NACOC: No Presidential escort among suspects in €225m French cocaine case
The Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) says its preliminary checks into the backgrounds of suspects arrested in connection with the €225 million cocaine seizure in France have not established that any of them is a presidential escort.
The clarification follows allegations by New Tafo Member of Parliament Vincent Ekow Assafuah that one of the suspects, Musah Atta, was allegedly part of the security detail assigned to President John Dramani Mahama and Vice President.
In a Facebook post on Friday, September 18, Mr Assafuah questioned how an individual allegedly linked to the presidential security detail could become involved in a cocaine trafficking case of such magnitude.
However, NACOC Deputy Director-General Alexander Twum-Barimah said the Commission’s checks had not identified any of the suspects in its custody as a presidential bodyguard.
Speaking on TV3’s Hot Issues on Sunday, September 20, he said NACOC had conducted background checks on all the suspects currently in its custody and had found no evidence that any of them served as a presidential escort.
Mr Twum-Barimah said the Commission could not independently verify Mr Assafuah’s claim about Musah Atta without additional information regarding the suspect’s alleged security role.
He said any further details about Atta’s purported position would assist investigators in assessing the claim.
Mr Twum-Barimah also disputed the suggestion that one individual could simultaneously serve as a close protection officer for both the President and Vice President.
Drawing on his own training in presidential protection, he explained that established security arrangements require separate personnel and teams to provide close protection for the two principals.
He maintained that an officer would not ordinarily be assigned to perform close-escort duties for both the President and Vice President at the same time.
The development comes after major cocaine seizures linked to Ghana, including the confiscation of nearly 3.9 tonnes of cocaine by French customs authorities from a container reportedly shipped from Ghana.
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