A 36-year-old businessman, Raymond Ofomala, has been arraigned before an Accra Circuit Court for allegedly defrauding a Finnish retiree of GH¢204,115.24 under the pretext of helping her recover funds lost in an online romance scam.
Ofomala, who is accused of posing as a lawyer and state prosecutor, pleaded not guilty to charges of defrauding by false pretences and obtaining an electronic payment medium falsely.
The court, presided over by His Honour Isaac Addo, granted him bail in the sum of GH¢250,000 with two sureties. He was also ordered to deposit his passport at the court registry.
He is expected to reappear in court on May 20, 2025.
Chief Inspector Jonas Lawer, who is prosecuting the case, told the court that the complainant, 70-year-old Marianne Kertain Elisabet Westerholm of Finland, lost $102,500 to a romance scam between 2019 and 2022.
In March 2024, Ofomala allegedly contacted her via email, identifying himself as “Frank Owusu” and claiming to be a Ghanaian prosecutor working on a case involving cybercriminals arrested for defrauding elderly women. He alleged that one of the suspects, Eric Yaw Nartey — who previously used the alias Albert Lambert — was responsible for scamming Westerholm.
Under the guise of assisting in asset recovery, Ofomala demanded funds to facilitate the reimbursement process. Trusting his claims, Westerholm transferred GH¢204,115.24 between July 30 and August 22, 2024, via two personal MTN mobile money accounts and an MTN merchant number linked to the accused.
However, after a series of repeated and suspicious demands for additional payments, Westerholm ceased communication and reported the matter to the police.
During investigations, Ofomala reportedly admitted to the offence, stating he had been introduced to the victim by a Nigerian associate named Godwin. Police say Godwin was previously involved in defrauding Westerholm, having posed as a doctor on a humanitarian mission in Yemen using the alias Albert Lambert.
Authorities have since impounded a Toyota Vitz vehicle with registration number GS 743-22, suspected to have been purchased with proceeds from the crime.
