BNI Boss in Attempted Sale of Gov't Land

Chronicle episodic investigations into the alleged ?80 million (?5,850.00) swindle by the Tema municipal head of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) have revealed that the suspect wanted to sell government plots to the victim.

Again sources at the Lands Department and the police hinted that the BNI boss, Kwamina Afedzi, forged the signature of the late chief of Ofankor on the indenture. This is evidenced by the fact that at the time Afedzi presented the indenture to his victim as having been signed by him (the chief) had a stroke and could hardly move his limbs.

Readers would recall that the January 23, this year, issue of Chronicle carried a story that the Tema municipal head of the BNI was in the hands of the police Criminal Investigations Division (CID) for allegedly defrauding a London-based Ghanaian of about ?80 million (?5,850.00).

Emmanuel Kwesi Ananoo, the victim, says Afedzi deceived him that he had a number of plots of land meant for sale in Accra and then collected the amount of ?5,850.00 in tranches from him. By the end of 1997, the BNI officer had received all the money.

Supt. K. K. Amoah, of the Rapid Results Unit (RRU) at the Police Headquarters, confirmed the story saying the police, "had gone far in their investigations and that they were waiting for some report from the Lands Department to enable them conclude."

But the police are trying to shield a colleague security officer, it has become obvious to the paper. Four weeks after this interview, they claim not to have heard from the Lands Department. Several visits by Chronicle to find out from the police the outcome of their investigations have been met with frustrations.

While sources at the Lands Commission hinted the paper that they had long replied to the letter sent by the police, the latter still insisted that they were yet to hear from the Lands Department to enable them conclude their investigations. "We have replied to their letter long ago. Even we did not post it. One of the investigators, by name Mohammed, came for it almost three weeks ago," said a source at Lands.

The police sent a letter to Lands to enquire whether the plot Afedzi wanted to sell was meant for sale or not. Chronicle gathered that government had, according to records, acquired the land in question years earlier.

When Chronicle, a fortnight ago, told K. K. Amoah at the CID headquarters that pieces of information the paper had from Lands indicated that the police had heard from them (Lands), he replied, "I have not seen it so it may be in the mails." Asked when we could contact him for the outcome of their investigations, "I do not know," was the answer he gave, adding that "any enquiries about that case should be sought for at the public relations unit".

Subsequently, Chronicle made many contacts with the public relations unit for the latest development on the case but all to no avail.

What is more disturbing, the paper learnt, is that the victim, Ananoo, had been in the country for the past seven months. He had had to cancel his flight back to the UK three times because of the police delay and that he had to pay a penalty of about ?200 in each of the three cancellations.