Police rescue seven trafficked foreign nationals in Assin Fosu

Seven foreign nationals who were trafficked into Ghana under the guise of lucrative employment opportunities have been rescued by the Central North Regional Police Command in a coordinated operation on Sunday, June 1, 2025.

The victims, comprising two women and five men from Mali, Burkina Faso, La Côte d’Ivoire, and Togo—were discovered confined in a residential property at Pump-Side, a suburb of Assin Fosu in the Central Region. Their rescue was made possible following a credible tip-off, which also led to the arrest of eight suspects.

Among the arrested was the alleged ringleader, 35-year-old Zongo Jeon-Baptiste, a Burkinabe national who is believed to have orchestrated the trafficking scheme. He is currently in police custody and faces charges of human trafficking and defrauding by false pretences.

According to the Regional Police Commander, preliminary investigations revealed that the victims were deceived with fraudulent job offers purportedly linked to QNET, an international digital marketing company. Upon arrival in Ghana, however, they were held under suspicious and restrictive conditions.

The victims have since been released from confinement and are assisting police with ongoing investigations aimed at dismantling the trafficking network.

Authorities say the operation reflects a growing pattern in the region, where vulnerable individuals from West African countries are lured with enticing employment promises, only to be exploited—often in cyber fraud schemes or forced labour.

This latest bust follows a series of similar anti-trafficking operations in Ghana, with law enforcement increasingly targeting syndicates involved in cross-border human exploitation. The Central North Police Command reaffirmed its commitment to intensifying surveillance and enforcement efforts to stamp out human trafficking in the region.