A phone repairer and a lotto agent have been arraigned before the Accra Circuit Court for allegedly forging lottery winning tickets and defrauding Alpha Lotto Company Limited of GH¢160,000.
Richard Osei, 33, a phone repairer and Wisdom Kortortsi, 59, an agent for Alpha Lotto, were charged with conspiracy to commit a crime, forgery and stealing, contrary to various provisions of the Criminal Offences Act 1960 (Act 29).
Presiding Judge Susana Eduful granted both accused persons bail after they pleaded not guilty. Osei was granted bail at GH¢100,000 with two sureties who must be public servants earning not less than GH¢4,000 monthly.
Kortortsi, on the other hand, was granted bail at GH¢50,000 with two sureties, who must be his family members.
Background
Prosecutor Chief Inspector Daniel Danku told the court that the complainant, Henry Quarshie, a supervisor at Alpha Lotto, resides in Madina.
Kortortsi, as an agent, was responsible for collecting closed lotto booklets and proceeds and forwarding them to the company’s head office before winning numbers were announced.
On July 22, 2024, Osei allegedly visited Kortortsi at his office at Tema Station, Accra, right after the winning numbers were announced.
Osei reportedly took a blank lotto booklet and wrote the winning numbers on it, creating a fraudulent ticket worth GH¢160,000.
Kortortsi, who was in charge of the closed booklets, allegedly allowed Osei to insert the fake tickets into the sealed bag of valid booklets, which was then sent to Alpha Lotto’s headquarters.
A few days later, Kortortsi presented the fake winning ticket to his superiors and received a payout of GH¢160,000. He allegedly handed the entire sum to Osei, and they split it equally.
The fraudulent act came to light when the complainant detected discrepancies in the winning tickets. Upon confrontation, Kortortsi admitted his involvement and led police to arrest Osei.
During investigations, both suspects reportedly admitted to the crime and pleaded with the complainant to allow them to refund the stolen amount.
So far, Kortortsi has refunded GH¢70,000, leaving a balance of GH¢10,000, while Osei has returned only GH¢5,000 out of his GH¢80,000 share.
After completing investigations, the police charged the duo and they were brought before the court. The case is set for further hearings as investigations continue.
