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An Accra circuit court, presided over by Mr Francis Obiri, will on March 5, rule on a bail application filed by the counsel for Kafarov Ramazan, a Russian businessman accused of fraud.

The accused person has pleaded not guilty through an interpreter.

Mr Yoni Kulendi, Counsel, prayed the court for a self-recognisance bail for his client who is in the custody of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) for defrauding by false pretences.

He said the offence for which the BNI is holding his client was a bailable offence.

Mr Kulendi said the facts largely showed that the money involved was a contribution by the complainant towards a joint venture.

He told the court that his client would demonstrate in the trial that a feasibility study was conducted and properties acquired as agreed by both parties.

He said the BNI only invited the accused person for a meeting in their office, only to be arrested afterwards.

The counsel said the accused person has been in Ghana for the past 15 years and has provided employment for over 2,000 Ghanaians on his concessions.

“It is just a simple commercial agreement gone bad,” he added.

Presenting the facts to the court, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Abraham Annor said on January 28, last year, Interpol Accra and the CID headquarter received a message from INTERPOL Moscow, Russia, requesting the police authorities to locate and arrest the accused person.

He said the accused person was wanted in Russia for the offence of defrauding by false pretence.

DSP Annor said according to INTERPOL Moscow, on May 4, 2011, the accused person defrauded one V.V Rudenko, a Russian national of an amount of two million dollars.

He said the accused person was under the pretext of taking a loan from the complainant for the purpose of joint business development, deliberately deceived Rudenko to transfer the amount to his personal bank account, although the accused person knew very well that he did not intend to meet the undertaken obligation.

The prosecution said all efforts made by the complainant to retrieve his money proved futile since the accused refused to communicate with him via phone calls or meet him.

Consequently, Judge E.A Levehnko, a judge at the Oktyabrsky district court in Rostovon Don issued a warrant dated March 31, last year for his arrest.

He said on July 14, the same year, an INTERPOL Red notice was issued against the accused person and on February 24, 2015, personnel from the INTERPOL unit in Ghana, in collaboration with officers from the BNI, arrested Ramazan at his residence in East Legon.