A 34-year-old legal practitioner, Divine Effah-Dartey, has been hauled before an Accra Circuit Court over his alleged role in a fraudulent excavator deal that cost a businessman GH¢800,000.
Effah-Dartey is accused of aiding two other suspects to deceive a prospective buyer into paying GH¢800,000 as part payment for an excavator that was never lawfully owned by the sellers.
He has denied the charge of abetment of defrauding by false pretences and was granted police enquiry bail, following an application made by his father, retired naval officer Captain Nkrabeah Effah-Dartey.
Two other accused persons, Mawuli Awadzi Amenyo, a 49-year-old carpenter, and Jiang Tao, a warehouse manager, were also arraigned. Amenyo, who has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and defrauding by false pretences, was granted bail in the sum of GH¢400,000 with two sureties, one to be justified.
Jiang Tao, charged with abetment, was admitted to police enquiry bail. A fourth suspect, Rishan Mahanta, is currently on the run and faces an additional charge of forgery.
Presiding judge Evelyn Asamoah adjourned the matter to January 23, 2026.
Presenting the facts, Detective Chief Inspector Abel Amanie said the complainant, Kofi Boateng, a businessman from Asankragwa in the Western Region, was seeking to acquire an excavator for commercial rental. In September 2025, a third party linked Boateng to Amenyo, who later introduced him to Mahanta, claiming he was an excavator importer based in Accra.
According to the prosecution, Boateng travelled to Accra on October 1, 2025, with associates to inspect the equipment. They were taken to the premises of Caitec Delta Limited, where Mahanta allegedly passed off several excavators as his property.
Jiang Tao was said to have released a key to enable Boateng test one of the machines, despite access to the area being restricted.
Satisfied after the inspection, Boateng agreed to purchase a Sany hydraulic excavator valued at GH¢1.7 million and paid GH¢800,000 upfront.
He was subsequently taken to a law firm at Kaneshie, where Effah-Dartey, introduced as Mahanta’s lawyer, allegedly received the cash, issued a receipt, and provided what prosecutors say was a forged Import Declaration Form purportedly from the Ghana Revenue Authority.
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The prosecution told the court that Amenyo later abandoned Boateng under the guise of arranging transportation for the excavator and went off communication. Further checks revealed that neither Amenyo nor Mahanta owned the equipment and that Mahanta was not a registered client of the law firm involved.
Amenyo was arrested on October 7, 2025, and allegedly admitted his involvement, claiming the money was handed over to Effah-Dartey. Investigations are ongoing as police continue efforts to locate Mahanta.
The case will resume in January 2026.
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