Court dismisses ‘jealous’ girlfriend’s appeal over a 12-month jail sentence

The Criminal Division of the Accra High Court presided over by Justice Mrs Merlyn Wood has dismissed an appeal from a beautician who was jailed 12 months for sharing fake nude pictures of her boyfriend’s ex-friend.

Convicted, Chantel Nunekpeku was sentenced to 12 months in prison after she pleaded guilty to sharing a doctored nude photograph of her boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend, Destina Tata.

But dissatisfied with the punishment, she appealed against her 12 months sentence at the High Court.

Delivering its judgement on Tuesday, November 2, the High Court held that, the lower court’s sentence was not harsh and that the appellant’s actions were premeditated.

What this ruling means is that, the beautician would have to serve her 12-month jail term handed to her by the lower court in 2018.

Meanwhile, the appellant who was granted bail pending determination of the appeal was not present in court.

She is said to have travelled outside the country after a High Court had granted her bail pending appeal.

*Background*

The convict – Ms Nunekpeku after her 12 months sentence in 2018 filed a bail application at the High Court which she was granted pending appeal.

However, she has failed to file relevant appeal processes to mount her case.

The substance of the issue is that Chantel’s boyfriend, Kayode Kalode is a music producer who happens to be an ex-lover of the complainant in the matter, Destina Tata, whose photo was photoshopped onto another person’s nude body and posted on social media.

Chantel and Kalode were accused of photoshopping Tata’s photos and putting the head on someone else nude body and distributing the same on social media.

The beautician in the initial stages of her trial pleaded not guilty to the crime but later changed her plea to guilty and was sentenced to 12-months imprisonment by the Circuit Court.

Her boy-lover, on the other hand, maintained his plea as not guilty and was admitted to bail in the amount of GH₵10,000.00.

Chantel and Kalode were tried for causing the complainant emotional and psychological trauma, thereby undermining her privacy, dignity, integrity and her worth as a human being.