The Wells Fargo employee under investigation for fraud is an “upstanding member of the community,” his attorney said.
Lawrence Zimmerman, Adadevoh’s attorney, said his client, Kwasi Adadevoh is a college graduate, smart and has never been in trouble in his life.
“He comes from a good family. He’s smart, done positive things in the community—so he’s terrified right now that he’s being charged with a crime,” he said. “He’s a person of good character who’s never been in trouble before.”
Police said they caught Adadevoh, a Wells Fargo employee, in the act using customer information from several accounts for possible fraudulent activity, according to a release.
An undercover narcotics agent for the Marietta Police Department said he witnessed a suspicious male, wearing surgical gloves and mask and a hooded sweatshirt, approach the Wells Fargo ATM located at 602 Roswell St, on Sept. 28, around 11:30 p.m.
Adadevoh, 24, of Marietta, appeared to make quick a transaction and run back to a vehicle, which was parked across the street, the agent said.
Another officer in a marked cruiser made a traffic stop once Adadevoh pulled away. He inquired where he was coming from and the suspect pointed to the Wells Fargo ATM and said he was making a withdrawal. When the officer asked him about the hoodie and surgical get-up, he said the mask was for pollen and the hoodie was because he was cold—but never answered why he was wearing gloves. It was 75 degrees, police noted in their report.
Adadevoh was the only person inside of the vehicle and had several bank documents in the passenger seat, according police.
Investigation report stated that police requested Adadevoh to get out of his vehicle and asked what he was doing. He told the officer that he was making a deposit for someone else, but couldn’t recall the name on the check that he allegedly had just deposited.
The officer made the conclusion, at that time, that there was likely some sort of fraud occurring. When he asked Adadevoh for permission to search his vehicle, he said no. However, the undercover agent, also on the scene, saw what he believed was marijuana residue inside the vehicle.
Police deployed K-9 Atos, who alerted them to the trunk where they recovered approximately 20 grams of marijuana, a bag of amphetamine pills, two digital scales and a pill bottle in the center console containing half of a Xanax bar and another two amphetamine pills in it, according to the incident report.
The search also produced paperwork showing that the suspect was likely involved in some type of fraudulent activity, as well as paperwork indicating that he was a Wells Fargo employee.
After collecting the paperwork, officers arrested Adadevoh. He was booked at Cobb County Adult Detention Center. The narcotics were taken in for evidence.
He was charged with possession of marijuana, possession of amphetamines, drugs not in original container, possession of controlled substance within 1,000 feet of school.
Police contacted Wells Fargo, who confirmed Adadevoh’s employment. The documents obtained from Adadevoh’s car were handed over to the company’s investigative team for further review to determine whether or not fraud took place and if so, what appropriate criminal charges should be filed.
Zimmerman would not comment about the specifics regarding the drug charges with Marietta Police nor the possible fraud charges with Wells Fargo. But he did say, he’s confident in his client’s innocence.
“I’m confident that there are no issues with Wells Fargo and any of the other customers. In fact, I’m a Wells Fargo customer myself and I have no concerns,” Zimmerman said. “Whatever these allegations are, true or false, I happen to believe my client. I don’t think that anyone else is at risk.”
The Marietta Police took no further action against Adadevoh in the fraud investigation. A sheriff's office spokesman told the Associated Press that Adadevoh was released from the Cobb County Adult Detention Center on Sept. 29, on a $8,000 bond.
Wells Fargo released this statement:
“Customers can rest assured that they are protected against fraudulent charges on their account. If any customer would like to discuss his or her account details, the security measures we use and the precautions they can take, we invite them to visit us in a local branch, or call us at the number on their statement."
Police continue to urge the community to monitor their bank accounts daily to help ensure there’s no fraudulent activity.
