…… 58 people defrauded in excess of GHC 60,000.00
The
arrest of a 32-year-old self-styled medical doctor and resident of Kpong in the
Manya Krobo Municipality of the Eastern Region, Michael Hope Amunu, alledged to
have defrauded unsuspecting youth mainly in the the Krobo area in a well
patronized recruitment scam has sent the Odumase-Krobo township into a frenzy.
Angry
residents largely made up of youth who paid various sum of money ranging from
GHC 750.00 and 2,000.00 to the suspect, last Friday, besieged the Odumase-Krobo
Circuit Court when new went viral about the arrest and prosecution of the
suspect and his accomplices.
So
far, 58 people of varying ages and background including artisans and students from
different parts of the region and also
from Ho in the Volta Region are said to have paid in excess of Sixty Thousand
Ghana Cedis (GHC 60,000.00) to the suspects in return for an enlistment into
the security services, including the Armed Forces, Police and Immigration
Service.
Background:
On
Sunday June 19, 2016, one Patience Tetteh, a 31 years old resident of Nuaso,
reported Michael Hope Amunu to the Korletsom Police for defrauding her and 57
others to the tune of Sixty Thousand, One Hundred and Eighty Ghana Cedis (GHC
60, 180.00) with the assurance of enlisting them into a security service of
their choice.
According
to her, she first met Amunu in November last year and they struck acquaintance/friendship
which was to transform into marriage as proposed by the latter.
 |
| Michael Hope Amunu, the "Doctor" |
Amumu
then offered to assist her through his father, one General Lieutenant Tamakloe
Tsikata, a military officer stationed at the Flagstaff House.
Caught
in the excitement over the prospects of enlistment this time round through the support
of the suspect, she informed two other colleagues with similar ambitions, Ayer
Divine and Collins Mensah, who each paid GHC 1000.00 in December last year to facilitate
the process, while Patience herself parted with GHC 400.00.
The
number of victims kept rising as news went viral over the new found “messiah”, Amunu. Sixty people
subsequently paid between GHC 750.00 and 2,000.00 through a designated 0543... mobile
money account (registered under the name, Tettey Kwame Bright), ignorantly
assisted by Patience who was basking in the hope of a successful enlistment.
Two
of the victims however, backed out later for reasons yet to be established.
Further detailed tricks:
By
January this year, measurements were taken of all the victims for their
uniforms and were assigned their protocol recruitment codes including the likes
of ER/001/001 and ER/003/411 as sighted by the Daily Graphic.
They
were also assigned their respective training centres where they were to report
at a later date to be confirmed by the suspects.
A
breakdown of the payment as narrated by some of the victims included cost of
recruitment forms of GHC 50.00; medical examination fees of GHC 150.00, uniform
fee of 100.00 as well as fees for tools which was pegged at GHC 150.00.
Others
were costs for verification of certificates, GHC 20; General Knowledge Test,
GHC 50 and ID cards of GHC 30.00, among several others.
Evasive tactics by suspects:
When
in February this year, the road to their enlistment became hazy, fraught with
suspicion, the victims including Patience started demanding a refund of their
monies amidst incessant threats by the other victims to Patience who naively assisted
them throughout the process.
Amunu
became evasive from that point, would not pick his calls and could also not be
traced from his residence at Kpong quarters.
Report and arrest:
Out of
frustration and the constant harassment from the others, Patience on Sunday
June 19, 2016 lodged a complaint with the Korletsom Police who tracked and arrested
Amunu at his hideout at the residence of his wife, one Sarah at Nuaso (Kasimu
lane) around 10:00pm on Thursday July 14, 2016.
He then
pointed to an accomplice, one Theophilus Tetteh, 29, an Auto Sprayer who was
also arrested at his residence at Nuaso Larteh.
On
Friday July 15, 2016, the two were arraigned and remanded in Prison custody by
the Odumase-Krobo Circuit Court to reappear on Friday July 29, 2016 because
they couldn’t fulfill the bail conditions, granted on the plea of their
counsel.
The
court however could not sit last Friday when they made their appearance because
the Presiding Judge was out on an official duty
Report from other victims:
Two
other victims, Nomo Theophilus, a carpenter from Nkurakan and Narh Daniel,
unemployed from Somanya also lodged a formal complaint with the Korletsom
Police about similar experiences at the hands of the two suspects.
They
indicated that Amunu and his ally offered to help them through the former’s
father, a retired Army officer, to enlist into the Armed Forces. They were
subsequently issued with a forged document bearing the inscription “Protocol
Selective Medical Examination 2015/2016”, which they dully filled and returned
to Amunu.
Upon
such false representation, the victims became interested and each paid GHC
1000.00 as demanded by Amunu after which the suspect told the victims to report
at the El-Wark Sports Stadium on Friday January 29, 2016 for screening and
selection- what was to be a mere formality.
Subsequent
payments of GHC 350.00 were each made through same mobile money account to
cover the cost of medical examination, training equipment and ID.
When
on the appointed date for the screening, the victims tried reach the suspects
for further directives but they could not be reached through their hitherto active
phone lines.
All
efforts made to trace them failed, necessitating their complaints to the
police.
Interview with the Police:
In
an interview with the Police, the Korletsom District Police Commander, ASP
Harry Selormey, confirmed the arrest and corroborated the narrative, indicating
that investigations were still underway.
He
stated that though Amunu posed as a medical doctor before the victims, he told
the police in his statement he was a teacher but fell short of stating the
school where he teaches.
A
search conducted by the Police at Amunu’s residence revealed a number of (what
looked
like forged) forms of the various security services, mainly the Armed
Forces, filled and endorsed by some of the victims.
Another
one embossed with the coat of arms (at the top left) and the logo of the Ghana
Health Service (top right) with the inscription “Protocol Selective, Medical
Examination For Successful Recruitment” were also retrieved from his residence
together with filled admission forms of some health training institutions such
as the Ho Nurses Training School and another generic one from the Ministry of
Health (Department of Nursing and Midwifery).
The
case has since been adjourned to Friday August 12, 2016.
