CID sets up task force to trace stolen luxury vehicles cleared at Ghana’s ports

The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service has formed a specialised task force to investigate and seize high-end vehicles reported stolen abroad but cleared through Ghana’s ports.

This was announced during a joint press conference in Accra on Monday, August 4, 2025, by the Director-General of the CID, Commissioner of Police (COP) Lydia Yaako Donkor.

According to COP Donkor, between January and July 2025, the task force impounded six luxury vehicles stolen from Canada. These included four Toyota Tundras, one Toyota RAV4, and one Range Rover.

She said investigations were ongoing to determine how the vehicles were smuggled into Ghana. Some suspects, she explained, failed to complete rental agreements abroad, cutting off contact with the rental firms before shipping the vehicles.

Others used fake or stolen credit card details to acquire the vehicles through hire-purchase schemes, then disabled their tracking systems before exporting them.

COP Donkor stressed that paying customs duties in Ghana does not make a stolen vehicle legal.

She said the task force’s operations were part of wider efforts to strengthen security and stop the illegal importation of stolen goods.

She added that the CID, working with Interpol Ghana, had recovered 43 stolen luxury vehicles between January and July this year. Eighteen of the vehicles have been marked for repatriation, with eight already returned to their countries of origin. The remaining ten are awaiting transfer.

COP Donkor urged vehicle importers to conduct thorough checks before bringing in vehicles from abroad. She warned that those who fail to do so risk losing their property and facing legal consequences.

The CID said the task force will continue to carry out intelligence-led operations and work with international agencies to tackle cross-border vehicle crime and protect Ghana’s ports.