Travel agent granted GH¢400,000.00 bail over alleged fraud
An Accra Circuit Court has granted a GH¢400,000.00 bail with two sureties to a 37-year-old travel agent over an alleged GH¢435,768.00 fraud.
Mr Emmanuel Koduah, who posed as a travel agent was said to have allegedly been defrauding some people under the pretext of securing them a US Visa with work permit in the United State since 2021.
Koduah, who was charged on 40 counts of defrauding by false pretences, pleaded not guilty to all the charges levelled against him.
The Court presided over by Mr Isaac Addoh, therefore, admitted Koduah to a GH¢400,000.00 bail with two sureties.
It directed that one of the sureties should be justified with property worth the bail sum.
The trial judge also directed the accused person to report to the Kotobabi Police station twice a week.
Prosecution led by Chief Inspector Jonas Lawer told the Court that the complainants Mr Patrick Clerge Mengotey, resided at Taifa, Accra, Mr Felix Gyan, Mr Richard Agyei, Mr Amankwah Hayford Kwesi, Mrs Sarah Amoah and Mr Richard Akomaning Boakye.
The prosecution said the accused person, who posed as a travelling and tour manager in charge of G.I Consult advertised on social media that he helped clients to make travel plans and helped them acquire USA visas and work in the United States of America with a company called Stockbridge Limited.
It said the accused person made it known to the complainants and the other victims that his office was located at Dzorwulu, where the complainants met him.
The prosecution said the accused person collected the complainants’ passports, demanded and collected varying sums of money from them and promised to secure them visas to travel to the United States of America to work in Stockbridge Company.
It said the accused person after receiving the monies, closed his office, went into hiding and was not receiving calls from the complainants.
The prosecution said a report was, therefore, lodged by the complainants to the Dzorwulu Police Post against the accused person on November 5, 2022.
It said the three witnesses in the case called the accused person with a different phone number unknown to him and requested for a Qatar Visa where the accused person scheduled a meeting with them at Kasoa.
The prosecution said with the assistance of the Kasoa District Police Command the accused person was arrested and was handed over to the Kotobabi Police, admitted the offences in his investigation caution statement and mentioned one Terkpor Williams as his boss but afterwards had failed to provide information of the boss’ whereabouts to the Police.
It said “so far the total amount of monies alleged to have been collected from the complainants by the accused person and his Boss was GH¢435,768.00.
Source: GNA