The GoldBod CEO, Sammy Gyamfi Esq., has announced the arrest of three individuals in connection with a gold smuggling case.
The three suspects linked to Rafmoh Gold Ltd. & NK Benark Enterprise have been accused of smuggling 100 kilograms of gold, estimated to be worth GH¢100 million, out of the country over the past two months.
It will be recalled that Yesterday, September 17, 2025, the Goldbod issued a wanted notice for two Indian nationals and two Ghanaians over their alleged involvement in illegal gold smuggling and dealing.
The Ghana Gold Board placed a GH¢1 million bounty to be awarded for any credible information which would lead to their arrest.
Sammy Gyamfi, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board, announced that the four are part of a group of seven individuals engaged in the illicit trade.
According to him, three of the seven suspects have been arrested and are in the custody of the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB).
Speaking at a press conference in Accra on Tuesday, September 16, Mr. Gyamfi stated, “We have an arrest warrant for all of them; they are wanted by the police and the GoldBod.
If you have any information about them, you can report to the nearest police station or the GoldBod head office. We have a bounty of GHC1 million on each of them”.
However, the Goldbod issued a fresh update on the GH¢1million bounty placed on four gold-smuggling suspects.
In a statement signed by Prince Kwame Minkah, Media Relations Officer, the GoldBod apologised and issued a correction after mistakenly publishing the wrong photograph of a suspect.
The statement clarified that the image that accompanied the announcement of suspect Mohammed Nandoli Rafeeq, also known as Salaam, was not accurate; however, it added that the details released about the suspect were accurate.
“The picture circulated was actually that of Mr Shamlal Ahamed, Managing Director of International Operations at Malabar Gold and Diamonds,” the statement detailed.
They formally apologise to Mr Ahamed and Malabar Gold and Diamonds for any reputational harm caused.
The Goldbod has since released the correct photograph of Mohammed Nandoli Rafeeq and also called on media houses that shared the wrong image to update their publications.
Meanwhile, in related news, Sammy Gyamfi has revealed plans for Ghana to refine gold before export from October 2025.
According to Sammy Gyamfi, the Goldbod will establish a wholly state-owned and international-standard gold refinery.
He highlighted that the reset agenda of Mahama is aimed at transitioning Ghana from the export of raw doré to refined bullion.
He further argued that it was unacceptable for Ghana, as a leader in gold production on the continent, to be exporting raw gold without significant value addition.
Speaking at the maiden edition of the Mining and Minerals Convention in Accra, Sammy Gyamfi stated, “I am happy to inform you that on that same parcel of land secured by the Gold Board, we will be building a wholly state-owned and international standard gold refinery to further advance the local refining of gold produced in Ghana from the S-Model of Ndoko to Gold.”
“The GoldBod would continue to drive innovation, and in this regard, we have secured a parcel of land at the cargo village of the Kotoka International Airport to build an ultra-mordern ISO certified Assay Laboratory with the aim of changing Ghana’s assay regime from XRF and water density to the golden standard of assay – fire assay, for all gold produced in and/or exported from Ghana”.
Sammy Gyamfi added, “As part of the reset agenda of the Mahama-led administration, the GoldBod in conjunction with the Bank of Ghana, is partnering local refineries such as the Gold Coast Refinery to begin the local refining of gold purchased and exported by the GoldBod. Let me at this stage commend the Chamber of Mines for expressing their willingness to work with us to ensure the local refining of gold produced by large-scale mining firms in the country”.
The Goldbod CEO further added that small-scale gold exports hit a record high of 66.7 tons, with an export value of approximately 6.3 billion USD.
He added, “Since January up to the end of August 2025, small-scale gold exports have been taking by or through the Gold Board, working closely with the Bank of Ghana, and hit a record high of 66.7 tons, with an export value of approximately 6.3 billion USD.”
“What this means is that the volume and value of small-scale gold exports from January to August 2025 alone have exceeded the total small-scale gold export outage for the whole of the year 2024, and from January to December, which too had 63 tons, with a value of about 4.6 billion USD.
It is also instructive to note that small-scale gold exports continue to surpass those from the last two minor sectors, which too had 65.1 tons, with an estimated value of approximately 5.6 billion USD for the period between January and August 2025.”
“In response to these challenges, we have taken several strategic steps, culminating in a comprehensive sustainable agenda and report policy reforms for the mining industry. The policies include the comprehensive review of the Minerals and Mining Act 2006 Act 703, and the Minerals and Mining Policy 2014, two extensive stakeholder engagements to align with global best practices.”
See the post below:
GoldBod CEO Sammy Gyamfi Esq. announces the arrest and prosecution of suspects linked to Rafmoh Gold Ltd. & NK Benark Enterprise. Over 100kg of gold worth GHS100M smuggled in 2 months. pic.twitter.com/INtxlibBBW
— Ghana GOLDBOD (@GhanaGOLDBOD) September 16, 2025
The CEO of GoldBod, Sammy Gyamfi, has revealed that three individuals have been arrested in connection with a gold smuggling case.
— SIKAOFFICIAL🦍 (@SIKAOFFICIAL1) September 17, 2025
They are accused of smuggling 100 kilograms of gold, estimated to be worth GH¢100 million out of the country over the past two months. pic.twitter.com/UcivPKcw7m