‘Anas video’ exposes businessman

Anyone who watched the video footage recorded by The New Crusading Guide's investigative journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas, on Metropolitan Television (Metro TV) 7:30pm news bulletin, News Night, will be left with no shred of doubt on the blatant falsehood that has been peddled by the businessman who is at the centre of the $9,000 bribery saga. In the said video, Nana Kwadwo Ofosu-Aryeh and an accomplice, Francis Acheampong, are seen seated in an office speaking to Anas. He is seen talking tough in an encounter during which he intimates that he wanted to settle the issue not with one Henry Mensah, but with Anas who had given him enough evidence to prove that he (Naria Kwadwo Ofosu-Aryeh) was the cheated party in a Caterpillar excavator 325BL purchase transaction with GH¢ 13,000, equivalent of $9,000. Subsequently, Anas goes out of his way to indicate that he will settle the issue amicably with Henry - victim in this case -, a piece of advice Nana appeared not to heed, knowing what he had planned. He mentions his intention to bribe Anas, after which he goes to bring the said money which was in a brown envelope. He accuses Henry of disrespect whilst intimating that instead of giving the money to the police, he would rather give it to Anas who had incurred cost during his investigations into the transaction and efforts at recovering the Caterpillar he (Ofosu-Aryeh) is yet to complete payment on. He was awakened to the harsh reality and consequences of his action only when the police came in to arrest him and his accomplice. The facts of the case have to do with a deal-gone-bad in the purchase of a Caterpillar excavator. In the said purchase, he (Henry) was supposed to ship down the heavy duty vehicle from abroad. Subsequently, Nana Kwadwo was to see to the Custom issues and clearance at the port, with the Purchase Agreement being, "Buyer agrees to make a non-refundable total cash transfer payment of $90,000 to the seller prior to delivery of the equipment from Tema Port. Buyer must make payment via a Bank transfer into Seller Business account in the USA..." But not keeping to the terms of the contract, Nana Kwadwo Ofosu-Aryeh, having taken delivery of the excavator, wired an amount of $40,000 to Henry, an amount of $50,000 short of the agreed $90, OO. Nana Ofosu-Aryeh used the excuse of the Caterpillar being faulty as premise on which he was refusing to pay the remaining money when impressed upon by Henry on countless occasions to do so. All this while, Nana Ofosu-Aryeh had sent the said Caterpillar to Enyaaso - somewhere near Konongo in the Ashanti Region - where he was making use of it until Anas and his team of investigators went undercover and found out where the vehicle was. However, a section of the media have been replete with reports that the business man, Nana Kwadwo Ofosu-Aryeh, did not know Anas in person and that he has never paid any money as bribe to the ace investigative journalist. When The New Crusading Guide put out the story in its Monday, July 19 edition under the headline, "BUSTED FOR GIVING $90,000 BRIBE TO ANAS," Nana Ofosu-Aryeh subsequently questioned who Anas was in a screaming headline in another newspaper, and engaged him (Anas) in a verbal battle on an Accra based radio station - Radio Gold - during which he (Ofosu-Aryeh) vehemently denied any wrongdoing. The complainant in the case, Henry Mensah, resident in the United Sates, called Tiger Force Consult Ghana - a debt management and recovery firm - from the States through his agent on 24 April, 2010 to report the issue regarding how the businessman in question, (Nana Kwadwo Ofosu-Aryeh) had set out to defraud him in the purchase of the Caterpillar excavator 325BL. Source: New Crusading Guide/Ghana