Ghana’s Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) has taken over the case involving 17 Pakistani nationals who have been arrested over terror suspicion.

Four more Pakistanis were arrested Friday, increasing the number to 17 after 13 were initially arrested on Thursday at Assin Fosu in the Central region.

Investigations have revealed some of them have been in Ghana since 2015. However, they have maintained they are in Ghana on an Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission preaching project.

Meanwhile, the Ahmadiyya Mission in Ghana has distanced itself from the 17 Pakistanis. The General Secretary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission in Ghana, Ahmed Anderson has disputed their claim.

“This is very strange, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission is not aware of any group of Pakistanis having come into the country in the name of Ahmadiyya mission to preach,” Anderson told Accra-based Joy FM.

He added: “Yes, the Ahmadiyya mission has some Pakistani missionaries in the country but we have a very structured system so when people come in, they have defined roles and we engage them in various ways and on no occasion would we allow any Ahmadiyya missionaries to be walking from one destination to another preaching without any recourse to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission.”

The Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) said its preliminary investigations show the group is actually in Ghana on a religious assignment.