Footballer in court over fake stamps, passport forms and birth certificates
A footballer, Hayford Acquah who was arrested at the Passport Office in Accra for endorsing passport forms with seven forged stamps of institutions on Monday appeared before an Accra Circuit Court.
The forged stamps include Miracle Life Gospel Church, Tema, Manful Law Consult, Legal, Barclays Bank Ghana, Certified True Academic and Students Affairs of KNUST, Kumasi.
The rest are Church of Pentecost, Oduman Assembly, Champion and Winners Gospel Centre and New Achimota Presbyterian Basic School.
Charged with conspiracy, forgery of documents and stamps, Hayford pleaded not guilty.
The court presided over by Mr Eric Kyei-Baffour remanded him into police custody noting that the charges levelled against him were serious and the Police were conducting further investigations into the matter.
Hayford would re-appear on September 15.
Earlier the Prosecutor, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Abraham Annor, prayed the court to remand Hayford into custody to enable the Police complete its investigations.
Narrating the facts leading to the arrest of Hayford, ASP Annor said the Police received intelligence report that some middlemen also known as “goro boys” operate at the passport office and sell passport forms and assist foreigners to acquire Ghanaian passports.
ASP Annor said on August 23, this year, at about 1630 hours Hayford and one Stephen Boye Buabeng now at large arrived at the Passport Office and the Police saw Hayford holding a brown bag endorsing a passport form which the applicant was not present.
The team of Policemen rushed on Hayford and arrested him with the brown bag, but Buabeng escaped.
He said when Hayford’s bag was searched seven forged stamps of various institutions, four passport forms and four birth certificates were found.
During Police interrogation, Hayford stated that he operated at the passport office to assist people who could not complete their applications.
ASP Annor said Hayford further stated that he assisted people to secure new birth certificates but denied owning the stamps, saying they belonged to Buabeng who normally served as witness for some applicants.
He said efforts were being made to arrest Buabeng.
Source: GNA