The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has uncovered what it describes as widespread irregularities in an attempted diversion of 18 transit trucks, including false trade documents, wrong cargo descriptions and concerns over the identity of the declared consignee.
The trucks were intercepted in February 2026 along the Kpone barrier towards the motorway by Customs officers and National Security officials. They had been declared as transit cargo moving from Togo through Ghana to Niger, but investigations later found that the shipment was linked to companies in Côte d’Ivoire.
The GRA said documents obtained from Togolese Customs showed the cargo originated from Malaysia and Indonesia, was discharged at the Port of Lomé, and was consigned to two companies in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, rather than Niger as declared in Ghana.
The investigation also found significant differences between the declared and actual contents of the trucks. Inspectors discovered 39,256 jerrycans of vegetable cooking oil instead of the 35,246 declared, leaving 4,010 units undeclared. A product listed as tomato paste was also found to be tomato flavour seasoning.
The Authority further said the cooking oil had been placed under an incorrect tariff classification, reducing the amount of tax guarantee required for the transit cargo.
The GRA added that checks with the Nigerien Chamber of Commerce could not confirm the identity of the declared consignee, Adamou Moumouni, or verify that the Taxpayer Identification Number used for the transaction belonged to him.
The investigation also identified 44 previous transit declarations linked to the same consignee over the past two years, with some showing similar irregular exit patterns.
Four Customs officers involved in processing the consignment have been interdicted as the Authority continues its internal disciplinary process.
The GRA said the seized goods have been confiscated and allocated to the National School Feeding Programme following a directive from the Ministry of Finance.
“We affirm the confiscation of the consignment as we announced at the time of investigation.”
The Authority said it would continue to tighten controls at Ghana’s borders to prevent illicit trade and protect government revenue.
“We wish to assure the trading public and the good people of Ghana that the GRA through the Customs division is always alert and has increased compliance especially at our borders for effective revenue mobilization and prevention of illicit trade.”
