Man Remanded For Travel Scam
By Fatmata Mohamed Bangura
38-year-old Andrew Danny Stephanus Lahai made an appearance before Magistrate John Manso Fornah at the Pademba Road Magistrate Court No.2 in Freetown on a five-count charge of Obtaining Money by False Pretenses, contrary to Section 32(1) of the Larceny Act of 1916.
According to police records, on 8th September 2022, at No. 3 Elizabeth Street in Freetown, the accused, with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of Four Hundred and Fifty-Six Thousand Leones from Oliver Macfoy by falsely pretending that he could facilitate the traveling of his wife and two children to Canada. When the charges were read, no plea was taken.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Sorie Conteh led in Victoria Johnson, an accountant at the University of Sierra Leone, who testified before the court and identified the accused in the dock.
In her testimony, Johnson said she came to know the accused through one Martin, who introduced her at Elizabeth Street. She recalled meetings on of 21st August 2022 and 31st March 2024, when Martin spoke to her about a travel program and arranged for her to meet the accused.
According to her, her husband was the first to meet the accused to verify whether the program was genuine. He later informed her that it seemed real and that he had already scheduled an appointment to make the first payment.
Johnson further explained that the next day, she and her husband, together with Martin, handed over Forty-Five Thousand New Leones to the accused. The accused assured them that he would issue receipts for every deposit made and indeed provided one for the first payment. She told the court that if given time, she can produce that receipt.
She added that the accused also requested passport photographs, which they provided, six in total, since the program was meant for six of them. She said after handing over the passports, she began receiving emails from individuals calling themselves Trembley, Cassandra, Mark, Diana, and others. These persons promised to update her on the program’s progress, but the dates they gave never materialized. Even a scheduled biometric appointment was later cancelled.
The police prosecutor applied for a short adjournment to enable them to tender the said emails as part of the court record.
Magistrate Fornah remanded the accused at the Male Correctional Center in Freetown. The matter was adjourned to 26th September 2025.
