A 37-year-old man, who posed as a worker at the Jubilee House and used the fake position to dupe four people of GH¢182,400 under the pretext of recruiting their children into the security services, has been put before the Akyem Ofoase District Magistrate Court.
The accused, Richard Osei, pleaded not guilty to fraud by false pretence, with the explanation that the money was intact with his boss in Accra, and would soon pay it to the owners at the court.
The presiding judge, His Worship Benjamin Bennet Attabrah, remanded the accused in custody in his first appearance on April 7, 2026, to reappear on April 21, 2026.
However, three days after his remand, that is, last Thursday, April 9, 2026, the accused’s wife brought all the money to the prosecutor, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Lawrence Ahiatsi, the second in command at the Oda District Police Headquarters.
Accuse returns money
The prosecutor quickly invited the victims to the Ofoase District Magistrate Court on April 9, 2026 and handed over the money to the presiding magistrate in their presence.
His Worship Attabrah ordered a court clerk and the prosecutor to distribute the money to their respective owners.
The magistrate consequently acquitted and discharged the accused and warned him not to engage in such criminal acts.
The facts of the case as presented by the prosecutor, ASP Lawrence Ahiatsi, were that, sometime this year, Osei approached the victims in their various communities and collected various sums of money from them under the pretext of recruiting their children into the Ghana Armed Forces, the Ghana Police
Service and the Ghana Immigration Service.
The accused collected an amount of GH¢60,700 from Raymond Asamoah, a farmer at Akyem Asene, GH¢35,700 from Mercy Yeboah, a cement seller at Asene, GH¢32,000 from Desmond Adu Asamoah, a block manufacturer at Asene and GH¢54,000 from Ebenezer Appiah, a trader at Oda.
ASP Ahiatsi stated that after collecting the money from the victims, Osei went into hiding until April 3, 2026, when a Good Samaritan informed the victims that the accused had taken refuge in his hometown, Anum Apapam.
He said the victims lodged a complaint with the Oda District Police Command, who sent plain-clothed policemen to the place to arrest him that very day.
ASP Ahiatsi stated that after the police completed their investigations, Osei was put before the court on April 7, 2026.
Source:
www.graphic.com.gh
