Two before court over visa fraud
An Accra Circuit Court on Friday granted bail to two persons in the sum of GH¢25,000.00 each with three sureties each for allegedly defrauding five persons of GH¢21,200.00 under the pretext of securing them visas.
According to the court each one of the sureties should be gainfully employed.
Rev. Isaac Anderson, 39, alias “Prof” and Joseph Nii Amu Wellington, 35 were charged with abetment of crime and defrauding by false pretences.
They both denied the charges and would reappear on February 1, 2019. Two other accomplices, Dadzie Sarpong and K Amponsah are currently on the run.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Adizatu Sulemana told the Court presided over by Mrs Jane Harriet Akweley Quaye that the Prosecution witnesses are Doreen Bimpong, Vida Oteng, William Ofori-Atta, Ernest Kwarteng Asare and Jude Quarcoo.
She said the accused are residents of Dansoman in Accra and that between the months of May and December 2018, Anderson asked Wellington and Amponsah that he could secure visas to people interested in travelling to Belgium and Canada to work.
The Prosecution said Wellington and Amponsah brought the complainants to Anderson whereby Wellington then bargained with Asare and Vida to part with a total sum of USD 8,000 each for the entire deal upon which the two made an initial deposit of GH¢3,000.00 each.
She said Wellington also took their passports to be used in processing the visas.
She said with the assistance of Wellington and Amponsah, Anderson also succeeded in collecting GH¢3,000.00, from Quarcoo, GH¢2,000.00, from Ofori-Atta, GH¢2,500.00, from Doreen, all to the tune of GH¢13,500.00 on the same premise.
DSP Adizatu said Anderson gave the victims between one to three months to deliver the visas but failed.
She said Anderson also gave the phone numbers of the complainants to Dadzie who asked them to pay GH¢5,200.00 each for their plane tickets.
The Prosecution said Doreen paid GH¢5,200.00 whilst Vida paid GH¢2,500.00, to Dadzie for the said tickets.
She said in all, GH¢21,200.00 was paid to the accused persons and their accomplices.
She said later Anderson returned the passports of Quarcoo, Ofori-Atta and Asare to them without the visas and went into hiding.
The prosecution said on January 8, this year, Ofori-Atta lured Anderson, arrested and handed him over to the Police at Dansoman.
She said Wellington was later spotted at the Dansoman Police Station and was also apprehended.
Source: GNA