Connect with us

Entertainment

I’m Guilty! Hajia4Reall Tells US Court

Published

on

Social media influencer, Mona Faiz Montrage, widely known as Hajia4Reall, has pleaded guilty in a $2 million romance scam case, according to the United States Attorney’s office website.

The plea follows her reported extradition to the United States from the United Kingdom in May 2023 over her alleged involvement in a scam targeting older, single Americans.

Hajia4Reall admitted to one count of conspiracy to receive stolen money, a charge that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

As part of the plea agreement, she also agreed to forfeit $2,164,758.41 and make restitution in the same amount. U.S. District Judge, Paul A. Crotty, is scheduled to sentence her at a later date.

The guilty plea was announced by the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Damian Williams, who emphasised the serious consequences faced by individuals involved in romance scams. Williams highlighted the harm inflicted on vulnerable, elderly victims who were deceived into believing false romantic connections online.

Background information provided by prosecutors revealed that Hajia4Reall was a member of a criminal enterprise based in Ghana that committed a series of frauds against individuals and businesses in the United States.

The enterprise conducted romance scams by deceiving victims into believing they were in romantic relationships with fake identities, convincing them to transfer money to accounts controlled by the enterprise members.

Initially pleading not guilty to all charges in May 2023, Hajia4Reall was released on bail. However, in a now-deleted Instagram post on June 26, 2023, she reiterated her innocence, expressing gratitude for the support of her fans and expressing confidence in eventual vindication.

In a statement to address her guilty plea shared on her Instagram on February 21, 2024, Hajia4Reall explained that she voluntarily flew from Heathrow to JFK in May 2023 to face the criminal case in the Southern District of New York.

The statement reportedly written by her legal team asserted that her plea does not define her as a person and is not reflective of the individual she is today.

She expressed gratitude for the support of her fans, family, and legal representatives throughout the process.

“In May 2023, Ms. Montrage voluntarily boarded the flight from Heathrow to JFK to face the criminal case in the Southern District of New York.

“At that time, she took the first step to closing that chapter of her life. Today, she took responsibility for her bank accounts being used to receive funds from illicit conducts that ended in 2019. Ms. Montrage’s plea does not define her as a person and is not reflective of the individual she is today.

“Ms. Montrage is thankful for the support of her fans, family, and legal team throughout this process,” the statement said.

Entertainment

Peter Okoye reacts to alleged song ownership by twin brother

Published

on

Iconic Nigerian singer Peter Okoye has responded to allegations made by his twin brother Paul over ownership of a new song “Winning.”

Peter Okoye shared a detailed account of the song’s creation, clarifying his role and collaboration with others, including Ghanaian producer Vampire and songwriter Calypso.

He questioned Paul’s claims, citing their agreed-upon creative process and Paul’s removal of his (Peter’s) vocals from joint songs.

Peter also addressed his temporary break from music, stating he took time to recharge before returning with “Winning.”

He wrote on X: “If you have followed my journey as a solo artiste and even before, you will notice that I give people their due credit where necessary as I am a firm believer in teamwork; I know my strengths, where I need assistance or guidance I am not afraid to ask or work with those who are strong in the areas I am not; this includes the process of creating music, executing concepts and ideas etc. I will always credit people for their contributions to my projects.

“Sometime in June 2022, I stumbled upon a producer based in Ghana named Vampire, and my team and I also personally reached out to him via DM, that I liked his work and was interested in working with him. Before getting him to Lagos, I presented the idea of this producer to my twin brother and our team, getting their buy-in before I got him flight tickets and flew him to Lagos.“

It was when he got into Lagos I asked if he would be open to working on P-SQUARE’s next album project, that the 5 songs I had penned down from my end to be presented to our A&R team for the album project were: JAIYE, WINNING, FIND SOMEBODY, LEGENDARY, and ATTENTION, based on tracks he had produced.

“We started with my own 5 songs that needed to be submitted for PSQUARE’s album, which he produced for me: The idea for WINNING came from one of his beats that I discovered. I came up with the idea of changing the chord progression from the original version to what it is today with my own producer Goldswarm who is the co-producer of the song WINNING.

“I had also engaged a songwriter known as CALYPSO who wrote and composed the song WINNING and sent it to me on the beats through a voice note. And we started working on the song. Mind you, he worked on some other songs that were to make the album as well, so my brother was aware of his input to the production as we were all in the studio during this period.

“Then when my twin brother heard the song WINNING, which we had already created the hook/chorus for, he then wanted to start creating a verse. Our agreed-on process for each song presented by us was: arrange the song, leave a verse for the other person, then we both harmonise the chorus and refrain bits together. He wasn’t supposed to until Calypso and I finished it as part of my own song submission to the LEGENDARY ALBUM.

“After that, we finished and shared verses among ourselves. I do not wish to get into details of why the album didn’t see the light of day till date but it takes a different level of psychosis for one to steal what is theirs already; as since the release of this song, I have been labeled and called all sorts online and they have even gone as far as asking for the song to be taken down on various platforms, to what end?

“It was never part of his 5, now 6 (according to him) songs for submission, yet when he felt I was not interested in making music because I chose my sanity over the constant berating and drama that seemed to come up over creative direction in the group.

“If it were his song, why do I have all the music data including initial conversations and picture/video evidence on the above-mentioned titles/songs? Which of his songs do I have its data in my possession in that case? All because he was hoping for me to quit music. Even when I learnt that he had removed my vocals on songs we did together, suggesting that he sing the entire songs including the ones that he planned to present for the album without my input (a very absurd idea as we both make up the duo not just the one), but we both perform them on stage, I begun to have a rethink of the entire situation. Let me leave this here.

“Maybe because I was not posting anything music-related on my social media page for over 4 months. He believes I have lost interest in music. I took a breather to get my mind and head in the right space and when that was done, my epiphany was WINNING!”.

Continue Reading

Entertainment

DNA test more important than naming ceremony- Don Jazzy

Published

on

producer and executive, Don Jazzy, has urged men to prioritise the paternity of their children, stating that it is more important than a naming ceremony.

On his Instagram story, Don Jazzy emphasised: “DNA test is more important than naming ceremony.”

His statement comes amid ongoing debates about the necessity of DNA tests, fuelled by recent high-profile cases of paternity fraud.

Don Jazzy known in real life as Michael Collins Ajereh is the founder of Mavin Records – through which he has signed artistes including D’Prince, Rema, and Ayra Starr.

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Pastor Love jailed 48 months in hard labour for stealing

Published

on

Pastor Hammond Love, widely known as Pastor Love, has been convicted of theft and sentenced to 48 months in prison with hard labour.

GBC Ghana Online reports that Pastor Love, a former husband of gospel musician Obaapa Christie, was found guilty of the offence after seven years of trial. 

Before he was sentenced, Pastor Love pleaded with the court for mercy, adding that he was willing to pay any fine that would be imposed on him. 

The court presided over by Isaac Addo, took into consideration the fact that the convicted Pastor Love was a first-time offender.

The court held that as a Pastor, he was expected to hold a high level of integrity, especially in matters of trust, and therefore handed him the 48-month jail term as a fair deterrent. 

The facts of the case as presented by ASP Frimpong was that in 2016 one Samuel Amankwah, a resident of the US, shipped a 4×4 vehicle into Ghana and tasked Pastor Love to clear it from the port. 

The convict cleared the said vehicle with his money, after which the complainant told him to sell it for US$50,000 and deduct the amount he paid as duty.

Later, the complainant told Pastor Love to hold on with the sale of the vehicle as he would travel to Ghana and refund his money. 

In April 2017, the complainant arrived in the country and contacted Pastor Love for his vehicle, but he could not produce it despite several demands. 

The complainant complained with the Police and Pastor Love was arrested in May 2017. 

During interrogation, the convicted Pastor Love told the Police that he secured a loan of GH¢40,000 with 20 per cent interest to clear the vehicle and was accruing more interest, so he sold the vehicle at GH¢80,000 without the consent of the owner and paid GH¢70,000 to the loan company.

Meanwhile, Pastor Love was unable to lead the Police to the said loan company to verify the claim and could not also tell who bought the vehicle. 

The Judge said the convict was dishonest to the Court.

Continue Reading

Trending