The Director of Communications of embattled gold dealership firm, Menzgold, Nii Armah Amarteifio says he is not surprised about the fresh charges pressed against its Chief Executive Officer, Nana Appiah Mensah, popularly known as NAM1.

In an interview with ABC News, he said although his office had not been officially notified about what constituted the new charges, he will not be amazed by it because state prosecutors have every right to vary the charges when the need be.

His comments follow reports that state prosecutors handling the ongoing criminal case against NAM1 have pressed 48 new charges against him.

“I have read it in the media that new charges have been pressed against him but it has not come to our notice officially.

“This is normal with investigations so I will not be surprised about it. It is the police who are doing their work. In every criminal proceedings, the prosecutor has the right to amend the charges every time,” Nii Amarteifio said.

With NAM 1 already facing 13 charges, the addition of 48 new charges brings the total number of charges pressed against him to 61.

ASP Sylvester Asare, who is leading the state’s Prosecution, asked the Accra Circuit court Tuesday, for an adjournment to file the new charge sheet.

The new charge sheet has 13 complainants who allege being defrauded to the tune of ¢ 1.1m.

They include Volkan Basler ¢ 350,000; Kofi Tweneboah ¢100,000; Godfred Oduro Yeboah ¢94,500; Evelyn Twerefuor 170,000; Emmanuel Oppong Cobby ¢ 200,000; Rachael Siam ¢ 28,000; and Frank Konadu Agyemang ¢ 26,000.

The charge sheet which has been amended for the third time also contains charges of money laundering, unlawful deposit-taking and sale of minerals without a license.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in September 2018 asked Menzgold to cease its gold dealership business as that amounted to deposit-taking which it was not licensed to do.

After months of detention in Dubai, NAM 1 arrived in Ghana on Thursday, July 11, 2019 and reported to the CID Headquarters in Accra for interrogation.



He was provisionally charged with taking deposits without a licence, money laundering and defrauding by false pretense when he was hauled to court on Friday, July 12, 2019.

The case has been adjourned to October 23. NAM1 however is currently on bail.