YAW SARFO alias Kwame Owusu, a shoemaker at North Suntreso, a suburb of Kumasi, has appeared before a Kumasi circuit tribunal for possessing fake Ghanaian currency notes in two thousand denominations, amounting to ?10 million.
Presenting the facts of the case, Police Inspector Michael Tsedey told the tribunal that the complainant is a telephonist at Manfalls Communication Centre at Bantama, a suburb of Kumasi, while the accused is a shoemaker, aged 24 years.
The prosecutor said on May 22, this year, at about 2:30 p.m., the accused together with three accomplices, now at large, came to the communication centre to make a telephone call.
When Yaw Sarfo saw a video deck displayed as being on sale at the communication centre he offered to buy it.
According to Inspector Tsedey, they bargained on the price and it came to ?650,000. The play head of the deck was faulty so the complainant gave her brother ?100,000 to buy a new head to get it fixed.
The accused and his accomplices decided to accompany the boy, so they hired a taxi. On the way the accused informed the driver to take them to a hotel for them to collect money to enable him (accused) pay for the video deck.
Inspector Tsedey continued that they took the boy to a drinking spot for some drinks while he waited for them to collect the money. The accused and accomplices returned to the drinking spot and snatched the video deck together with the ?100,000 from the boy.
According to the prosecutor, the boy went to the complainant at the communication centre to inform her of his ordeal.
Inspector Tsedey said on May 23 this year, the complainant used the telephone number used by the accused the previous day and asked him to meet her at an appointed place to which he obliged.
The prosecutor said when the accused noticed the complainant and her brother, he asked the driver to drive off but was given a hot chase by the complainant.
He then descended from the vehicle, took to his heels and entered a nearby house but was caught.
The accused was then sent to the police station together with a fertiliser bag he was holding, and when the bag was opened fake cedi currency notes of two thousand denomination were found in it.
According to the Inspector, the accused said he used to be in that business but what he was holding at the time of arrest was for a friend, in his statement to the police.
The accused has been remanded in prison custody to re-appear before Mr. V. C. Senu's tribunal on October 1, 2002.
