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Tabloid News of Thursday, 21 May 2009

Source: Isaac Akwetey

Suspected Sakawa Man Strips Naked in Public

Kyebi — A MIDDLE-aged wealthy-looking man, believed to be a native of Kojokrom, suburb of Sekondi, and suspected to be one of the internet fraudsters known locally as 'Sakawa,' stripped himself naked at the Market Circle in Takoradi yesterday, attracting the attention of many people around the area.

He was subsequently arrested by the market circle police, who are investigating his conduct.

According to onlookers, the man parked his car at the market circle, around the Stanbic Bank area, and removed all his clothes, leaving only his spectacles and socks, and started walking around the area.

Although his name was not immediately known, three women who were at the Market Circle told The chronicle, and many others who were present, that they knew the man from Kojokrom, and wondered why he had to subject himself to such public ridicule.

The women, who identified themselves as Mame Ajua, Esther, and Madam Ekua, all natives of Kojokrom, narrated incidences of lavish spending by the man.

To them the man was not insane, but might have used a shortcut to acquire his wealth.

"I know him at Kojokrom, he was poor until recently that he has started showcasing his wealth, and splashing money on the youth," one of them said. Those who were at the Market Circle did not know what to say than to conclude that it might have been the Sakawa syndrome among the youth of Ghana, who have lately been using ritual means to get rich quick.

The Market Circle Police Command, upon realising the confusion that the presence of the Sakawa man had generated, caused his arrest.

He was subsequently sent to the Takoradi District Command for further investigations. The police confirmed they would investigate the situation of the man thoroughly, before he would be transferred to a psychiatric hospital for check-up.

According to the police, the supposedly insane man did not utter a word when he was arrested, let alone disclose his name.

The police gave the number of the car he was using as AS 5452 N, but when reporters dashed down to the scene to confirm the car number, Mr. 'Gyesee Woabre,' a businessman who has his shop around the center where the action took place, claimed ownership of the car. He was surprised that the police were trying to associate his car with the man.