Ghana Cocaine Bust Exposes Customs Oversight Gaps as Dutch Raise Leijdekkers Bounty to €2M
Alex Fefegula Harding Jos Leijdekkers faces mounting pressure as an international investigation into a nearly four-tonne cocaine shipment seized in France widens, drawing Ghanaian customs personnel into scrutiny as authorities seek the Dutch fugitive believed to be in Sierra Leone.
French customs officials intercepted approximately 3.9 tonnes of cocaine at the Port of Dunkirk on Sept. 10 after discovering the drugs concealed in a shipping container declared to contain plastic waste from Ghana. Authorities estimated the consignment’s street value at €225 million.
The investigation has since expanded beyond the shipment’s alleged organisers to include individuals suspected of facilitating its passage through Ghana’s export system.
According to Ghana’s Citi Newsroom, six people have been charged in connection with the shipment. They include Helena Akua Denkyi, a contract employee of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, and five other accused persons.
Police allege that Denkyi and three other customs employees examined the container, identified suspicious contents during scanning but failed to refer it for further investigation.
Denkyi’s lawyers have filed an application seeking to remove her name from the charge sheet. The case was scheduled to resume on Nov. 5, according to the publication’s Oct. 20 report.
Ghana’s Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) previously announced the arrest of three suspects over their alleged connections to Leijdekkers’ operations in the country. The commission said the individuals were suspected of representing and facilitating the activities of the Dutch fugitive.
Leijdekkers, 35, also known as Bolle Jos, is among Europe’s most wanted criminal suspects. The Netherlands Public Prosecution Service confirmed on Nov. 2 that authorities were offering a €2 million reward for information leading to his arrest.
Dutch authorities say Leijdekkers has been living in Sierra Leone for several years and is also known locally by the name Omar Sheriff.
He was sentenced in absentia to 24 years in prison by a Dutch court in June 2024 for involvement in six cocaine shipments involving nearly seven tonnes of the drug, alongside other offences. A Belgian court also sentenced him to 79 years in prison.
The allegations surrounding his presence in Sierra Leone have raised questions about international cooperation in tackling organised crime. Dutch authorities have sought his extradition, but say their efforts have not secured Sierra Leone’s cooperation.
However, the Sierra Leonean government has disputed claims that delays in European Union financial support were imposed as punishment over the Leijdekkers case, attributing the funding delay to administrative issues involving an amended financing agreement.
In January 2025, the government also said President Julius Maada Bio was unaware of Leijdekkers’ identity when photographs emerged showing the fugitive at events attended by the president and members of his family. It announced an investigation into the allegations.
The cocaine seizure in France and the subsequent arrests in Ghana have exposed the international dimensions of the investigation, which now involves law enforcement agencies across several countries.
Investigations into the shipment and the alleged involvement of individuals connected to Leijdekkers remain ongoing. None of the accused in the Ghana case should be considered guilty unless convicted by a court.