Nine public officers, including five officials of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), have been arrested and placed under Police inquiry bail following the interception of a container loaded with undeclared Tramadol at the Tema Port.
The seizure involved 299 cartons containing 146,932,000 tablets of Tramadol Hydrochloride in 250mg and 225mg doses, weighing an estimated 34,847.2 kilogrammes.
Those arrested 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 Ghana Standards Authority.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, March 3, the GRA said the seizure was intelligence-led.
It said the operation was triggered by intelligence received by the Preventive wing of the Customs Division, leading to the detention of the container, numbered TGHU6228715 and cleared under Bill of Entry 40226151187, on February 26, 2026.
The container was subsequently transferred to a Customs-controlled area in Tema for further examination.
The shipment, which originated from the United Arab Emirates, had been declared as containing household items, including water kettles, kitchen blenders, pressing irons, energy-saving bulbs and polypropylene material.
However, a joint re-examination conducted by Customs officers and the Central Revenue Monitoring Team on March 1, 2026 uncovered large quantities of concealed and undeclared Tramadol tablets hidden within the container, in addition to some of the declared items.
The importer and declarant have been handed over to the Police to assist in ongoing investigations, while the seized consignment remains under Customs control.
The GRA reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding national security, protecting public health and preserving the integrity of Ghana’s revenue and border management systems.
