The Ghana Gold Board (GGB) has confirmed the arrest of 25 individuals suspected of engaging in illegal gold trading and smuggling within the country.
According to the Board, the arrests followed weeks of coordinated intelligence and surveillance aimed at clamping down on unlicensed gold operations.
The suspects, comprising both Ghanaian and foreign nationals, were apprehended in two separate operations conducted at Dome Pillar 2 and Achimota-Akweteman in Accra on November 5 and 6, 2025.
At a press briefing in Accra on Monday, November 10, 2025, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of GGB, Richard Nunekpeku, disclosed that the first operation led to the arrest of five individuals—four Indians and one Ghanaian—at a jewellery shop in Dome Pillar 2.
The suspects are alleged to have been fabricating and trading gold without authorization, in violation of Section 23(1) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), and Sections 26(3) and (5) of the Gold Board Act, 2025 (Act 1140).
Items recovered during the operation included 26 GRA moissante emerald stones, 19 rings suspected to be gold, six pieces of 10-karat yellowish metal, several mobile phones, a CCTV decoder, and a locked metallic safe.
In a separate operation at Legend Precious Metals in Achimota-Akweteman, 20 more suspects were arrested for similar offences involving unlicensed gold trading, smuggling, and assaying.
Those arrested include both local and foreign nationals from Belarus, the United Kingdom, the United States, Argentina, Sweden, and Russia.
Authorities recovered eight gold bars, $112,500 in cash, GH₵64,014, and several documents, including sales agreements, assay reports, and receipts. Some suspects were also found with unlicensed firearms, which have since been confiscated.
The Ghana Gold Board reaffirmed its commitment to enforcing strict compliance within the gold sector and urged the public to verify the status of licensed dealers through its official website.
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