A young man identified as Samuel Atapika is on the run after allegedly defrauding a mobile money vendor of GH₵13,000 and staking the funds on a betting app platform known as Aviator.
The incident occurred at Boabakrom, a community near Ketan in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis of the Western Region.
The victim, Alimatu Asuntam, a mobile money (MoMo) vendor, narrated the ordeal in an interview on Connect FM’s Omanbapa Morning Show, hosted by Nhyiraba Paa Kwesi Simpson.
According to her, the suspect, whom she knew as a regular customer, visited her shop in February 2026 and acted unusually generous.
“He was very nice that day and even gave me GH₵100. Later, he claimed his boss had asked him to purchase some items and requested that I transfer GH₵13,000 into his account, assuring me the money would be sent shortly,” she recounted.
Trusting his claims, she proceeded with the transaction.
Alimatu said the suspect remained at her shop for over four hours, constantly using his phone.
During that period, a bystander hinted that the suspect was actively betting on Aviator, a claim she initially did not understand.
“After some time, he said he wants to respond to nature’s call and that I give him one cedi to pay for it. I insisted he settle the money before leaving, but he suddenly bolted and has not been seen since,” she added.
Subsequent inquiries in the community revealed that the suspect is allegedly addicted to sports betting and has been using similar strategy to obtain huge sums of money from multiple victims.
The victim believes the suspect lost the entire amount while attempting to multiply the money through aviator betting before fleeing.
The case has since been reported to the police, who have launched a manhunt for the suspect as investigations continue.
By Eric Gyetuah
