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The Herald’s investigations into the Menzgold saga and the detention of its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Nana Appiah Mensah in Dubai, is establishing an embarrassing collusion, between some law enforcement officers here in Ghana, particularly the Economic and Organize Crime Officer (EOCO) and the Financial Intelligence Centre Ghana (FIC) to bury a Us$51 million fraud.

This paper’s information is that, the Dubai-based gold dealership company, Horizon Royal Diamonds DMCC, had been in contact with officials of the EOCO to get two alleged fraudsters; a Ghanaian and Nigerian, who had used a phony company “Just Gold Company Limited” to defraud the Emiratis the sum of US$51 million, arrested and prosecuted.

The games being played at EOCO with the owners of “Just Gold Company Limited” forced the Dubai-based company to smartly get the Menzgold boss detained by the Dubai police in an effort to get the Ghanaian law enforcement agents to act when he traveled there to have his US$39 million paid him by the gulf company over 750 kilograms of gold supplied it.

The names of the suspected fraudsters were given as Adentunji Adewoye Olorunfemi alias Ade and Charles alias “Chairman” a Nigerian and a Ghanaian, respectively.

Charles, has been linked to a couple of real estate houses in parts of Accra, especially East Legon.

Ade is said to have been a friend to the Menzgold boss. He was privy to Horizon Royal Diamonds DMCC, wanting to purchase gold from Menzgold and quickly travelled to Dubai promising the gulf company a better offer than what Menzgold was offering.

Interestingly, the government has since started making some concession to the company, but plans to send state officials, including a Deputy Attorney General, Joseph Dinkiok Kpemka, to Dubai to interact with NAM 1 and also try to have the authorities in that country release him to honour the Police investigations over eth Menzgold saga in Ghana, has failed.

The Herald learnt that, the delegation could not get visas for the trip. The only person who got a visa to Dubai, was a deputy EOCO boss.

Many had taken the trip as an attempt by the Akufo-Addo government to save it face from the clients of the company, who were demonstrating against the government over its handling of issues surrounding the Menzgold CEO.

On the US$51 million, The Herald had learnt that the activities of Ade and Charles are well known to the state officials, including FIC.

Indeed, the FIC had once blocked the release of parts of the US$ 51 million to the two, but an order came from government circles and the money was released to them to blow.

Some known state officials profited from the US$51 million fleece, hence EOCO’s disinterest in the investigation and prosecution.

Insiders told The Herald that while Ade, cannot be traced by the law enforcement agents having gone into hiding, Charles, has been frequenting the premises of EOCO and meeting with its officials, but it is not clear, how close the state institution is retrieving the US$51 million from Just Gold Company Limited for Horizon Royal Diamonds of Dubai.

Charles, last Monday spent the greater part of his day at EOCO with his lawyer over the fraud matter. This happened because the Menzgold boss, had on the previous day, informed EOCO boss, Dr. K.K Amoah, about his detention in Dubai, as a result of his outfit’s failure to arrest and prosecute the owners of Just Gold Ghana Limited.

The whereabouts of Menzgold boss only became known after heavily armed Police officers dispatched from Accra and Central Region, stormed a house in Cape Coast belonging to the parents of nana Appiah Mensah looking for him over alleged fraud and money laundering in the Menzgold Ghana sage.

The EOCO boss, quickly inform National Security Minister, Albert Kan-Dapaah, who intend dispatched Ghanaian diplomatic officials to the Dubai detention centre where Menzgold boss was, for an interaction with him.

On Monday, Ghana’s Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, Alhaji Ahmed Ramadan, also met with the Menzgold boss in cells and tried speaking to the officials of Horizon Royal Diamonds, but was unsuccessful.

The Menzgold owner has been under arrest in Dubai since December 4, 2018, because Ade, one of the owners of Just Gold Ghana Limited, was known to him.

He had travelled to Dubai late last year in the hope of collecting US$39 million owned Menzgold by a Dubai based company, Horizon Royal Diamonds DMCC, for the supply of gold.

His intention was to use the money to settle investors of the Menzgold, following the closure of the company by the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Sources familiar with the story had indicated that in 2016, an unnamed official of the EOCO, had recommended Menzgold to officials of Horizon Royal Diamonds for the supply of huge quantities of gold. That recommendation came because, according o the sources, the Dubai company, had earlier been duped by some Ghanaians.

Horizon Royal Diamonds and Menzgold duly established contact, however, before the deal could be struck, persons privy to the discussions presented themselves to Horizon Royal Diamonds with the promise of a better deal, to which officials of the Dubai-based company fell for.

It turned out that Horizon Royal Diamonds alleged later that it parted with not less than US$51 million for which no gold whatsoever was supplied.

Officials of horizon Royal Diamonds, later reverted to Menzgold’s Nana Appiah Mensah in 2018, to supply them the gold, upon which request he is said to have demanded an undertaking not to be linked to the transaction with Just Gold Company Limited, the company Horizon Royal alleged it paid the US$51 million.

That undertaking duly arrived; spelling out Menzgold’s disconnection with the deal said to have gone bad and its lack of liability. Following that undertaking, Menzgold proceeded to supply 750kg of gold to Horizon Royal Diamonds, at an agreed price of $28 million at the time of supply.

“Per the arrangement between the two companies, it is now worth $39 million and Nana had gone there to facilitate the retrieval of the money when the SWIFT transfer account details the guys in Dubai provided turned out to be fake. He wanted his money to come and sort out the current situation with his company, but the guys rather reported him to the Dubai authorities accusing him of fraud. That is why he was arrested but God willing, he will be out by Wednesday to return to Ghana,” Graphic Online had reported a source close to Nana Appiah Mensah as saying.

The source said, Menzgold had duly reported the fake SWIFT detail to EOCO, insisting that “his arrest has nothing to do with Ghana police or Interpol; he only wanted his money to come and sort out Menzgold customers.”

“He will come home soon, hopefully by Wednesday he will be freed. The bail bond posted by the Dubai authorities has been met. Ghanaian officials in Dubai even visited him on Sunday and if they are minded to, they could be telling the public the true story of why NAM1 was arrested.

Ahead of the trip to Dubai, Horizon Diamond Limited, had refuted claims that Menzgold and its CEO, Nana Appiah Mensah, had defrauded the company. An undertaken signed by jean-Luc Imbert of the Legal Department of the company had said NAM 1 and the company, cannot be held liable for eh bad deal and the list of funds it suffered.

The document said: “Menzgold Ghana Limited with its Chief Executive officer, Nana Appiah Mensah is not in any way connected to Horizon Royal Diamond’s business dealings with Just Gold Company Limited that has lead to a loss of Horizon Royal Diamond’s funds and that Menzgold Ghana Co. Limited is not liable, cannot be held responsible for any claim whatsoever.”

“Horizon Royal Diamond extends and invitation to Menzgold Ghana Co. Limited’s delegation to pay business visit to Dubai to discuss and conclude pending business relationship. Horizon Royal Diamond hereby undertakes and guarantees Menzgold Ghana Company Limited’s delegation best hospitality and security whilst in Dubai.”

The Herald has seen copies of the undertaken by Horizon Royal Diamond, the fake SWIFT detail dated May 3, 2018, by the company from NOOR Bank in Dubai and the invoices from Menzgold to Horizon Royal Diamond showing a total of 750 kilograms of gold was supplied the company.