Bail Contractor In Trouble

A 49-year-old bail contractor is in the grip of the law for defrauding an accused person. Theodore Amoah collected the sum of GH� 2,700 from his client to provide him with an indenture but failed. When the case was called in the Amasaman District Court A, Mr Amoah was absent and the case was adjourned to a later date for his plea to be taken. According to the Prosecutor, Inspector F. A. Ansah, the complainant, Edward Berchie Richardson, is an accused person at the Accra Circuit Court 9 and accountant who resides at Dansoman while Mr Amoah resides at Osu, both in Accra. He said during the month of February, Mr Richardson, who was involved in a criminal case and was granted bail by the Circuit Court, could not meet his bail conditions. Mr Amoah then introduced himself to Mr Richardson as a bail contractor and offered to assist him with an indenture for a fee. The prosecutor said Mr Amoah demanded a sum of GH� 3,000 from Mr Richardson but received GH� 2,700 as part payment. Mr Amoah provided an indenture which the Circuit Court registrar suspected to have been forged and, therefore, demanded to see the rightful owner of the submitted indenture. Inspector Ansah said Mr Amoah, knowing what he had done, never returned to the Circuit Court or the police station to assist Mr Richardson meet the bail terms. As a result, Mr Richardson stayed in police custody for six months until the bail condition was reviewed through the intervention of a legal counsel. Several efforts made by Mr Richardson to reach Mr Amoah proved futile. A complaint was lodged with the police and Mr Amoah was subsequently arrested. He admitted the offence in his caution statement and promised to refund the money but failed.