Micro-finance operator jailed 8 years for forging BoG licence

 A 34-year-old man, who forged a Bank of Ghana (BoG) licence to oper­ate a micro finance company at Suhum in the Eastern region and its environs, has been sentenced to eight years imprisonment by the Accra Circuit Court.

Kofi Asante, aka Davis, pleaded guilty to the charge of engaging in deposit-taking with­out licence and was sentenced to four years imprisonment.

On the charge of forgery of an official document, Asante pleaded guilty and was sentenced to eight years imprisonment.

The sentences are to run con­currently, the court presided over by Joojo Amoah Hagan, said.

The prosecution, led by Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Emmaneul Haligah said the police received informa­tion that accused, now convict, had established microfinance business centres in the name of KM Community Bank and Prym Capital within the Suhum and its environs. The court heard that the convict, after establishing the business, collected deposit from people without licence.

ASP Haligah said intelligence indicated that the KM Commu­nity Bank had branches in Anum Apapam, Akorabo, and Amanase, while Prym Capital had its head­quarters in Suhum.

The prosecution said Asante was arrested for investigations and when his offices were searched, copies of documents purported to be issued by the BoG in the name of KM Com­munity Bank were found and retrieved for investigations.

ASP Haligah said investiga­tions revealed that Asante had forged the BoG license between April and January this year, and had about 24 youth working as representatives within Suhum and its environs.

The prosecution said Asante convinced about 950 persons, who made daily deposit of GH¢56,000 with his business.

ASP Haligah said during in­terrogation, Asante admitted that KM Community Bank and Prym Capital were neither registered by the Office of the Registrar of Companies nor licenced by the BoG to undertake deposit-taking business.

The prosecution said Asante confessed that he forged the BoG licence that was retrieved from his office. —GNA