Crime & Punishment of Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Source: Daily Guide

Fake doctor arrested

A self-styled medical doctor who claimed to be working at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital has been arrested by the Tesano District Police Command for allegedly defrauding a student of an amount of GH¢2,800, with the promise of helping her to secure admission to the Korle Bu Nursing Training College.

Suspect Nana Kofi Boakye, according to the police, was unemployed but posed as a doctor, to defraud people, especially females.

A fiancée of the suspect (name withheld), who had been in a relationship for almost two years expressed shock and dismay at the police station last Monday, when she realized that her would-be husband was, after all, not a medical doctor as he claimed.

She told the police that because she thought the fiance was a doctor, she normally addressed him as “Doc” instead.

The suspect known by his victims and friends as Dr Owusu-Boakye Batistuta was often seen carrying his stethoscope.

He is currently in police custody assisting in investigations.

Narrating his arrest to DAILY GUIDE, the Tesano District Police Commander, Chief Superintendent Lydia Yaako Donkor said the victim was a student who lived at Nii-Boi Town near Abeka-Lapaz.

On May 10, 2013, the victim reported that one Dr Owusu-Boakye Batistuta, a medical doctor working at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital had collected an amount of GH¢2,800 from her to help secure her admission to the Korle Bu Nursing Training School .

The victim said the suspect met her one day at Abeka-Lapaz and after introducing himself as a medical doctor enquired from her, her level of education.

When the victim answered that she had only completed Senior High School (SHS) the suspect promised to secure an admission for her from the school if only the amount was given to him.

After receiving the money, the suspect was not seen again until early May, when he called the victim to demand additional GH¢1,500.

The suspect said he was using the money to purchase a laptop for her to do a distance learning course in a foreign school outside the country instead. The victim then became suspicious and reported the matter to the Tesano Police.

Using the victim as bait, the suspect was called on phone by the police to come over for the additional money demanded.

On May 6, 2013, Kofi arrived at the residence of the victim in a Toyota Yaris saloon car with registration number GW 2364-12 to collect the money, but upon seeing the presence of the police, he abandoned the vehicle and bolted.

Police towed the vehicle to the station for investigations.

After a week, one man who claimed to be a car dealer visited the station to identify the vehicle as his which was hired by the suspect for a week.

With the help of the car dealer stationed at Abelemkpe, suspect Nana Kofi Boakye was nabbed around 2:30pm on Monday by the police.

He would be arraigned before court with the offence of defrauding by false pretence and impersonation.