Teacher Lands Decade in Prison for Stealing GH¢238,000 from Bosomefreho Rural Bank via Mobile App

A 36-year-old teacher, John Ankomah Boateng, is set to spend the next decade behind bars after being sentenced to 10 years imprisonment with hard labor by the Bekwai Circuit Court for stealing over GH¢238,000 from Bosomefreho Rural Bank Limited. The court, presided over by His Honour Isaac Apietu, handed down the sentence after Boateng, a teacher at Freso SDA Junior High School in the Bosomefreho District, pleaded guilty to the charge of stealing.

The prosecution, led by Detective Chief Inspector Eric Twum, laid out the details of the case, which began with a routine audit by David Asare Atianeere, an internal auditor for Bosomefreho Rural Bank. Between February 9, 2024, and February 26, 2024, Atianeere uncovered a series of fraudulent transactions that triggered a full-scale investigation.

The investigation revealed that Boateng had been exploiting the Ghana Pay application to unlawfully withdraw significant sums of money from the bank. Astonishingly, Boateng managed to steal a total of GH¢238,550.99 despite having a mere GH¢2.23 in his account. These unauthorized transactions raised immediate red flags, leading to the swift involvement of law enforcement.

The case was officially reported to the Ashanti South Regional Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on February 28, 2024. Boateng was apprehended on March 13, 2024, and subsequently provided a caution statement in which he confessed to the crime.

Boateng’s statement revealed that he had transferred chunks of the stolen funds to two associates: GH¢10,000, GH¢5,000, GH¢20,000, and GH¢5,000 were sent to an individual named Isaac Kwaku Duah, and an unspecified amount to someone identified only as Neymar, purportedly for safekeeping. Additionally, he admitted to using GH¢40,000 of the stolen money to engage a travel agent in an attempt to secure travel documents for himself, suggesting an intention to flee.

The court’s decision to impose a harsh sentence of 10 years with hard labor underscores the severity of financial crimes and sends a strong message of deterrence to others who might consider similar acts of theft. Authorities have used this opportunity to highlight the crucial need for robust security measures on digital financial platforms to prevent fraud. The Boateng case serves as a chilling reminder of the consequences of abusing digital banking systems and the importance of upholding integrity in all financial dealings.