Tema, Jan. 31, GNA – Police Superintendent Kwabena Otuo Acheampong, the Tema Regional Crime Officer, has warned potential car and property buyers to be wary of fraudsters.
They should make sure that they do proper checks at the appropriate state institutions to make sure that they are into genuine business transactions.
“Fraudsters purported to be dealers in the automobile industry are taking advantage of the strategic advantage of Tema Port City to defraud people who are interested in buying cars and this calls for vigilance on the part of everybody.
Supt. Acheampong giving the warning at a seminar organized by the Ghana News Agency’s (GNA) Tema Regional Office said the fraudsters would at times display the cars on their online websites at incredibly cheaper prices, to trap unsuspecting people.
Everybody should make sure that they would go the extra mile to satisfy themselves that they are dealing with the right people to avoid being duped.
The Regional Crime Officer advised online buyers to only pay for any item they had ordered at the point of delivery, saying, “pay the money at the place, where the item is, do not be persuaded to move away from the property for payment, take custody and pay”.
He spoke against the situation where some people would contract supposed freight forwarders to clear their goods without even knowing their offices.
“Importers should go to a designated office to transact business with freight forwarders and clearing agents, meeting so-called agents at hotels and other places is at your own peril. Anytime you want to buy a car, do so at a garage, and, to make payment at the place where the car is and collect the keys.”
Supt. Acheampong said all must be smart as fraudsters now tend to dress in expensive cloth and rent expensive cars to create a good image of themselves.
Nobody should allow themselves to be fooled or deceived by anybody, presenting themselves as “a big person”.
The police would continue to carry out their mandate of preventing criminals from having their way and making life miserable for the law-abiding people.
GNA