…Nurse before court, Jubilee House boys walking free
A nurse who fell into a web of false recruitment gang which operated inside the Jubilee House, specifically in the Office of the Chief of Staff, Akosua Frema Opare, will tomorrow November 12, 2024, know her next place of abode, as the trial judge is set to give judgment.
Dorcas Adwoa Twene Amankwah, who had posed as a nurse working in the Jubilee House to allegedly defraud her victims in the sum of GHC3.7 million, has been in police custody for almost three years, while her alleged accomplices are walking about free, to the annoyance of her family and friends, who feel she was lured into the job recruitment scam.
Her loved ones, again feel the police are covering up the involvement of the others, because they work in the Office of the Chief of Staff.
They further argued that, the offence of fraud is bailable, hence keeping Dorcas in Police Custody at the behest of one Richard Addae at the CID Headquarters – Accra for almost three years, is abuse of her fundamental human rights, arguing that even murder suspects are now eligible for bail.
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The first complainant, Vicky Angela Boadu, an auditor, said she paid Dorcas a total of GH¢875,900, through physical cash and Mobile Money transactions to get her family members, as well as her friends, enlisted into the state security establishments, however, the accused person and her friends, could not honour their promise.
This, according to Vicky Angela Boadu, was after Dorcas, had visited her church at Nsawam, and identified herself as a nurse in the Jubilee House.
Later, Kofi Yeboah Boadi, had a conference call with her and others to buttress Dorcas’ claim for being a nurse at the Jubilee House and had job protocol slots at the Presidency which they were selling.
The story so far, points to an attempt by the Jubilee House elements whose names were given as Famous, Nathaniel Amankwah and Kofi Yeboah Boadi, hanging Dorcas alone as the only culprit, despite reports that suggest she did not operate the scheme against the innocent job seekers as a lone ranger, but others were neck deep.
The Herald is informed that, Circuit Court 10 in Accra, is scheduled to pronounce judgement on Dorcas’s case tomorrow November 12, 2024, as per the facts made available to it by the Ghana Police Services, minus the involvement of the others, who are walking about freely perhaps in search of other victims.
Interestingly, court documents, including witness statements, showed the scam was done using the letterheads of the Chief of Staff, fake email addresses, as well as phone calls in the name of the Jubilee House to give victims an assurance of authenticity.
These got them to cough up huge sums of money to get protocol recruitments in the state security services, including the Ghana Immigration Service, charging between GHc8,000 to GHc12,000.
One Rosca Amoaning, the second complainant in her witness statement, said she and others were made to cough up a total of GHc218,000, to Dorcas to get jobs at either Ghana Cocoa Board, Audit Service or any other government institution.
The job never came and they petitioned the Director General of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on April 6, 2022.
Rosca narrated how she became interested in Dorcas’ false job offers, after she had come to the Nsawam branch of the Victory Bible Church, sometime in December 2020, and gave testimony during a Sunday Church Service to thank God, for a successful two year protocol recruitment into the security services and other state institutions without any issues.
Dorcas’ testimony was later followed up by a lady called Madam Doris York, a member of the church, who claimed to be Dorcas’ mother, as well as the first complainant, Vicky Angela Boadu.
Doris vouched for the job offers from the Office of the President, insisting they were indeed, credible.
One of the exhibits before the court, is a document showing the letterhead of the Office of the President, dated August 6, 2021, and addressed to one Amma Randolph, identified as the Human Resource Manager at the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Head Office, Accra.
The document bore the signature of the Chief of Staff, Frema Opare and was titled Protocol Portal E-Recruitment 2021/2022 GRA (Customs Division).
It had 20 names of individuals said to have been “listed on the Customs Service Recruitments Portal under Protocol Act 727”.
The names, included Meshack S, Nyarko, Emmanuel Korankye, Priscilla Ntirim, Reginald O. Cobbla, Ayernor Stephen, Ayorbra Lydia, Andam Silvia Atta Esi, Juliana Ofori, Acheampong Darfa Charleston, Barnabas Agura Yere, Wedam, Sethina Adu Boachie, Richard Asamoah Awuah, Ohene Fortune, Frank Quansah, Augustina Pinameng, Maxwell Adu, Oduro Dwamena Samuel, Rose Asomah and Adinkra David Worlanyo.
The letter in the name of the Office of the President, and also believed to have been faked, demanded “Code IDs” to be generated “to our highly office immediately”.
One other document; a letterhead of the GRA dated August 27, 2021, addressed to the Office of the Chief of Staff – Communication Directorate of the Presidency Jubilee House – Accra, bore the names of some eight applicants, including Akpolu Elikplim Henry, Edmund Ofosu Boateng, Sophia Esu, David Alornyo, Osei Dapaah, Michael Ofosu, Perfect Sakpaku and Miriam Obeng Boateng.
The document also believed to have been forged, was signed by Amma Randolph, who was again identified as the Human Resource Manager, and had some code IDs next to the names notified the recipient “Please, we are having a bit of challenges on our portal link networks and we shall rectify it soon. In addition, we would release all print out details as soon as possible to your highly office”.
In yet another document made in September 2020, a notice was sent from an email address in the name of the Office of the President (Protocol Department) which is believed to have been forged, also informing one of the victims of his or her employment into the Audit Service.
The deceptive email dated September 29, 2020, read “Dear Sir/Madam, I’d like to welcome you to AUDIT SERVICE GHANA. We are excited that you have accepted our job offer and agreed upon your start date. I trust that this letter finds you mutually excited about your new employment with the Audit Service Ghana.
While your new position as a Commercial Audit Department Staff, I’d like to welcome you to the COMMERCIAL AUDIT DEPARTMENT on behalf of all the staff. Each of us will play a role to ensure your successful integration into the …”
Dorcas’ friends, said she had wanted a transfer from her station at Duayaw Nkwanta, a town and the capital of Tano North Municipal District in the Ahafo Region to Accra and got in touch with Kofi Yeboah Boadi, who took her to visit Famous in the Office of Chief of Staff.
While discussing the transfer, the Jubilee House officials, mentioned how they could secure recruitment into the Ghana Police Service and the Ghana Immigration Service for her family members for a fee.
Subsequently, they kept collecting money from innocent people through her, ostensibly to secure them employment in the state security establishments using their influences as staff for the Jubilee House and in the Office of the Chief of Staff.
They used the Chief of Staff’s letterhead and wrote the names supplied by her, giving it the appearance of authenticity.
Aside from the huge sums, they collected from Dorcas, they also took electronic devices including phones of various brands and bags of rice among others.
However, they did not fulfil their promise until it became clearer to some of the victims that they had been lied to and duped. A process was activated to get her arrested and arraigned before the court.
