Pastor in alleged fake currency case abandons church

Accra, July 14, GNA - Richard Kwesi Dwofuor, Pastor of Conquerors Redemption Ministries International at Achimota, being sought for allegedly trafficking in fake GH¢50 notes totaling GH¢110,000 retrieved at the church premises, has abandoned the church.

The investigator told an Accra Circuit Court, when two of his accomplices appeared before it for the second time.

He said Dwofuor had abandoned the Church and the Police was making frantic efforts to track him down.

The accomplices are Charles Tawiah, a petty trader and Church member and Reverend Isaac Oti Agyemang, a Pastor of the Church.

They had been admitted to GH¢150,000 bail with three sureties each to be justified.

The accused persons have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to possess fake currency and possessing fake currency.

They would re-appear in two weeks time.

When the case was called on Wednesday, Prosecuting Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) A.A. Annor told the court presided over by Mr D.E.K. Daketse that investigations were on-going and the fake notes had been submitted to Bank of Ghana for examination.

Defence counsels praying to the court for bail said the accused persons had fixed places of abode and would not escape or interfere with investigations.

Giving the facts, ASP Annor said security personnel received information that some people had in their possession GH¢50 notes totaling GH¢110,000 suspected to be fake in the premises of the Church, and were about to transact business with the money.

ASP Annor said personnel of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) were dispatched to Achimota, and on their arrival at the Church premises, the team met the accused persons without Dwofuor and had in their possession a black laptop bag containing the money.

The prosecution said they were picked up and during interrogation said it was Dwofuor, who handed over the money to them and asked them to wait while he secured a prospective buyer.

ASP Annor said they were escorted to BNI headquarters for further investigations, where it was detected that some of the notes bore the same serial numbers.