The Acting Director of Public Affairs at the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC), Francis Opoku Amoah, has said the Commission will make more arrests as investigations continue into the recent drug bust linked to Ghana.
Speaking on The KeyPoints on TV3 on Saturday, September 19, Mr Amoah said the three suspects already in custody are only part of a wider network.
“Ghanaians should expect more arrests in the coming days. We are working to dismantle all drug networks,” he stated.
He assured that NACOC is working with domestic and international partners to ensure Ghana does not become a safe haven, transit point or operational base for international drug trafficking organisations.
Background
On September 7, French Customs at the Port of Dunkirk intercepted a container of plastic waste that had originated from Ghana and was bound for Antwerp, Belgium. The container was found to contain 167 bales of cocaine weighing 3.9 metric tonnes, with an estimated street value of €225 million (about $261 million).
French authorities said the shipment was uncovered after their judicial police had already been targeting the network behind it. France’s National Jurisdiction against Organized Crime has opened an investigation for organized importation of narcotics and criminal association.
The seizure has been linked by Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf and Belgian newspaper HLN to fugitive Dutch drug lord Jos Leijdekkers, also known as “Bolle Jos.” Leijdekkers, 33, is one of Europe’s most wanted fugitives, sentenced in absentia to 24 years in prison in the Netherlands for trafficking nearly seven tonnes of cocaine. He is believed by Dutch authorities to be hiding in Sierra Leone.
Following the bust, NACOC on September 14 announced the arrest of three suspects in Ghana accused of representing and facilitating Leijdekkers’ network in Ghana. The Commission said they had been on its radar and under surveillance for some time.
In the Netherlands, a man from Dordrecht – where the shipment was reportedly destined for a business address – was also arrested on September 4 in connection with the consignment and has been remanded in custody.
NACOC says intelligence indicates that Bolle Jos himself has not entered Ghana, but maintains that his associates were operating from Ghana.
The Commission says investigations are ongoing and more accomplices will be brought to face the law.
