An Accra Circuit Court has sentenced Sokah Phidels Load, a 47-year-old educationist and repeat offender, to 48 years in prison with hard labor for defiling a seven-year-old girl.
Load, who was previously convicted of a similar crime, denied the charges but was found guilty after a full trial. This isn't his first time behind bars; in 2011, he was sentenced to 25 years for defilement, a term later reduced to 15 years on appeal. He completed that sentence in 2020 and has now committed another heinous crime.
Police Chief Inspector Edna Aningah presented the facts to the court. The victim's father, who lived in Accra, was the complainant. Load had worked at the girl's school for just three weeks, living on the premises. Unbeknownst to the school authorities, he had a criminal record.
On February 6, 2025, at about 7:15 AM, the complainant dropped his daughter off at school. Load, who was in his office in the Administrator's Block, saw the girl heading to the Common Hall to put her drink in the fridge. He called her into his office and asked her to show him her underwear. He then took her to the teachers' washroom, told her to sit on the toilet, and angrily ordered her to remove her panties and cover her face with her uniform. The girl obeyed but peeked to watch him. Load then knelt down and inserted his finger and then his penis into the victim's vagina.
When the girl tried to scream, he covered her mouth and threatened to cane her if she told anyone.
Brave, the girl later told a class five student who was a sister of her classmate about what happened. That student then informed the school authorities. The victim was called to the Director's office to recount her ordeal, and her father, who had arrived to pick her up, was informed of the incident.
As soon as Load realized the girl had spoken up, he snuck out of his office and went into hiding. The complainant immediately reported the case to the police, and a medical form was issued for the victim.
Load never returned to the school. All attempts to reach him failed, though he did send a voice note to the school saying he heard the police were looking for him.
Police eventually received a tip that Load was hiding in a container at Santeo. After placing the area under surveillance, they used his identification card to positively identify him. He was arrested at his hideout on March 13, 2025, charged with the offense, and put before the court.
