A British woman who lost up to £1 million in romance frauds died in a road crash in Ghana while trying to recover her money, an inquest in Exeter has heard. Janet Fordham, 69, a retired housekeeper from Devon, was cheated of her life savings and home over five years by scammers based in the UK, Germany, the US and Ghana.
Fordham travelled to Ghana after a man named Kofi promised to help retrieve her funds. The relationship evolved into a romance, and she agreed to marry him. On Valentine's Day 2023, Kofi was driving her to meet a family member to discuss the wedding when the car swerved and flipped onto its roof. Fordham, not wearing a seatbelt, suffered fatal head injuries.
Devon and Cornwall Police concluded no third party was involved in the crash. Kofi admitted a driving offence. Senior coroner Philip Spinney noted inconsistencies in the evidence but ruled the death was due to a head injury from the collision. Fordham's family had tried to stop her sending money, but she was deemed of sound mind and could not be prevented.
