Expo Africa - A ‘419' Scam?

…... Cheated Participants Go After Owusu Afriyie

On Tuesday, July 4, 2006, between the hours of 11am and 12 noon, about a hundred angry, frustrated Ghanaians stormed the offices of The Chronicle to tell pathetic stories of how they had fallen prey to what most of them described as a ‘419 scam’ (advanced fee fraud).

They narrated to the paper how they were defrauded by Mr. Kwame Owusu Afriyie’s Expo Africa, a company that entangled itself in many accusations when it promised to take patrons to a trade and exhibition fair in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States in September 2005, but failed to do so even after it had collected monies in various currencies, running into billions of cedis.

According to the individuals who represent several companies that registered for the said fair, they were made to believe that they would be taken to the fair to exhibit their products and services and sell the country’s artistry and other potentials to the outside world, and that was why they made the payments, being genuine registered companies.

Each of the individual representatives of the companies was made to pay $200 as non-refundable registration fee and another $2,300 for exhibition stands, ostensibly erected for them in far away Georgia. They said they again paid $500 each for their hotel accommodation and $1,000 to participate in a seminar scheduled to place in the course of the fair.

Days after effecting the huge payments, they noted that after a few had had their visa applications rejected, the rest were informed by Mr. Owusu Afriyie, Chairman of Expo Africa Limited, that they should not present their documents to the United States embassy, where they were billed to attend separate interviews for their visas. The only reason he assigned for the strange decision, according to them, was that The Chronicle had then published a story that had ridiculed the fair by referring to it as being a scam, employed to defraud unsuspecting Ghanaians. The ‘participants’ were made to believe that the paper’s publication had put the embassy on high alert and would very likely refuse their visa applications.

Realizing that they could no longer participate in the trade and exhibition fair, the would-be patrons then demanded a refund of their monies, which Mr. Owusu Afriyie and Expo promised to make available in three months.

In one of such letters, signed for the Chairman by one Kwabena Afriyie Asamoah, Director of Expo Africa 2005, he noted that “unhealthy press coverage by The Chronicle and other parts of the media crippled us”, hence the “Consular Officers at the USA embassy were also unhelpful”.

In a stereotype manner, Mr. Afriyie Asamoah stated that the embassy “proceeded to refuse entry visas to intended exhibitors”, which situation, according to the event organizers, led to sponsors closing their doors to them. They stated inter alia; “the conduct of the media and other ill-minded persons (had) resulted in severe financial difficulties,” thus pushing them to the brink of bankruptcy. “We are thus left with no other alternative than to respectfully ask for a grace period till June 30, 2006 to enable us make the necessary refunds,” the letter assured.

In spite of this assurance to settle their indebtedness to the frustrated individuals and companies, they noted that the monies have not been paid to them. Earlier, some of them were issued with cheques in refund of part of their moneys, but they turned out to be dud cheques when presented to the banks.

Meanwhile, Mr. Owusu Afriyie and Mr. Kwabena Afriyie Asamoah, Chairman and Director respectively, apparently sensing that the wrath of the victims could be vented soonest, have flown out of the country. When the paper telephoned the Expo offices to get their side of the story, the paper was informed that the two had both traveled outside the country.

Currently, with the exception of a gentleman who was employed ostensibly to explain matters to visitors and callers, all the workers at the Accra offices have deserted.