Mobile Banker Receives 6-Year Jail Term for Forgery and Embezzling GH¢162,700

Adentan Circuit Court has handed down a six-year prison sentence to a mobile banker, Grace Addy, for misappropriating GH¢162,700 belonging to customers of an undisclosed Rural Bank. The conviction followed an audit conducted by the Rural Bank into Addy’s accounts.

Grace Addy, 29, admitted guilt to charges of document forgery and two counts of stealing. The court, presided over by Mrs. Sedinam Awo Balokah, sentenced Grace to two years for document forgery, three years for stealing GH¢20,000 from a customer, and six years for embezzling GH¢142,700. The sentences are to be served concurrently.

According to Chief Inspector A. Fosu, who led the prosecution, the complainant, the Manager of the Rural Bank in Madina, reported that an audit on December 27, 2023, uncovered the misappropriation of GH¢142,700 by Grace Addy. The accused, an employee of the bank, collected money from customers but failed to account for it, instead diverting the funds for personal use and overseas travel.

The investigation revealed that between January 2023 and December 21, 2023, Grace collected money from customers but did not deposit it with the bank. Instead, she transferred the funds to other mobile money accounts for personal use.

Additionally, Grace was found to have forged receipts, altering the payment to a customer named Salifu Alhassan from GH¢20,000 to GH¢40,000, creating a false impression that she had paid GH¢40,000 to the bank.

During police interrogations, Grace admitted to stealing a total of GH¢162,700, claiming she gave the money to three men who charged her $16,000 to facilitate her travel abroad. However, she failed to lead the police to these individuals. In her statement, she mentioned giving the entire sum to one individual, Hamisu, at Libya Quarters in Madina, intending to repay customers after her arrival abroad.