Cape Coast, May 13, GNA - A circuit court in Cape Coast on Friday granted Matthew Darko, a cocoa purchasing clerk 12 million cedis bail with a surety to be justified for defrauding the district manager of Cocoa Merchant Company Limited, a private cocoa buying company of 7.875 million cedis.

He pleaded not guilty and would reappear on May 30. Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Henry Tanor, told the court presided over by MR Mustapha Logoh, that during the 2004-2005 cocoa season, Darko approached the district manager of the company, which is based at Twifo-Praso, for money to enable him purchase some cocoa beans. He said the manager, obliged and Darko managed to deliver a quantity of bags of cocoa beans, leaving a balance of 14 bags valued 7.837 million cedis.

Inspector Tanor said the manager confronted Darko about the shortage and he explained that he had deposited the balance of the money with a bank in town, but all efforts to either retrieve the money or get him to supply the remaining cocoa beans, proved futile. He said when Darko was invited by the police for questioning, he refused to go, and retorted that they could take him to court.