Officials of the Bank of Ghana (BOG) have tracked down some communication center operators suspected to be members of an international syndicate engaged in the business of illegal transfer of foreign currencies to Ghana. Information from the Public Relations Office of the Bank of Ghana indicates that some operators have been arrested and would be prosecuted this week.

The Business and Financial Times reports that when contacted, the Crime Officer of the Dansoman Police Stations, Paul Osei, confirmed the story but said investigating offices are still ascertaining the amount involved. The illegal foreign transfer business, according to some sources at the BOG, is rapidly gaining acceptance and preference because recipients receive the actual foreign currencies sent to them instead of the cedi equivalent they get from the registered institutions such as Western Union.

The operators charge a fee of five dollars for every 100 dollars sent to Ghana. A combined team of officers from the BOG and the police raided some communication centers and made some arrests after a period of intensive investigations which led them to uncover hard evidence including fax messages containing details of money allegedly transferred into the country and their corresponding codes for recipients. In some cases people sent as much as 1,500 dollars in a single remittance.

The activities of the illegal money transfer dealers, the source said, have led to the loss of several millions of foreign exchange in tax revenue to the government and threatens the business of accredited agents for money transfers. In addition it distorts government’s macroeconomic policy aimed at stabilizing the cedi and reducing inflation. It might also create an artificial shortage of foreign currency in the market for those who need them for imports.

The authorities have therefore appealed to the public to help them clampdown on offenders.