Customs Officer, 2 Others Allegedly Steal Gold Bars Valued At Over $4.3 Million At Kotoka Airport

• There has been a case of stolen gold bars at the Kotoka International Airport involving a customs officer and two businessmen
• The gold bars weighed to be 75 kilograms and estimated to cost over $4.3 million was in Ghana in transit to Dubai
• Police say the three accused persons conspired to steal the gold bars purchased from Sierra Leone by two UAE citizens and one Australian citizen

Police are seriously looking into a case in which a customs officer and two businessmen allegedly conspired to steal a huge quantity of gold bars at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA).

The gold bars, valued at $4,303,234, are said to belong to GND Global Trading LLC and arrived in Ghana in transit from Sierra Leone to Dubai.

Already, an Accra Circuit Court has remanded the customs officer, identified as Emmanuel Dwamena, 37, as well as Addul Karim Lakoh, 38, and 48-year-old Seth Dzamesi, both businessmen over the alleged theft.

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Investigators say they have evidence that the three conspired to steal the 75 kilograms of gold bars. One more suspect, identified as George Asamoah is said to be on the run.

How the huge gold bars were stolen

Ghana News Agency (GNA), a state-owned news wire, reports that police have said the missing gold bars belong to two citizens from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and one Australian, the owners of GND Global Trading LLC.

The UAE citizens have been identified in a report by GNA as follows:

Abdallah Ali, and

Farhad Sami.

The Australian citizen has been identified as Zev Volf.

The three complainants purchased the gold bars from Sierra Leone with the help of one of the suspects on remand, Lakoh, who is a Sierra Leonian.

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State prosecutor, DSP Evans Kesse, explained in court that Lakoh promised the two Arabs and Australian after they had purchased the gold that he can help them to transport the precious metal from Sierra Leone through Ghana to Dubai.

The three owners of the gold bars agreed and on March 16, 2023, they arrived at the Kotoka International Airport with Lakoh onboard Sky Airline with their personal belongings and the 75 kilos of gold bars.

However, when they landed at the airport in Ghana, Lakoh managed to come out from the arrival hall and called Asamoah to come to pick them up.

Asamoah reportedly arrived at the airport in a black Range Rover to pick Lakoh out of the arrival hall to meet Dzamesi.

However, the police told the court that Lakoh met Dzamesi who had been driving customs branded Toyota Hilux Pickup with registration number GX who then allegedly stole the bag containing the 75kg of the gold bars and kept it in the Toyota pickup.

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All this while, the owners of the gold bars were at the transit arrival hall.

Police said an Immigration officer moved the three owners of the gold bars from the transit arrival hall and introduced them to the now-missing Dwamena to meet Dzamesi.

Police told the court that the 75 kilograms of gold bars, which were at the time in a big bad, were sent to Dzemesi's office, where he forced the complainants out of his office after taking the gold.

The report said Dzemesi posed as a customs officer when he approached the three foreigners.

Dwamena drove the owners of the gold back to the Airport and abandoned them there and absconded.

Later, Lakoh attempted to run away, but he was arrested and handed over to the Airport Police for investigation.

Ghana cancels filling of embarkation and disembarkation forms at Kotoka

Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh has reported in a separate story that travellers arriving at the Kotoka International Airport will no longer be required to fill out embarkation and disembarkation forms.

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Instead, they will only provide information such as their addresses in Ghana and abroad; telephone numbers; flight details (airline and flight number); the purpose of the visit and their profession.

In a statement issued on March 20, the Ghana Immigration Service said the new move is part of the national digitalisation agenda.

Source: YEN.com.gh