Man who duped businessman faces fraud charges

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has uncovered an alleged scheme that gypped a Saipan-based businessman of his $130,000 by promising to double his investments by counterfeiting hundred dollar bills.

The suspect, Andre Didier Tella from the central African nation of Cameroon, is now facing wire fraud charge before the U.S. District Court here after Shi Cheng Ke complained to the police.

Mr. Tella, a 31-year-old tourist from Yuande, Cameroon who arrived on the island last April 4, is also facing a separate charge of theft by deception before the local Superior Court.

He appeared yesterday before District Court Judge Alex R. Munson who set no bail for his release. He was detained by CNMI authorities shortly after midnight last Saturday after his arrest at a bar owned by Mr. Shi.

Judge Munson, however, appointed lawyer Bruce Berline to represent him in his trial and scheduled a preliminary hearing on May 17.

Based on the complaint filed by U.S. Assistant Attorney David T. Wood, Mr. Tella and another suspect, Sylvester Etah, plot the scheme to obtain money from the victim by means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises.

On May 4, he allegedly executed the scheme by means of a wire communication through telephone conversation between Saipan and Hong Kong.

Investigation by FBI special agent Robert A. McDowell also revealed that Mr. Shi and Mr. Tella had a two-week business relationship involving the illegal manufacturing of $300,000 worth of hundred dollar bills.

Mr. Shi knew the suspect then as “Collin,” an African male who told him that such currency can be produced with the use of certain chemicals and paper.

Between April 21 to 27, he met several times with him and Mr. Etah whom he only knew as “Sylvester” for the purpose of demonstrating the manufacturing process and a subsequent agreement to produce $300,000.

The victim then agreed to pay $100,000 in hundred dollar bills which he saw what was thought to be the insertion of the bills into a chemical solution and into a bundle sealed with brown plastic tape.

Last April 29, Mr. Shi received a phone call from Mr. Etah who told him that he was in Korea and that he needed to provide another $30,000 for final preparation and cleansing of the fake bills.

On the evening of May 4, Mr. Tella collected the money at the bar, but Mr. Shi became suspicious that he might be deceived and decided to open the bundle of hundred bills being manufactured.

He found the package containing only of a few genuine bills and the rest was made up of chemical-soaked pieces of black colored paper cut to the size of the U.S. currency, according to the FBI.

Mr. Shi then filed a complaint with the Department of Public Safety, accusing “Collin Macloire” with a felony offense of one count of theft by deception.

When he was investigated by the FBI, he revealed his true identity and defrauding the businessman as per instruction from Mr. Etah who called him up from Korea before his arrest which came just hours before he was scheduled to depart Saipan.

FBI agents recovered $39,000 in U.S. currency, several chemicals and other miscellaneous products during a search at his room in Paradise Hotel over the weekend. They also seized his $8,000 cash and $5,000 gold watch.