The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has formally charged four public officials with corruption-related offences after an attempt to fraudulently seize ten containers of imported rice at Ghana’s Tema Port.
The accused individuals include Issah Seidu, a staff member of the National Insurance Commission; James Keck Osei, a former Director at the Office of the Vice President; and two senior Customs officers—John Abban and Peter Archibold Hyde.
According to the OSP, the group conspired to claim ownership of rice containers imported from Thailand in 2022 by submitting forged documentation. Among these was a falsified letter purportedly from the Office of the Vice President—an element that initially lent the plot an air of official legitimacy.
Despite the rice containers being lawfully imported with all duties fully paid, the suspects sought to manipulate customs procedures in an attempt to redirect the goods through a fraudulent auction to one of their own.
The attempted hijack was exposed through an internal investigation and upheld by a High Court ruling, which revealed the fraudulent scheme. The accused have now been charged with corruption, conspiracy to defraud, and forgery, and are scheduled to appear in court on Friday, June 27, 2025.
This high-profile case has sparked renewed public discourse on the abuse of public office and procurement fraud in Ghana’s port and customs systems.