Nigerian Assayer in court over $18 million gold scam

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Nigerian Assayer in court over $18 million gold scam

Yusuf Mohammed Crufy, a 46-year-old assayer, appeared before an over allegations of defrauding a Ghanaian businessman, Samuel Opoku Frimpong, by false pretences.

Crufy has been charged with the scam which involves 300 kg of gold worth $18 million. The defendant has entered a plea of not guilty and has been admitted to bail with a sum of GHS5 million and two sureties, one of which must be justified with landed property. The next court appearance is scheduled for March 13.

According to Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Seth Frimpong, the prosecutor, the accused person was introduced to the complainant in May 2021 through a business partner Billy Bonsu.

The accused agreed to supervise the export of the 300 kg of gold from to Dubai after it had been assayed. The prosecution stated that Crufy claimed he could not export the gold due to the military coup in and also claimed that another coup in prevented a direct flight to Dubai.

The prosecution claimed that Crufy demanded and collected 6% of the total value of the gold to transport it to for another document for the export. On July 31, 2022, the accused gave the complainant a tracking number for the export but the complainant later sensed that he had been defrauded.

In October 2022, the accused informed the complainant that he had brought the 300 kg of gold to and deposited it at a security storage facility. The complainant paid $35,000 for the safe keeping of the gold.

On October 20, 2022, the complainant went to Ghana to collect the 300 kg of gold to be exported to Dubai but the accused failed to provide the rest of the boxes of gold and has declined to answer the complainant's phone calls.

The prosecution stated that the complainant was directed to meet a person named Nana at Abeka Junction who showed him a box containing metals claimed to be gold but the remaining boxes were not made available to the complainant.

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