Raymond Archer
The activities of an international cryptocurrency criminal enterprise that has duped several Ghanaians in millions has been disrupted by the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), recovering over $15 million in the process, the Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine has revealed.
According to him, the criminal network comprising mostly of Chinese and Malaysians, targeted both Ghanaian and British citizens using e-commerce websites and online fraudulent investments schemes.
“The gang established a Ghanaian company in 2019 to front their criminal enterprise,” he stated, pointing out that “according to official records obtained by the EOCO, the company’s principal business was described as “general trading and online trading and marketing.”
Speaking at the government accountability series at the Presidency yesterday, Dr. Ayine indicated that using sophisticated tools used to analyse cryptocurrency transactions on a blockchain, EOCO identified the transfer of funds into the cryptocurrency wallet linked to the criminal enterprise.
He said information obtained by EOCO showed that the owner of the crypto wallet, a Chinese national, worked in Ghana under a residence permit and also worked for the company which was used to defraud several Ghanaians and British citizens.
“This Chinese individual was also named by Ghanaian victims as the person who directly received funds from them in respect of the fraudulent investment,” he pointed out.
Dr. Ayine further noted that having connected the dots, EOCO managed to freeze the tainted wallets, forcing the suspects to send emissaries to inquire why their wallets had been frozen.
“EOCO informed the suspects about the reasons for freezing the wallets and invited them to come to Ghana for further investigation. In the course of the investigations, the company which was used to defraud Ghanaians and British victims was closed down and its operations disappeared into thin air,” he revealed.
Dr. Ayine said EOCO also became aware that the criminal scheme which was operated and promoted by Chinese and Malaysian nationals was a global operation that targeted victims of developing countries in Africa.
EOCO, therefore, sought assistance from the National Crime Agency (NCA)-UK and other entities to facilitate the transfer of the tainted virtual assets from all the four seized crypto wallets that received the virtual currency transfers from the criminal cluster.
EOCO eventually was successful in using Ghanaian laws to freeze and recover virtual assets hidden in foreign jurisdictions by converting the said crypto assets of the criminal enterprise which amounted to $15,191,730.13.
Dr. Ayine indicated that EOCO, will, in the coming days, enter into the second phase of the case which will involve screening both Ghanaian and British victims for restitution.
He commended the Executive Director of EOCO, Raymond Archer and his team for the operation, while thanking international partners “whose relentless support and guidance has been instrumental in the success of this case.”
He also extended gratitude to Ghana’s Judiciary for their pioneering role in studying and guiding the state through the complex case “which is going to set a new benchmark for international law enforcement, especially on the continent of Africa in respect of how to apply local laws to target virtual assets in foreign jurisdictions.”
Target Exceeded
Meanwhile, Dr. Ayine has revealed that EOCO has exceeded its 2025 target which was set at GH¢ 200,000, by recovering about GH¢337,476,119.59, a difference of GH¢133,476,119.59.
He disclosed that this is the highest recovery in the history of the agency, pointing out that it represents completed cases of both direct and indirect recoveries.
“The success story of the EOCO shows that institutions matter but institutional leadership is crucial to the success of the institutions we create as a country. The current leadership of the EOCO shows that when leadership bestows integrity, institutions perform their mandated functions optimally,” he added.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak