General News of Friday, 30 March 2007

Source: Weekend Crusading Guide

Man Defrauds In The President’s Name

A seemingly untouchable, self-styled businessman, Fargus Yaw Owusu, is reported to be on a high- profile police wanted list for allegedly defrauding a US-based Ghanaian investor to the tune of $23,000. Fargus although tagged a wanted man, still moves freely in the country. He allegedly collected the said amount from his unsuspecting victim, Seth Ahenkorah, as fee to facilitate the acquisition of funds for the latter's proposed airline operation.

According to the Weekend Crusading Guide which published an account of Fargus' misdeeds, the suspect, who apparently succeeded in convincing the determined investor with his alleged 'connections' with the seat of government and the President's entire family on several occasions took his victim to the house of one of President Kufuor’s brothers, Mr. George Kufuor.

The paper quotes its source within the Police Service as saying that the police is currently on a wild man-hunt for Fargus, who is believed to be at large. The police source also stated that the suspect had vacated his residence and office since he had a hint that the security agencies were pursuing him.

Narrating his ordeal to the paper, the obviously disturbed investor, who is the CEO of BC Aviation, LLC, a Nevada-based airline company, said Yaw Owusu was introduced by his son, Enoch Ahenkorah, to him as a nephew to the President.

Mr. Ahenkorah, who apparently had a hallucinatory vision of the possible influence and power his 'new business partner' would wield, failed to conduct any investigation into the background of the imposter and so fell easily to the manouvres of the con man.

According to him, he started making payments to the suspect, who had earlier promised to furnish him with some Arab financiers who were willing to support airline business. He narrated how he invited the suspect to the US and arranged a meeting for him and the Ghanaian business community abroad.

Out there in the US, Fargus was said to have introduced himself to the Mayor of Huston who was also invited to the meeting as the half brother of President Kufuor.

Mr. Ahenkorah said reality dawned on him after he had subsequently arrived in-the country to finalize the deal with his 'business partner' who promised to meet him at the airport 'in a vehicle from the State Protocol Department (SPD). "He never turned up at the airport and I spent months in Ghana without seeing him', he said.

Meanwhile, Mr. Ahenkorah on several occasions kept mentioning Mr. George Kufuor's name and questioned how he could be be-friend an imposter.

Asked about Mr. George Kufuor's involvement in the saga, he answered that he once during their transactions, met him (Kufuor) with the suspect at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Accra adding, ''He even advised me to take the airline business serious, since it was a good venture". He stated clearly though that the President's brother had nothing to do with the deal.

"After a series of disappointments from Fargus, I reported my plight to the President's brother who consoled and assured me that Yaw will pay the money", he posited. "He told me he had issued travellers cheques of $25,000 to Yaw and the cheques would mature in two weeks". He said Major Yaw Larson (one time Chief Executive of Kumasi Asante Kotoko Football Club) also promised to prevail on the suspect to pay the money.

When this paper contacted these two personalities on phone for their side of the story, they' admitted knowledge of the matter but denied any personal involvement.

Meanwhile the paper said the suspect walked leisurely to the offices of The Crusading GUIDE and Daily Dispatch in his bid to tell his side of the story and told the paper that he is a free man.