A businessman accused of scamming two people out of $27,000 while pretending to be obtaining them US visas has been remanded into police custody by an Accra Circuit Court.
In the multiple passports of the two complainants, Bernard Oduro Takyi is accused of fabricating the embarkation and disembarkation stamps of Singapore, South Africa, Mauritius, and Turkey.
Along with introducing Gabriel Kwame Ntim, one of the complainants, as a strategic partner for domestic and foreign investors eager to participate in real estate under the ongoing government of Ghana IDIF Policy supporting industrialization, Takyi is also accused of forging a letter from the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA).
Takyi is accused of forging a letter from the KMA and posing as a “Metro Climate Management officer” for Prince Kofi Osei in the second charge filed against him. Takyi, who is pleading not guilty, is accused of fraud and document forgery.
The case was rescheduled until February 12, 2024 by the court, presided over by Mr. Samule Bright Acquah. DSP Maxwell Oppong, the prosecutor, was against bail.
The victims, mechanics Gabriel Kwame Ntim and Prince Kofi Osei, worked for the Electricity Company, and they intended to travel to the United States in 2023.
In order to get them to pay $13,000 and $14,000 on April 19 and May 31, 2023, Takyi offered to secure visas in three months. After stealing their passports, Takyi faked entry stamps from South Africa, Singapore, Mauritius, and Turkey.
Along with posing as a real estate investor, he also faked a KMA letter and introduced Osei as a “Metro Climate Change Management Officer.”
By submitting these to the American Embassy in Madagascar, Takyi was able to get the victims’ visas. After discovering the counterfeit, the embassy revoked the visas. On December 22, 2023, Takyi was taken into custody following a police report.
