Nigerian arrested for attempting to acquire a Ghanaian passport fraudulently

The Tema Regional Immigration Command has apprehended a Nigerian national for attempting to acquire a Ghanaian passport at the Passport Application Centre (PAC), Tema.

The Nigerian, 29-year-old Obina Ukah, was arrested during the vetting of his application by Immigration Officers and was subsequently referred to the Tema Regional Command for further investigations.

This was made known to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on Friday in a press release signed by DSI Mercy Budu, Regional Public Affairs Officer, Tema Regional Command.

According to the release, Mr. Ukah had entered Ghana illegally through the Aflao border and had been working at the Volta Hotel in Akosombo, for six months as an engineer without a valid work/residence permit.

Mr. Ukah then decided to acquire a Ghanaian passport and was assisted by a 53-year-old Ghanaian national, whose name has been withheld for security reasons. His Ghanaian accomplice was to assist him acquire a Ghanaian birth certificate with false personal information at a fee of 200 Ghana cedis to aid in the processing of the passport.

The two suspects had been referred to the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) National Headquarters for further investigations.

The GIS cautioned all foreign nationals in Ghana, especially those from the ECOWAS sub-region, to desist from attempting to acquire a Ghanaian passport by false pretence, which was a serious offence under the laws of the country.