The Tema District Court has sentenced a 32-year-old Nigerian national to 12 months’ imprisonment with hard labour for attempting to unlawfully acquire a Ghanaian passport under a false identity.
Mohammed Ogbona, who also used the alias Mohammed Alhassan, was convicted on multiple charges including unlawful entry into Ghana, the fraudulent acquisition of a Ghanaian birth certificate, and the possession of a National Identification Card (Ghana Card) obtained through deceit.
Presiding judge Her Worship Benedicta Antwi imposed custodial sentences along with fines, following Ogbona’s guilty plea to all charges.
He was fined 200 penalty units (equivalent to GH₵2,400.00) each for attempting to acquire a Ghanaian passport and for obtaining a National ID card through false declarations. In default of payment, he will serve an additional six months’ imprisonment with hard labour.
For securing a Ghanaian birth certificate by fraudulent means, the court handed him a 12-month custodial sentence and an additional fine of 400 penalty units (GH₵4,800.00). Should he fail to pay this fine, he will serve an extra three months in prison.
A further fine of 50 penalty units (GH₵600.00) was imposed with a one-month sentence in default. All sentences are to run concurrently.
According to the prosecution, led by Inspector Jerry Foster Segbefia and Assistant Superintendent of Immigration Gillian Biney, the accused was arrested on June 16, 2025, at the Tema Passport Application Centre after suspicions were raised during his passport application process.
Ogbona had presented himself as a Ghanaian citizen named Mohammed Alhassan, allegedly born at the Tema General Hospital to Ghanaian parents — Alhassan Varga, said to be a retired military officer, and Rose Tetteh.
However, he failed to produce any documentation or credible evidence to support his claims, nor was he able to direct investigators to the individuals he had named as his parents.
Investigations revealed that he was in fact born in Enugu State, Nigeria, to John and Rosemary Ogbona. No record of his birth was found at the Tema General Hospital, contradicting his declaration during the application process.
“He wanted the Ghanaian passport to travel to the United Kingdom for greener pastures,” Inspector Segbefia told the court.
Further inquiries uncovered that Ogbona had enlisted the help of an agent to facilitate the falsification of his identity.
He had already obtained a Ghanaian birth certificate with entry number 774 and a Ghana Card with ID number GHA-730706520-0, and had completed the online passport application process prior to his arrest.
The prosecution also established that Ogbona had entered the country through an unauthorised route near the Aflao border, bypassing official immigration channels and entering without valid travel documents.
The state prosecutors urged the court to impose a custodial sentence to deter the increasing incidents of identity fraud and illegal entry into the country.