After the arrest of 19-year-old junior high school drop-out at Agbozume in the Volta Region for impersonating the Commissioner of Police (COP) Christian Tetteh Yohuno to defraud unsuspecting victims on Facebook, COP Tetteh Yohuno has cautioned the public to cross-check information with the organization before transacting business.
According to the Director-General, Operations of the Ghana Police Service, the high profile people with social media account especially Facebook should be very careful as cyber criminals always use their information to dupe innocent and desperate people.
A 19-year-old junior high school drop-out resident at Agbozume in the Volta Region, was last Saturday arrested by the cybercrime division of the Criminal and Investigation Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service for impersonating COP Christian Tetteh Yohuno, Director General, Operations.
The young lad, Michael Asare, impersonated the Director General of Operations on Facebook and used the avenue to defraud unsuspecting victims who desired to get enlisted into the service.
Dr Herbert Gustav Yankson, Director of Cyber Crime at the CID Headquarters, stated that around December 2015, the accused went to a cyber café in Agbozume, researched on COP Christian Tetteh Yohuno and downloaded photographs of him in uniform.
Michael succeeded in defrauding four victims to the tune of about GH₵2,000.
Based upon police intelligence, Mr Asare was picked up in a cyber café in Agbozume.
But COP Christian Tetteh Yohuno on Okay FM’s 'Ade Akye Abia' Morning Show has cautioned the public especially those doing business with the social media especially the Facebook to be very careful as these criminals use the high profile in the society to defraud innocent people.
“The caution to all people is that, this type of social media, especially the Facebook, people who do transaction on Facebook should be very careful and normally some of these criminals, they always want to take people, the high profile in the society and then they will tell you that such a person said he is giving employment, he is doing recruitment for so-so and so person . . . sometimes they can use a minister or the head of a particular department to say they are offering employment; they use your identity and impersonate you at times,” he warned.
He therefore advised that people who transact businesses as well as those whom people have access to their social media information to be very careful as they may fall in the hands of scammers.
He again urged the public to always cross-check the authenticity of the information with the organization the supposed people on social media work with before engaging in any kind business with them to avoid lose of money and any valuable asset in the process.
Concerning the police recruit, COP Christian Tetteh Yohuno insisted the police will announce their recruitment plan in the media as the military has started; imploring the public not to listen to anybody except the publications which will be indicated in the state media.
“Forget about recruitment in the social media because if you do so, you fall in the hands of scammers,” he admonished.
He however indicated that the accused has admitted doing it singularly but the cyber crime unit of Ghana Police Service wants to go beyond that to see if it can chance on any accomplice in this crime.
Source: Daniel Adu Darko/Peacefmonline.com.gh/E-mail: [email protected]
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