Canada-based driver in the dock … for defrauding a farmer & church elder

By: Helena Selby

A driver, based in Canada and who posed as an international car dealer, has been arraigned before an Accra circuit court for allegedly defrauding a farmer and a church elder of a total amount of US$37,790.
The accused person, Bruce Amoah Korankye, aka Tony Walters, allegedly succeeded in collecting the said amount under the pretext of shipping from Canada a CLK Mercedes Benz, Toyota RAV 4, Toyota Corolla, Honda CRV, and GL Mercedes Benz 4×4 vehicles to the complainants.
He allegedly collected US$27,790 and US$10,000 from the complainants, Isaac Aryeetey, a farmer, and Daniel Owusu, a church elder, respectively, and went into hiding.
He pleaded not guilty to two counts of defrauding by false pretense, before the court presided over by Mrs. Audrey Kocouvi-Tay.
He has refunded US$5,000 and has been admitted to bail in the sum of GH¢500,000 with three sureties, two to be justified, and his passport deposited with the Court Registrar.
He is further expected to re-appear before the court on March 30, 2012.
The facts of the case are that in 2006, the complainant met the accused person in Canada and through that they became friends.
According to the Prosecutor, Chief Inspector Charles Chester, the accused person convinced the complainant that he exports cars to Ghana for sale, and succeeded in winning the trust of the complainant.
The prosecutor noted that the accused person paid a visit to his relatives in Ghana in 2010, and through that the complainant led him to his church elder, Daniel Owusu, second complainant in this case.
According to him, in the course of a conversation with the second complainant about car dealings, the accused person succeeded in collecting US$10,000 from him as part payment for a GL Mercedes Benz 4×4, which he was going to send down to him.
Chief Inspector Chester mentioned that the accused person, after collecting the money, travelled back to Canada and asked the second complainant to give him the remaining balance of US$9,600 and US$50 to the first complainant, Isaac Ayeetey, to transfer to him.
“The accused person later informed a witness in this case, Nana Abban, that he can send him nice cars from Canada to buy, to which the witness showed interest.”
The accused person, however, directed this said witness to send US$13,200 through the first complainant in order for him to send him a Toyota Corolla and RAV 4 cars.
“In view of the confidence the first complainant had in the accused person, he also gave US$5,000 to the accused person to buy him a Honda CR car”, the prosecutor told the court.
Chief Inspector Chester pointed out that the accused person, after succeeding in collecting US$37,790 from the complainants, never sent the cars and went into hiding anytime he came to Ghana.
According to him, on March 3, 2012, the accused person was arrested from his hideout at Madina, a suburb of Accra, adding that during investigations the accused person admitted having collected the said money from the complainants.