The Circuit Court in Accra presided over by His Honour Emmanuel Essandoh has granted bail in the sum of GHC12,000 to a Nigerian woman who impersonated some ministers of state to defraud victims of over GHC10,000.

The accused person Vivian Sajida Imran, a trader who pleaded not guilty to all the charges in addition to her bail sum is to produce two sureties, one of whom must be a public servant earning not less than GHC1,200.

The 31-year-old trader was granted bail after his lawyer had prayed the court for her to be admitted to bail.

The case has been adjourned to June 3, 2020.

Sajida, 31, together with her husband Prince Joel, currently at large have been charged with eight counts of falsely pretending to be a public officer and defrauding by false pretence.

Brief facts

The brief facts of the case as presented to the court by Detective Frederick Sarpong were that complainant is an operative of the National Security.

The First Accused person (A1) is a trader while A2 currently at large is the husband of A1.

According to the prosecutor, the victims in the case live across the country.

He said during the month of April A1 and A2 used the names of Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Minister of Information, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, Foreign Affairs Minister and Henry Quartey, the deputy national security minister to create multiple Facebook accounts and pretend to be ministers.

According to him, A1 and A2 in their online chats and phone calls with the victims informed them that they could secure them each with employment at the Tema Oil refinery, Ghana Gas or Cocobod.

Detective Sarpong said, A1 and 2 further requested the victims to pay various amounts to MTN mobile money accounts for the application forms and interviews.

“The monies amounting to GHc10, 277.00 were paid to MTN mobile 0242774965 and 0551047196 and later transferred into A1s mobile money number 0248024471.

“The honourable minister who later had a wind informed the National security and A1 and A2 were tracked to their house at Ashaiman Jericho where A1 was arrested but A2 managed to escape.

The prosecutor told the court that, a search conducted in the room of A1 and A2 revealed six mobile phones including the three mobile money numbers used to receive the monies from their victims.

He explained that “an order of the court was sought and a forensic examination was carried out on the retained mobile phones. One of the retained mobile phones was found to contain MTN SIM number 0248024471 registered in the name of A1.

The same number was found to be the final destination where the booty obtained from the victims were transferred to and later withdrawn.

According to him, “in the investigation caution statement of A1, she admitted being the owner of number 0248024471. The victims were later contacted and they narrated their ordeal."

"Intensive efforts are being made to track A2 who is still at large. After investigation A1 was charged with the offence as stated on the charge sheet,” he told the court.