Unemployed granted bail over fraud

The Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) Court has granted a GH¢50,000.00 bail with two sureties, one of whom to be justified to a 30-year-old unemployed for defrauding by false pretenses.

Kennedy Akwasi Agyemang was said to have posed as a lawyer and succeeded in collecting huge sums of money from many people to either represent them in court or help them to be recruited into the Ghana Armed Forces, Immigration Service, and the Ghana Police Service.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges and would reappear before the Court presided by Mr Abdul Razak Musah, on March 11, this year.

Police Chief Inspector Timothy Amoako, told the court that the complainants, Godfred Boateng, Emmanuel Atta Osei, Freda Yeboah, Frank Osei Boadu and Yaa Serwaa were cleaner, businessman, drivers and trader respectively and resided in parts of the Kumasi metropolis.

He said the accused person was an unemployed, who resided at Old Tafo, in the Tafo Municipality.

Prosecution said in the month of November 2020, one of the complainants, Godfred Boateng, met the accused person at the Assemblies of God Church, Old Tafo branch, where the accused introduced himself as a Lawyer.

Chief Inspector Amoako, said the complainant, discussed with the accused a land issue in which a chief who sold a plot of land to him at Ejisu Donase at a cost of GH¢7,000.00, decided to collect the land back but refunded GH¢5,500.00 instead of the full amount of GH¢7,000.00.

Prosecution said the accused person responded positively and collected the GH¢5,500.00 which was refunded by the chief from the complainant to be used as an exhibit when they go to court.

The accused also collected GH¢400.00 to prepare documents for filing in court.

Chief Inspector Amoako said the complainant, also introduced the accused person to the other complainants, who had interest to be recruited into the Ghana Armed Forces, Ghana Immigration Service and the Ghana Police Service.

He said the accused person met the complainants at the Kumai Circuit Court canteen, fully dressed as a Lawyer.

Police Chief Inspector Amoako said the accused person collected a total amount of GH¢11,500.00 as processing fees from the complainants.

He said the accused person after collecting the money began to play hide and seek with them.

Prosecution said on December 30, 2020, the complainants made a report to the Police and the accused was arrested.

He said in his caution statement, the accused denied being a Lawyer but had been dressing as a Lawyer for the past three months just to deceive the unsuspecting members of the public.

Inspector Amoako said the police retrieved one Lawyer’s wig, three law books and a Ghana Bar Association Annual General Meeting program held in the Ashanti Region on November 24, 2020 from the accused when a search was conducted on him.

After investigations, he was charged and brought before the Court.