Gendarmes from the Faidherbe Research Brigade (BR) have arrested an accountant who had forged a fake employment certificate to defraud a bank. The case reveals a much broader fraud scheme.

KCY Kotchoffa, born in Benin, worked as an accountant for Mathidy SARL. He resides in Ouest-Foire. He was arrested for forgery and use of forged documents, as well as attempted fraud.

The case began when Kerikan Charles applied for a loan from the CBAO (West African Banking Company). As part of the processing of his application, the bank requested a work certificate. The problem was that the accountant was only linked to Mathidy SARL by a fixed-term contract (CDD). As a result, he was not entitled to a permanent work certificate that could have reassured the bank about the stability of his income.

Faced with his employer's refusal to provide him with the requested certificate, Kerikan Charles created a fake employment certificate on which he fraudulently affixed the company's signature and stamp. He believed he could thus elude the CBAO's vigilance and obtain the coveted loan.

The deception was reportedly discovered by the director of Mathidy SARL during a routine internal audit. She immediately filed a complaint with the relevant authorities.

Arrested by the Faidherbe Regional Court, Kerikan Charles admitted the charges. He told investigators that he had created the fake document to obtain a loan from the CBAO, according to Seneweb sources close to the prosecution.

But the case doesn't end there. The investigations revealed far more worrying gray areas in the company's accounting management. The accountant is also suspected of several embezzlements, including sums of money that were allegedly not paid into the bank and the falsification of Mathidy SARL's accounting journals. These suspicions suggest organized fraud over a prolonged period, with systematic embezzlements camouflaged by accounting manipulations.

At the end of the investigation, the suspect was brought before the public prosecutor's office this Thursday.