"TV Africa Cameraman" In Court For fraud

Ho, May 19, GNA - A photographer's apprentice who was parading himself as a TV Africa Cameraman in the Volta Region is in the grips of the law.

Bright Amehe, 25, pleaded guilty to duping his master to the tune of 5.1 million cedis and was remanded by a circuit court at Ho until May 25.

Also remanded was Frank Acheampong, a rubber stamp designer in Ho who Amehe mentioned as his accomplice. Acheampong, however, denied hs involvement.

Prosecuting, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Kwame Osei told the court presided over by Mr Emmanuel Osei that Amehe was an apprentice to one Mr Raymond Ocloo, popularly known as Ray Makosa, in Ho.

He said Mr Ocloo usually sent Amehe to deposit various sums of money at the Ho branches of the Barclays Bank and the SG-SSB Bank. Mr Osei said on May 8, this year, Mr Ocloo had a statement of accounts from the SG-SSB, which indicated a shortfall of 2.4 million cedis. He said when Mr Ocloo took the pay-in slip to the bank to verify the lapse, it was detected that the stamp on the pay-in slip was a fake one. Mr Osei said Mr Ocloo came back home and sent Amehe again to go and deposit another sum of money at the bank. He said on Amehe's return, Mr Ocloo took the pay-in slip to the bank and again detected that the stamp on the pay-in slip was fake and that no money had been deposited in his (Ocloo's) account that day. Mr Osei said Mr Ocloo therefore made a complaint to the Police leading to Amehe's arrest.

He said during interrogation, Amehe owned up, mentioning one Frank Acheampong, a stamp designer also in Ho as the one who helped him to get the fake stamp on the agreement that he (Acheampong) would take one-third of any amount stolen.