(Business in Cameroon) - Empty by half a domestic gas cylinder and redistribute the quantity taken out between three other cylinders each sold at FCfa 6,500. This is what Fidèle Fonkou, owner of a gas depot for 2 years in the suburbs of the Cameroonian capital, was doing. An activity dangerous and risky activity for the populations living close by and detrimental to consumers.

He was arrested on 21 September 2016. “We have been carrying a surveillance on them for a month and two weeks now. When we had the confirmation of their activities, we sent our teams and around 4h (in the morning), we caught them red-handed”, the Departmental Delegate of the Ministry of Commerce for Mfoundi, Jules Obama, told the pro-government daily.

According to the officials in charge of the departmental delegation of Commerce for Mfoundi, this operator used to tampering with domestic gas cylinders will be tried in court, in addition to losing the authorisation which allowed him to operate in the domestic gas distribution sector in Cameroon.

Due to this lucrative activity for shady distributors, Cameroonian housewives have been constantly complaining about gas cylinders which officially weigh 12 Kg, but which are surprisingly often empty after only two or three days of use.

BRM