Pramso Saint Michael’s Midwifery Training School in the Ashanti Region has received a refund of about GH¢320,000 stolen from its accounts, Luv News sources have revealed.
The Ahensan branch of GCB Bank in Kumasi, where the amount was dubiously withdrawn, reimbursed the school as police investigations into the scandal continue.
Erastus Asare Donkor who broke the story reports that investigations uncovered that cheques and financial advice covering the illegal transaction were forged to withdraw to belonging to the school.
Accountant, Joshua Quaiddoo, who first detected the theft, and Operations Manager at Ahensan branch of GCB Bank were arrested and granted police enquiry bail.
School authorities deny issuing advice for payment of the cheques with alleged forged signatures of the school principal and accountant, the only signatories to the account.
They say the bank had failed to cross-check with the school before effecting payment.
Five cheques believed to have been forged were raised in the name of five companies with no business relationship with St Michael’s Midwifery Training School.
Four of them issued to four fake companies successfully went through. Cheque number 001995 for GH¢156,320 stood in the name of Jonedan Automobile.
Cheque number 001997, covering GH¢62,780.42 was issued supposedly to Appertey James Tettey while cheque number 001998 bearing an amount of GH¢48,970 was in the name of Seth Odame.
The last cheque, number 001999 with an amount of GH¢52,610 bore the name John Boateng.
The odd one out, number 001996, was found to have been torn from the original school chequebook in the name of Rush Medical Supplies was dishonoured for insufficient funds at GCB Takoradi Market branch.
The prime suspect, Elsie Akunde, an intern at the Accounts Department of the school, is still at large.
With school accountant and the bank’s Chief Operations Officer on bail, the question that others and the police are seeking answers to is who sent the forged financial advice to the bank.
The Criminal Investigations Department tells Luv News GCB has since November 8, last year, failed to respond to a formal request for CCTV footage and other information on the cheques.
The bank has, however, gone ahead to refund the money to the school, raising questions about the motive. Bank and school officials remain tight-lipped.
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Credit: myjoyonlineÂ