EOCO’s inability to prosecute NAM1 is a ‘national disaster’ – Menzgold customers

The aggrieved customers of defunct gold collectibles company, Menzgold have described the comments attributed to the Executive Director of Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO), Maame Tiwa Addo-Danquah as a national disaster.

According to the aggrieved customers, the statement that the embattled Chief Executive Officer of Menzgold, Nana Appiah Mensah, cannot be prosecuted is a national disaster.

“What was the motive of the government in arraigning the CEO of Menzgold when they know the man cannot be prosecuted?” the aggrieved customers quizzed.

The spokesperson for the aggrieved customers, Frederick Forson, speaking in an interview with Mr. Emmanuel Quarshie (The Hitman) on the Ghana Yensom morning show on Accra 100.5 FM on Monday, August 22, 2022, said “It has always been our belief that the government was not committed to having Nana Appiah Mensah popularly known as NAM1 prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others.”

He maintained that the mindset of Maame Tiwa Addo-Danquah had always been the mindset of the government regarding the prosecution of NAM1.

“It is the reason we earlier threatened to withdraw our support for the prosecution,” he said.

“As customers, we stand vindicated that the government was not committed to prosecuting the CEO of Menzgold,” he explained.

He accused the government of deceiving the customers adding that so far some 183 customers have lost their lives as a result of the government’s delays in paying up their locked-up funds.

The operations of Menzgold were shut down in September 2018 by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The company's operating license which had initially been granted in 2014, was revoked by the Minerals Commission of Ghana and had primarily been for gold trading and export. However, as reports of a gold-investment scheme with high returns started to circulate, the Bank of Ghana began to publish warnings that cautioned citizens to be wary of dealing with the firm and warned the firm against taking cash deposits.

Customers' deposit at Menzgold have been locked out since the shutdown and can't access their investments, leading to numerous demonstrations at its various branches to no avail.