Ghana Embassy in US: Forensic Audit Finds Blank Biometric Passports in IT Officer's Office

• Auditors recovered 18 passport booklets and 59 visa stickers from the office of Ghana Embassy Washington IT officer Fred Kwarteng
• A forensic examination found that 7 of the 15 passport booklets tested had security defects, including a missing polycarbonate overlay
• The desktop computer assigned to Kwarteng was found stripped of its internal SSD, raising concerns that digital records had been removed before the audit

A forensic audit of Ghana's Embassy in Washington, DC has uncovered blank biometric passport booklets, active passport materials and visa stickers inside the office of the Mission's IT officer, Fred Kwarteng, alongside evidence suggesting that digital records may have been deliberately removed before inspectors arrived.

The special audit, which covered the period January 2017 to June 2025, was conducted by the Auditor-General.

Investigators found 18 passport booklets in Kwarteng's office: four were blank biometric booklets, one contained Kwarteng's own photograph, and the remaining booklets could not be accounted for.

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Fifty-nine used and unused visa stickers were also recovered — materials that require strict custody and controlled handling under official procedures.

The discovery was not the first indication of problems at the Mission.

Pledge Against Corruption reported that a May 2021 internal audit had already flagged weaknesses in passport stock management at the Embassy, noting discrepancies between serial numbers recorded by Ridge PAC, Ghana's biometric passport production partner, and those logged by Embassy staff.

Although the total volumes supplied and recorded matched, the difference in serial numbers raised concerns about possible manipulation.

That review also found that the Embassy held excess stocks of biometric passport booklets, increasing the risk of theft or misuse.

It recommended stronger inventory controls, but the Auditor-General's audit found that those recommendations had not been implemented.

Management was also unable to explain how blank passport booklets came to be in Kwarteng's personal custody.

A source who worked at the Embassy told Pledge Against Corruption that the auditors' conclusion may be premature, explaining that Kwarteng regularly liaised with the printers of Ghana's passport booklets and that printing errors had previously caused serial number discrepancies.

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Booklets affected by duplicated serial numbers could no longer be used and may still have remained in his office.

Security Defects and a Stripped Computer

Forensic analysis of 15 empty passport booklets retrieved during the investigation confirmed they were genuine Ghana passport stock, carrying standard security features including Supreme Court watermarks, UV-responsive Parliament House imagery, Coat of Arms markings, the Fawohodie symbol and micro-text reading "Republic of Ghana."

However, seven of the 15 booklets showed security deficiencies on their biodata pages, including the absence of polycarbonate overlay, missing thermochromic print, missing Optical Variable Ink, irregular Machine-Readable Zone alignment and cancellation markings.

Beyond the passport materials, auditors found that the desktop computer assigned to Kwarteng had been stripped of its internal Solid-State Drive, the component that stores the operating system, user files, emails and system logs.

Six used SATA hard drives, Dell Latitude, MacBook Pro and Lenovo ThinkPad laptops, an iPad, Samsung and iPhone mobile devices, and RAM modules were also recovered from the office.

The audit report described the workspace as showing "signs of disruption and disorder consistent with a hurried removal of equipment and documents," with drawers open, documents scattered, and computer components dismantled. It stated that the removal of the SSD "raises a reasonable suspicion that the storage device was intentionally removed to prevent auditors from examining digital records that could provide evidence of unauthorised activities."

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The report further noted that Kwarteng directed web traffic from the Embassy's official website to a private company through which he provided visa and passport application support services, adding weight to the auditors' assessment that the materials found in his office "presuppose" possible fraudulent issuance of travel documents outside official channels.

Staff members at a Ghanaian diplomatic mission are under mounting scrutiny after investigative findings alleged they systematically extorted $19.4 million from visa and consular applicants and distributed the funds among themselves.

Ablakwa says EOCO will question Alima Mahama

Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa had accused former Ghana Ambassador to the US, Hajia Alima Mahama, of enabling corruption.

Ablakwa alleged that Alima Mahama had attempted to undermine the ministry’s investigations and downplay the magnitude of the corruption uncovered.

The Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) had taken up the case, with the former ambassador set to be held accountable for her actions.

Source: YEN.com.gh