoma sustained partial damage. The value of the three destroyed vehicles was 75,000, 40,000, and 80,000 Ghanaian cedis respectively, totaling 195,000 cedis. According to police, after his arrest, Ebuka admitted the offence in his statement.