Ghana’s Mission in Washington issued Amoateng’s fake passport

A former Director of Passport Odoi Anim says ex-convict Eric Amoateng’s fake Ghanaian passport was issued by Ghana’s Mission in Washington in the State of Columbia (DC).

Speaking to Joy New’s Kwakye Afreh Nuamah, he stated that Amoateng’s passport was issued in 2009 and in that year “I was not in Ghana; I wasn’t even Director of Passport – I was a Deputy Ambassador in Holland and came back in 2011.”

Mr. Anim was picked up by the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) Wednesday to help with investigations into allegations that he had knowledge about the forged passport issued to ex-convict Amoateng.

Mr. Amoateng arrived in the country recently, after serving a 10-year jail term in the US for illegal drug trafficking but was arrested by the Ghana Police at the Kotoka Airport for allegedly possessing a fake passport. Checks by authorities indicated the passport belonged to a woman.

He was charged with the crime and subsequently granted a Ghȼ200,000 bail with three sureties, one of which was to be justified by an Accra Circuit Court.

But, according to Mr. Anim, he became a Director of Passport in July, 2012 and could not possibly be involved in such a scam.

“Usually, when someone is released from prison, he travels on Laissez-Passer and so if he came on a passport from the US, obviously the passport was issued by our Mission in Washington.”

He insisted he never signed a passport from the Washington Consulate because he did not work there.

“I don’t work in the Washington Consulate; I never signed passports from there and that particular passport was machine readable so it is very easy to find out the director who signed that passport for Mr. Amoateng.”