KNUST female student remanded over fraud

Kumasi, May 23, GNA - A 26-year-old third-year female student of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has been remanded into police custody by a Kumasi Circuit Court for allegedly defrauding a Kumasi-based businessman of 350 million cedis under the pretext of supplying senior secondary schools with house dresses. Marian Tandoh, who pleaded not guilty to the charge, however, begged the court to give her time to raise money from the sale of her three-bedroom flat to make an initial payment. The court also ordered that she should be taken to the various schools she claimed to have supplied with the dresses in order to retrieve the monies.

She would re-appear before the court on June 4. Police Chief Inspector Francis K. Kusi told the court that the complainant, Ebenezer Osei-Wusu got to know Marian through his younger brother a month before the transaction took place. He said Marian approached the complainant in July 2006 for financial assistance to enable her supply the schools with the dresses following a contract awarded her.

Chief Inspector Kusi said the complainant obliged and gave out 195 million cedis to be paid three months later with interest. The prosecution said failure to pay the amount as scheduled attracted more interest to make the total sum 350 million cedis. Marian issued three post-dated cheques in February to be cashed on April 17 but the National Investment Bank in Kumasi dishonoured them all. A report was made to the police and Marian was arrested. During interrogation, Marian said she had used the money to build a hostel at Cape Coast.