Assin Fosu, located in the Central region, has been identified as a significant hub for serious organized crimes in Ghana.
The Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) has noted that criminal groups in the area operate with a well-established leadership pattern.
Leo Anthony Siamah, Deputy Head of Legal and Prosecution at EOCO, highlighted that these criminal groups primarily focus on two areas of crime: human trafficking and bank fraud.
“They have a more structured look. They have about three or four layers in terms of leadership and hierarchy where there is a reporting direction in terms of flowing from the bottom to the top and there is control,” he said.
Mr. Siamah acknowledged that a major challenge in combating these criminal groups is their ties to influential individuals, including politicians.
“So you realize that, we bust a ring, we are conducting investigation and certain caliber of persons show up. We are talking about people who claim I’m from here, I’m from there.
“When I say I’m from here, we are talking about maybe politicians, I have this politician’s number. I have this person’s number. I have this person’s contact. And then you will realize that they try to create a connection as to why he should have that person’s contact. These are some of the problems we are facing,” he said.
In addition to their links to influential figures, the Deputy Head of Legal and Prosecution at EOCO highlighted that the criminal groups have begun utilizing cryptocurrency to launder money into the country.
He expressed concern that some Ghanaians are involved in cryptocurrency transactions, leading to various issues.
“If you are aware too, there is this Bank of Ghana directive that says that anyone or anybody entering through our entry points in the country should declare any amount in excess of ten thousand dollars for instance, that used to be very easy to enforce .”
“If you are looking at the cryptocurrency problem where somebody has laundered money in terms of huge amounts of money in his wallet, how are we able to identify what he is holding?, he stressed.