A Complainant in a Ghc105,900 recruitment scam case in Koforidua is mad at the Attorney General for poor handling of the case in Court.
Philip Boateng told the media in Koforidua that, a police officer directly involved in the case seems being shielded rather than another police officer he never dealt with has been made the main accused person.
According to the Complainant, he never dealt directly with DSP Otumi Okhartey, then operational commander for Eastern Regional Police Command who has been interdicted for two years and made the main accused person in the case but rather he dealt with No.47810 Abdul Rahman Mahama Ataawu, formerly of Effiduase District Police Command and Nana Sika who claimed to be an agent received various sums of monies from him on behalf of the 22 victims.
Philip Boateng said, Police officer, Abdul Rahman Mahama was the one who used gotta call the victims one after the other to make various demands and informed them where the alleged recruitment processes had reached.
But the Complainant says Abdul Rahman Mahama has not been interdicted and also hardly shows up in court whilst Nana Sika is at large. His hope of getting justice for a refund of Ghc105,900 to the victims who continue to hound him is fading away.
According to him, he has not been shuttling to court in Koforidua from Kumasi for the past two years without any headway on the case nor has he mounted the dock to testify.
Facts before Court
According to the facts of the case before the court, the complainants are residents of Kumasi.
That, between July 2019 and February 2020, the complainants filed various complaints at the Regional Police Headquarters and Effiduase Police station against Nana Sika for defrauding hem of a total amount of Ghc105,900.00.
One of the complainants Philip Boateng who is now a witness in the case stated that he knew the accused Nana Sika at Huhunya, that, he was visited by Police officers usually in Police patrol vehicles.
He said sometimes in 2017, Nana Sika convinced him to believe that he could help his nephew, one Emmanuel Asamoah to be recruited into the Ghana Police Service if he pays an amount of Ghc5,000 that he has a “big man” in the Police Service who would facilitate the said recruitment and that he would take them to see him at the Regional Police Headquarters in Koforidua.
On February 1, 2018, the accused person took them to the Regional Police Headquarters. Complainant Philip Boateng relying on the assurance given him paid Ghc2,500 and submitted some documents to the accused person in the presence of his nephew Emmanuel Asamoah.
Nana Sika, the third accused person in this case left into the building of the Police headquarters to see his so-called “Big Man”. He later took the victim to the entrance of the office of the “Big Man” and told him the money and the document have been delivered for processing.
Subsequently, someone believed to be an officer in charge of recruitment called the complainant Philip Boateng on phone and asked that he brought the victim for an interview and medical examination at the cost of Ghc1,000 and Ghc600 respectively who were paid.
The third accused person again collected Ghc700 from Philip Boateng to enhance the chances of the victim for enlistment into the service.
On January 11, 2019, the victim received a phone call from someone who introduced himself as a police officer in charge of recruitment and asked him to report at the Ghana Police Headquarters, Accra to be transported to the police training School in Pwalugu.
The person demanded Ghc1,000 to be used in buying training kits for victim Emmanuel Asamoah which was paid to the third accused Nana Sika bringing the total payments to Ghc4,900.
The third accused person and the complainant Philip Boateng took the victim to Police headquarters, Accra to be transported in a waiting bus to Pwalugu.
Philip Boateng was convinced therefore left the victim who is his nephew and came to Koforidua with Nana Sika.
Nana Sika later invited the victim on phone to come to Koforidua. Upon arrival, he accommodated him at Matbens Guest House from January to July 2019 under the pretext that he would soon be sent to Police training school because he (victim) missed the bus that was supposed to Transport him to Pwalugu.
The third accused Nana Sika ordered the victim to seize all phone calls. He also told Philip Boateng the complainant to stop calling the victim since at Police training school they are not allowed to use phones.
When disinformation got to the community that, the victim has been recruited into the Police service through Philip Boateng, 21 other unsuspecting victims interested in being enlisted approached him and subsequently met the third accused person Nana Sika to pay various sums of money ranging Ghc3,200 to Ghc7,200 to Nana Sika and some of them in the presence of the second accused Police officer No.47810 Abdul Rahman Mahama Ataawu of Effiduase District Police Command.
However, after almost seven months of being camped in the guest house, first victim Emmanuel Asamoah became fed up and narrated his ordeal to his uncle Philip Boateng who is a complainant in the case.
Boateng upon realizing that they have been defrauded lodged a Complaint at the Police station.
Nana Sika was arrested but in his caution statement said he was just an agent for DSP Otumi Okhartey who was then the Operations Commander for the Eastern Regional Police Command, that, he was the “big man” he referred to the victims.
Nana Sika alleged DSP Okhartey purchased a motorbike for him for errands including the alleged recruitment activities.
According to the prosecuting officers, itemized bills obtained from various mobile network operators established the first and third accused persons communicated many times from January 2018 to June 2019.
No.47810 Abdul Rahman Mahama Ataawu who had then been moved to Koforidua Divisional MTTD was also arrested after some of the victims pointed him out as an accomplice.
Interdiction and Petition
On April 1, 2020, DSP Otumi Khartey, then Eastern Regional Operations Commander was interdicted by the Ghana Police Service for his alleged involvement in a recruitment scam involving 22 victims with a total amount of Ghc105,900.00
DSP Otumi Khartey, a police officer No.47810 Abdul Rahman Mahama Ataawu, and alleged agent Nana Sika also known as Justice Nkrumah alias Kwarteng Joseph(at large) are before the court for the alleged recruitment scam.
DSP Otumi Khartey who has since the interdiction declared his innocence has petitioned the Inspector General of Police and the Ministry of Justice and Attorney General over what he describes as malicious prosecution and interdiction through an alleged tacit conspiracy by the Regional Crime Officer and the Eastern Regional state Attorney Emily Addo-Kyereh.
According to the petition, investigation into the alleged case of defrauding by false pretense against him started in August 2019 where he was paraded before the then Eastern Regional Police Commander COP Mr.Alphonse Adu Amankwaa together with the accused person Nana Sika also known as Justice Nkrumah alias Kwarteng Joseph.
Since then, he has never been interrogated nor provided evidence indicting him.
“I have come to the conclusion on the basis following events leading to my interdiction and events after the interdiction and for the fact that after over a year of investigation, there is nothing to show my involvement in the crime. I strongly believe the interdiction was in bad faith because the investigation started in July 2019 by February 2020 I have not been interdicted and the docket was already with the State Attorney”
In one of the petitions to the Eastern Regional Police CID, DSP Khartey raised fundamental procedural errors with regards to the investigation by the Regional Crime Officer Chief Superintendent David Gyabaah.
He also raised issues of not being given a fair hearing and the fact that a junior ranked officer (Corporal) was assigned to the case, and the docket hurriedly sent to Attorney General’s office without due diligence and was quickly arraigned before court.
“I was quickly rushed to court with another charge contrary to what the State Attorney stated in her advice. I’m of the belief that Regional Crime and the State Attorney are abusing their office by using it to settle scores with me “.
DSP Otumi Khartey, No.47810 Abdul Rhaman Mahama Ataawu and Justice Nkrumah @Kwarteng Joseph @ Nana Sika (at large) are before Court in Koforidua on 25 charges of conspiracy to commit a crime to wit defrauding by false pretenses and Abetment of crime.
Source: Mybrytnewsroom.com/Obed Ansah
