Kotokrom:Eight individuals have been taken into custody by police for allegedly assaulting a 21-year-old man as part of an initiation into an internet fraud ring in Kotokrom, a suburb of Sunyani West Municipality in the Bono Region.
According to Ghana Web, the suspects informed investigators that the beating of Godstime Umukoro was a required initiation ritual they had also undergone to join the internet fraud operation. The arrests were made by the Regional Operations Unit of the Bono Regional Police Command after responding to a distress call on October 4, 2026, regarding an attack on a man.
The police received the call at approximately 430 p.m. and discovered Umukoro with visible injuries upon their arrival. The eight suspects were apprehended on the spot. They have been identified as Peter Mbam, 24; Godwin Moses, 26; Humble Oweifah, 18; Osas Ogbemudia, 30; Samuel Aisosa, 22; Ashile Godbess, 24; Alexander Uyuo, 30; and Patrick Romans, 25.
Preliminary investigations revealed details of the internet fraud operation, which involved the suspects and a man named Nwachukwu King Augustine, referred to as their leader. The suspects were allegedly brought to Ghana by Augustine and used photographs of foreign military personnel to dupe victims online, posing as soldiers stationed in Yemen.
The fraudsters engaged victims in conversations under the guise of military personnel and extracted money from them, which was then deposited into Augustine's account, according to police reports.
The Bono Regional Police Command has praised the public for their quick action and reassured residents of ongoing efforts to work with the community to fight crime. It remains unspecified whether formal charges have been filed against the suspects.