Sales boy who stole GH¢353,471 from employer for ‘marriage’ convicted, fined

A sales boy who stole GH¢353,471 from his employer under the pretext of using the money to marry has been convicted and fined by the Adentan Circuit Court, following the exposure of a wider fraud scheme involving multiple accomplices.

The convict, Alfred Mensah, was charged with stealing and pleaded guilty. The court subsequently ordered him to refund the full amount and imposed a fine of GH¢12,000, in default of which he will serve two years’ imprisonment.

Standing trial alongside him were Mary Asantewaa, a trader, and Emmanuel Okyere, a pastor, who were charged with abetment of crime, to wit, stealing, and dishonestly receiving stolen property.

Others, including Samuel Dika, Miriam Okai and 59-year-old trader Vida Yeboah, were also charged with dishonestly receiving stolen property.

Apart from Mensah, all the accused persons pleaded not guilty. They were granted bail in the sum of GH¢353,471 each with justification.

Chief Inspector Maxwell Lanyo, who led the prosecution, told the court that the complainant, Gideon Offei Tieku, is a businessman dealing in plumbing materials at Lakeside and Kantamanto. According to him, Mensah had worked with the complainant for seven years.

The prosecution said that between 2024 and 2025, the complainant detected unexplained financial losses in his business but could not immediately identify the source.

The case came to light on June 17, 2025, when the complainant arrested Mensah and handed him over to the Lakeside Community 8 Police Station after a business partner reported that he had collected plumbing materials worth GH¢56,000 without making payment.

During police interrogation, Mensah admitted the offence and stated that he had handed the stolen money to Asantewaa and Samuel Dika after informing them that he intended to marry. He claimed the two had promised to help him find a wife.

Investigations, however, revealed that Mensah was subsequently deceived into sending additional funds after being told that the supposed bride was ill and suffering from a kidney condition. The suspects allegedly further convinced him that she needed to be flown to South Africa for urgent medical treatment.

Mensah eventually transferred a total of GH¢353,471.50 through Asantewaa’s mobile money account.

Further investigations led to the arrest of Asantewaa, who implicated Dika as her accomplice. Dika was also arrested, while additional inquiries linked Okyere, Miriam Okai and Vida Yeboah as beneficiaries of the stolen funds.

The prosecution told the court that GH¢46,000 was later recovered from Vida Yeboah as part of ongoing recovery efforts.