Nine public officials, including five officers from Customs, have been apprehended in relation to the interception of a significant shipment of undeclared Tramadol at the Tema Port.
The arrests ensued following the seizure by the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) of a container filled with 299 cartons containing 146,932,000 tablets of Tramadol Hydrochloride (250mg and 225mg), with a total weight of 34,847.2 kilograms.
Those detained and placed on police inquiry bail comprise five Customs officers, one officer from the Narcotics Control Commission, one Port Security officer, one officer from the Energy Commission, and one officer from the Standards Authority.
As per the GRA, the seizure was initiated by intelligence collected by the Preventive Unit of the Customs Division. The container, identified as TGHU6228715 and cleared under Bill of Entry 40226151187, was held on February 26, 2026, and moved to a Customs-controlled area in Tema for further inspection.
The shipment was reported to have originated from the United Arab Emirates and was declared to contain household items such as water kettles, kitchen blenders, pressing irons, energy-saving bulbs, and polypropylene materials.
However, a collaborative re-examination carried out by Customs officers and the Central Revenue Monitoring Team on March 1, 2026, revealed substantial amounts of concealed and undeclared Tramadol tablets hidden within the container.
The importer and declarant have since been referred to the police to aid in ongoing investigations, while the confiscated consignment remains under the control of Customs.
The GRA further stated that it is dedicated to ensuring national security, safeguarding public health, and maintaining the integrity of Ghana’s revenue and border management systems.
