The Police at Wa in the Upper West Region have arrested a 24-year-old man who claims to be a level 400 Bachelor of Arts student of the University of Ghana, Legon for trading with fake U.S dollars in the Wa Municipality and Wechiau, the Wa West District capital.

The suspect, Dommie Salifu Abu was caught with a total of $16,000 U.S dollars and 6.9 million cedis, which he had apparently been able to change from Dollars into cedis during his operation.

Police Inspector Ebenezer Tetteh, Officer in-charge of Public Affairs Unit in the company of ASP Jeff Darko, Wa Municipal Police Commander who briefed the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Wa in an interview said the suspect's main target was those preparing to go on pilgrimage to Mecca and the business community in the region.

According to the police, the final year Philosophy student had in his possession one bundle of 10 dollar notes, two bundles of 20 dollar notes and the rest were in 100 dollar denominations.

Inspector Tetteh said apart from a Legon University hospital card found on him, Dommie Salifu Abu also confessed that he was a resident student of the Commonwealth Hall and asked the police to find out if they were not convinced.

Records at his hotel revealed that he had previously slept in the same hotel on September 11, 2006, which according to the police suggested that he had been in business for a very longtime.

The Police Officers said Dommie, who is a native of Tumu in the Upper West Region would be put before court for them to ascertain more facts about his dealings in the fake currencies and cautioned the public against trading currencies with people they did not know.

The Tema Regional Police Command in October cautioned the public, especially business operators of a fake currency syndicate operating in the metropolis after it arrested three suspects.

The suspects, John Arthur, Frank Ofori and Albert Smith were arrested with a sum of 3,400 dollars in 100-dollar denomination was found.

Briefing newsmen in Tema, the Regional Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Jonathan Yakubu, said the primary target of the syndicate was mobile phone sellers, adding that members of the syndicate bought in foreign currency and collected the change in cedis.

Source GNA