MoMo vendor in tears after customer burns GHc12,000 on sports betting — Employer demands full repayment

A mobile money vendor who extended a GHC 12,000 loan to a trusted customer is now facing financial ruin after the man gambled away the entire sum on sports betting and attempted to flee.

Srah Priscilla, who operates a MoMo kiosk in Juapong, told Crime Check Foundation that the incident began when a male customer approached her with an urgent request. He claimed he needed to settle an outstanding MTN loan of GHC 12,000 and promised to refund the money immediately after securing a new loan from the same network.

A Promise That Turned Into a Nightmare

Trusting the customer’s assurance, Priscilla transferred the money. But the promised repayment never came. According to her account, the customer became evasive and reluctant to pay back, and soon after, attempted to disappear.

Determined to recover the funds, Priscilla launched her own search. She eventually traced the suspect to another MoMo vendor in the area, where he was reportedly attempting to pull off the same scheme. With the help of bystanders, she accosted him and handed him over to the police.

The Devastating Discovery

When authorities examined the suspect’s phone, a grim picture emerged. The GHC 12,000 had not been used to clear any loan — it had been staked entirely on sports betting and lost. The man had gambled away someone else’s livelihood in a matter of hours.

A Vendor’s Desperate Plea

The financial fallout has now fallen squarely on Priscilla. Her employer is demanding that she personally repay the full GHC 12,000 — a sum she says she simply cannot afford.

Speaking through her tears, Priscilla appealed to the public for financial support, warning other vendors to be wary of customers making similar requests.

A Growing Epidemic

Priscilla’s ordeal is far from isolated. Mobile money fraud has become a rampant issue in Ghana, with fraudsters devising increasingly sophisticated means to scam both vendors and users. The Bank of Ghana reported 13,451 financial fraud cases in 2023, with 2,700 — approximately 20% — involving mobile money. MoMo fraud losses exceeded GHC 10 million in 2022 alone.

History Repeating Itself

Earlier this year, a similar case made headlines when a young man identified as Samuel Atapika went on the run after allegedly defrauding a MoMo vendor of GHC 13,000 and staking the funds on a betting app known as Aviator. That incident, also reported by Crime Check News, highlighted the dangerous intersection of mobile money access and gambling addiction.

The Question That Remains

As Priscilla struggles to find a way out of her predicament, one question lingers: Why take such a colossal risk with money that is not yours — especially when you know you are dealing with someone else’s livelihood?

For now, the suspect remains in police custody, and Priscilla waits — hoping for public support and praying that her employer will show mercy. But the broader lesson for Ghana’s mobile money ecosystem is clear: trust, however valuable, is no substitute for caution.