Entertainment pundit, Arnold Asamoah-Baidoo, has observed that all the statements that have been released by Hajia4Reall’s Public Relations (PR) and legal teams since her case was made public have had a lot of discrepancies and errors, and exude dishonesty.
According to him, her team is fond of concealing the facts, adding that their statements usually contradict what the FBI and the New York State court reveal.
For instance, the FBI has always maintained that Hajia4Reall was extradited to the United States from the United Kingdom over alleged involvement in a $2 million romance scam targeting older, single Americans.
This statement has reoccurred in all the FBI’s press statements since the incident occurred.
However, in a press statement released by Hajia4Reall’s current legal team, ‘The Fast Esquire’, it was stated that Hajia4Reall willingly turned herself in, boarded a flight from the United Kingdom to the United States to face the criminal case in New York.
“In May 2023, Ms. Montrage voluntarily boarded the flight from Heathrow to JFK to face the criminal case in the South District of New York,” the statement from Fast Esq. read.
Analyzing both contents, Arnold spotted the inconsistencies and queried why Hajia4Reall’s team was trying hard to conceal the truth.
He also recounted past developments when Hajia4Reall’s PR team vehemently kicked against claims that she had not been arrested when she was.
“I have followed this Hajia4Reall case for a while and one thing I am unhappy about is the kind of statement people who are leading this discussion often make. In 2022 when she was arrested in the UK, her team released a statement informing us that she had not been arrested. Now, when you look at the statement released by her lawyers, The Fast Esquire, there are many things in it that I don’t understand.
“They said in May 2023, Ms. Mona Montrage voluntarily boarded a flight from Heathrow to JFK? This is an anomaly, it's erroneous. Because, when you take a look at the press statement released by the FBI in 2023, they specifically stated that Hajia was extradited from the UK to the US. Let’s call a spade a spade because those who arrested her said she was extradited. If you flow the case, all the statements on her behalf have been erroneous,” Arnold stated in a discussion on the Peace FM Entertainment Review show on Saturday.
Touching further on the inconsistencies, Arnold also noted a particular section of the press statement from Hajia4Reall’s legal team a few days ago, wherein they acknowledged that pleading guilty to a charge does not define her.
“Ms. Montrage’s plea does not define her as a person and is not reflective of the individual she is today,” Hajia’s lawyers earlier expressed on her behalf.
But Arnold, who is grappling with the motive behind their inconsistencies fumed, “They stated that she took responsibility for her bank account being used to gather illicit funds. Are they trying to say she did not do it? I mean take responsibility for Christ’s sake because it is clear. They also said pleading guilty does not define her. She said she has changed. One moment, you don’t want to take responsibility; one moment, you want to. What exactly are you trying to tell us?”
Hajia4Reall transported herself to the airport in the UK and not to the U.S airport
It can be recalled that sometime in July 2023, the court reported that Hajia4Reall was permitted to transport herself to the Heathrow airport, on the day she was extradited to the United States for trial.
It was expected that, like every other suspect, Hajia would be picked up from her residence by the police, handcuffed, and accompanied to the airport.
But in her case, it was reported that she transported herself freely, on the basis that she has been on her best behavior since her arrest.
Hajia4Reall reportedly reminded the court about this incident while seeking to earn the judge’s trust and convince him to ease her bail conditions. However, the court refused to grant her request based on the fact that she is not a U.S citizen.
Background
Mona Faiz Montrage, also known as Hajia4Reall, entered a guilty plea on Wednesday, February 21, 2024, in a U.S. Magistrate court regarding her fraud case.
She only pleaded guilty to count 5 (Conspiracy to receive stolen money), which exposes her to a maximum of five years imprisonment.
Per the US Constitution, count 5 (considered a third-degree felony) is a crime punishable by a term of imprisonment of one year or more.
Hajia4Reall’s six other charges are the ‘Attempt and conspiracy to commit wire fraud’, ‘Fraud by wire, radio or television’, ‘Money laundering, fraud, and other conspiracies’, ‘Money laundering, fraud, and others’, ‘Sale or receipt of stolen goods, securities money’ and ‘Felony’.
EB/BB
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