Two suspects, Michael Arthur and Martha Agblega, who have been accused of allegedly defrauding a man of God, have been remanded into police custody to reappear in court on August 20, 2025.

The suspects, along with others who are currently on the run, are alleged to have defrauded Bishop Joseph Osei Bonsu of GH¢2.5 million through a sophisticated social media scam.

Michael Arthur, 22, who is unemployed, and Martha Agblega, 25, a trader, are facing charges of conspiracy to commit a crime.

They are also facing charges of defrauding by false pretences, contrary to Sections 23(1) and 131 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) at the Circuit Court 6 in Accra.

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The facts of their crime, as presented to the court by the prosecution led by Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Emmanuel Nyamekye, indicated that they lured unsuspecting individuals into their online fraud syndicate and duped them.

According to the prosecution, the suspects' modus operandi involved the use of the popular social media platform, Facebook, to lure their victims.

The prosecution revealed in court that Michael Arthur created a fake account on Facebook in 2023, where he concealed his real name and identity with the fake name, Nana Ama, suggesting that she was a lady.

With his fake name, Michael Arthur reportedly established a friendship with Bishop Osei Bonsu and went ahead to build their friendship to a level that trust was established as he won the man of God over.

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Investigations revealed that Martha Agblega was recruited to represent Nana Ama, the fake identity Arthur created on Facebook, and often talked to their victim, the bishop, on the phone.

The two accused persons, together with their accomplices, Richard and Tanko, who are currently on the run, convinced Bishop Bonsu that they could assist him in buying an acre of land and took an amount of GH¢2.5 million from him.

It, however, turned out that the accused persons, together with yet-to-be-arrested accomplices, made false representations to the man of God as part of their grand schemes.

Following an official complaint, police intelligence operations led to their hideout in Brema Asikuma in the Central Region, where the suspects were arrested on July 31, 2025.

According to preliminary investigations by the police, the accused have already used parts of the defrauded funds to acquire vehicles and other properties for their personal use.

When they appeared before the court, presided over by His Honour Kwabena Kodua Obiri-Yeboah, on Thursday, August 7, 2025, no plea was taken.

The court has remanded them into police custody to reappear on August 20, 2025.

NAAB/SEA

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