Student Journalist Defrauds Retired Soldier for GH¢30,600 Gets 2 Years in Jail

Benjamin Fiifi Donkor Jnr, a student journalist took GH¢30,600 from a retired soldier under the pretext of sending his daughter to study abroad. The convict who additionally took $4,000 from the retired soldier, has been ordered by an Accra circuit court Judge, Mrs. Afi Agbaney Kodomor, to also pay the said amount of money back to the complainant – WOII Benjamin Ofori.
The trial judge, sentencing the convict, noted that the witnesses, including the complainant and the prosecution, were able to prove that he received the said money from the complainant after promising to get his daughter to study abroad.
The trial judge stated that Fiifi Donkor Jnr had failed to convince the court that he did not receive the said money from the retired soldier and added that his evidence did not sound credible.
In addition, she recalled that the convict had earlier informed the court that he intended to call some witnesses but later abandoned the idea.
The facts of the case as presented by the prosecutor, Inspector Thelma Addo, were that the complainant, the retired soldier, lives at Burma Camp with his daughter, Eunice, while the convict is a journalism student who lives at Sowutuom, a suburb of Accra.
She said Fiifi Donkor Jnr is a friend to Eunice and had been visiting her at Burma Camp, adding that Eunice had told him in 2013 of her interest to study abroad so the convict convinced her father to help his daughter to actualize her dream.
Inspector Thelma Addo stated that the Fiifi then collected money amounting to GH¢30,660 and $600 from the retired soldier to start processing visa and admission for Eunice.
In addition, Inspector Thelma Addo explained that the Fiifi further demanded to be given $10,000 to be put into an International House of Student Account for Eunice which made the complainant suspicious. On March 7 he investigated the matter and realised that Fiifi Donkor had defrauded him.
The inspector disclosed that the retired soldier went and lodged a complaint with the police and Fiifi was arrested after which he told the police he had paid some money on the said admission at an office in Legon, but failed to produce receipts to show proof.