A businessman has appeared before an Accra Circuit Court for allegedly defrauding a Japanese businessman to the tune of $600,000.

The accused, Hanson Owiredu Nuamah, is said to have received the said amount from Iwaki Yasushito under the pretext of establishing a joint large-scale mining company with the complainant.

The acussed denied the charge before the court, presided over by Ruby Naa Adjeley Quayson, and was admitted to bail in the sum of GH¢2.5 million with two sureties, one to be justified.

This was after the court had granted the application for bail filed by Ivan Mensah, lawyer for the accused.

The case has been adjourned until 15 February.

The prosecution said that Iwaki met Hanson in Japan where he was a lecturer and they became friends.

In 2002, Hanson decided to return to Ghana and proposed to Iwaki to establish a large-scale mining company together in Ghana.

They agreed on 50 percent shares each.

Iwaki was to provide funds for the establishment of the company while Hanson was to ensure the preparation and acquisition of the concession, documentation, license from the regulatory institutions to facilitate the operations of the company.

Based on this, Hanson collected an amount of $600,000 from Iwaki to carry out the task but the accused, after taking the money, bought a mining concession, house and some mining equipment and invested the rest of the money into his existing company-Managing God’s Resources Company Limited, which had the wife and two others as directors.

Hanson told Iwaki that per the laws of Ghana, a foreigner is not allowed to own a share in a company and that the company has also started operations but needed more money.

Iwaki became suspicious after the accused failed to render accounts but demanded more money from him.

The complainant later received information that Hanson sold 51 percent shares of the company to a foreign company.