Ghana’s Washington, DC Embassy Shuts Down Amid Visa and Passport Fraud Probe

Ghana’s Embassy in Washington, DC has been closed temporarily following the discovery of a long-running unauthorised payment scheme involving visa and passport services.

A recent audit revealed that Fred Kwarteng, a locally recruited member of the embassy’s IT staff, had created an unofficial payment portal through which visa and passport applicants were redirected to his private company, Ghana Travel Consultants (GTC).

Applicants were charged unauthorised fees ranging from $29.75 to $60 for services that should have been processed solely through official embassy channels.

Department dissolved

The scheme is reported to have operated for at least five years, with none of the funds accounted for by the embassy. Kwarteng has since been dismissed, and the matter has been referred to the Attorney General for possible prosecution and recovery of funds.

In response to the audit findings, the following actions have been taken to restore accountability:

All Ministry of Foreign Affairs staff stationed at the embassy in Washington, DC have been recalled to Ghana.

The embassy’s entire IT department has been dissolved.

All locally hired staff have been suspended, pending further review.

The Auditor General has been called in to conduct a forensic examination of all financial and administrative records.

The embassy will remain closed for a few days while a restructuring and systems overhaul takes place.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed regret for any inconvenience caused to Ghanaians and other clients who may be affected during the temporary closure.

Officials say these steps are necessary to ensure transparency, rebuild trust and prevent future abuse.