Businessman granted GH₵1 million bail over fraud

On June 8, 2021, 7:34 AM

An Accra Circuit Court has granted a 55-year-old businessman bail in the sum of GH₵1,000,000.00 with four sureties, one to be justified with a title document, for allegedly defrauding another of GH₵1,000,000 under the pretext of investing his money.

In addition, the Court ordered that Samuel Nana Mensah, alias Samuel Kwaku Remeo, who had been away since 2019, should from Tuesday, June 8, report to the police.

However, Ericson Arthur, alias Eric Kofi Arthur, 29, welder, and his accomplice, had been on police enquiry bail since his arrest in 2019.

Their dockets have been sent to the Attorney General’s Department for advice and they will reappear on June 24, 2021.

Detective Chief Inspector Simon Apiorsornu, told the Court, presided over by Mrs Ellen Ofei Ayeh, that the two, in August 2019, presented themselves as agents and officers of West Africa Monitory Agency to obtain the amount from Dr Samuel Nene Ankrah, a lecturer domiciled in the United Kingdom.

He said the complainant had returned to Ghana on retirement with the hope to settle with his family.

The accused persons through Arthur’s elder brother, who was a friend to the complainant, approached the complainant to assist him to invest his money in their company, as it would yield more returns.

Authur introduced Mensah as his boss and Mensah gave the complainant his complimentary card bearing his name and indicating he was an officer of the company.

The prosecution said the accused persons then managed to get GH₵1,000,000.00 from the complainant and they went into hiding and efforts by Dr Ankrah to reach them to retrieve his money proved futile, hence he reported to the Police in November 2019.

Authur was traced and arrested but Mensah, on hearing of Arthur’s arrest, vacated his residence at Weija and went into hiding, the prosecution said, and that all efforts to trace him failed.

He said Authur admitted the offence in his caution statement and said he used his share of the money to buy a car and a house at Bortiano. He was later released on police enquiry bail.

Mensah was later arrested at Kasoa at his hideout on Sunday, June 6, 2021.
The prosecution pleaded with the Court to remand him as he would interfere with investigations but the Court, in granting the bail, considered the fact that the offence was available.