The Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) has seized precious metals and cash worth GH¢35 million from illegal gold traders this year.
In all, the board has conducted 17 operations across four regions in the country.
They are Central, Western, Ashanti and Eastern.
Just this week, the Anti-Galamsey Task Force of the GoldBod has also arrested 10 foreign nationals involved in illegal gold trading and smuggling from their hideout at Asankragwa, a district in the Western Region.
The operation that was conducted in collaboration with the National Security Secretariat, also led to the seizure of 1.3 kilogrammes of gold worth approximately GH¢1.4 million; over GH¢1.3 million cash, and a significant quantity of casino cards.
The team also confiscated gun cartridges, 12 pump-action guns, calibrating machines and other equipment.
The suspects are Tang Da Jien (41), Wang Chun Ling (41), Wei Dong (41), Li Fu Shou (60), and Wei Sheng Xin (39).
The rest are He Shi Long (57), Wu Cheng Wei (32), Li Ren Neng (44), Fan Zhen Shang (46) and Zheng Xi Chuang (54).
The Managing Director (MD) of GoldBod, Sammy Gyamfi, made this known at a press conference in Accra yesterday. It was jointly organised by the board and National Security.
No deportation
Mr Gyamfi said foreign illegal gold traders would no longer be deported.
“Now, the grace period is over. From here on, anyone caught will face the full rigours of the law,” he said.
In line with that, the suspects who are currently in custody will be arraigned today. When convicted, they would face between five and 25 years’ imprisonment, a fine or both.
Prohibition
Mr Gyamfi said the new gold trading regime prohibited foreigners from trading in gold in the country and, therefore, described individuals involved in illegal gold dealings as “enemies of the state”.
“They deprive our people of much-needed foreign exchange, which is essential for the stability of our currency and for national development,” he said, adding that although a grace period was given them to exit the market, some chose to defy the law, which had now caught up with them.
The MD said most of the suspects were allegedly operating in private residences and hotels, which they had turned into illegal gold depots.
He said intelligence reports revealed that they had been smuggling gold, using sophisticated laundering schemes, including the conversion of cash into casino cards stored in massive safes.
Mr Gyamfi said the team discovered detailed gold trading records written in Chinese, documenting weights, purity, and pricing, saying, “This is not speculation, it’s a criminal enterprise.”
He said the suspects had converted their money into cards, which were stored in two huge safes.
The MD of GoldBod said investigations were underway to uncover local collaborators, sponsors of the smuggling network and whether the guns had been duly registered.
He said the team had retrieved numerous gold trading records, including receipts written in Chinese, which documented the gold purchases.
Projects
Mr Gyamfi further said that the confiscated assets would be channelled into developmental projects in mining communities, including the provision of potable water systems, schools and health infrastructure, in accordance with the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025 (Act 1142).
“It must be validated by a Tribunal before it can be confiscated. We intend to follow this process to the letter.
We are not releasing a single gramme of gold or a single cedi of this money,” he said.
Mr Gyamfi said the board was committed to full transparency and that all the seized gold and cash, which had been counted in the presence of the suspects, were secured in the vaults of the National Security Secretariat.
“No one, and I repeat, no one, can call me to release even a gramme of gold or a cedi of the money,” he said.