Suspect In GH¢114,000 Bank Theft Absconds

Wednesday September 30, 2009
By Francis Asamoah Tuffour

TIMES investigations have revealed that
Rosemary Okine, the 34-year-old teller in a leading bank in Accra who allegedly embezzled over GH¢114,000 has absconded to the United Kingdom.

Sources close to the Times said efforts to get in touch with her to assist in investigations, have proved futile.

Superintendent Naana Yaa Tiwa Danso, head of the Commercial Crime Unit at Police Criminal Investigations Department (CID), confirmed to the Times on Monday that Mrs Okine’s whereabouts were not known.

She said the police, besides imposing a bond on the person who bailed her to produce the suspect, would seek the assistance of the International Police Organisation (INTERPOL) to track her down in the UK.

“What that means is that her record is dented and she can never travel outside the country again and that would serve as a deterrent to others,” Supt. Danso said.

She said for over three weeks, Mrs. Okine failed to report herself at the CID Headquarters to assist in investigations.

That, she said, compelled her to dispatch a team of detectives to her residence at Dansoman, but they were told that she had travelled to Koforidua for a funeral.

Superintendent Danso said the police were initially convinced that Mrs. Okine had travelled because her six-month old baby was seen in the house with other relatives.

Besides, the personnel were assured that as soon as she returned, the family would ensure that she reported to the police.

She said when after sometime Mrs. Okine was not coming, the police did some investigations which revealed that she had travelled to the UK.

Supt. Danso noted that Mrs. Okine was arrested on Tuesday, July 28, but was granted police enquiry bail with two sureties on the grounds that she was a nursing mother whose baby was sick.

She said so far, she had paid GH¢313 to the police as part payment of the money she promised to pay back, though she claimed she did not embezzle all that much.

Supt. Danso said the amount she had paid was being kept as evidence and would be tendered at court.

Meanwhile, sources close to the bank told the Times that Mrs Okine had been dismissed.

Mrs. Okine, who was suspected to have embezzled the money between June and July this year, was employed as a staff of a bank a year after she had worked as a casual worker with the bank for four years.

Police preliminary investigations showed that the suspect deposited only parts of monies she received from customers into the bank’s account after crediting the accounts of the customers.

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