Case ghana-mahama-deepfake-arrestsDeepfake fraudGH
Ghana police arrest 16 over AI deepfake videos of President Mahama used to solicit money
Ghana Police Service arrested 11 suspects in the Volta Region on 1 to 3 May and five more in Aflao on 4 May 2026 for making and spreading AI videos of President Mahama to extract money and personal data.
MediumAttack using AIStatus: Under investigationVerified case file
Open in the interactive mapCite this case
- Reported
- May 7, 2026
- Location
- GH
- Target
- Ghanaian social media users
- Severity
- Medium
- Triggered by
- Nigerian and Ghanaian fraud network operating around Aflao
- Actor type
- Criminal
- Reported loss
- None reported
- CVE
- None
What happened
Ghana Police Service arrested 11 suspects in the Volta Region on 1 to 3 May and five more in Aflao on 4 May 2026 for making and spreading AI videos of President Mahama to extract money and personal data.
Impact: Victim losses not published; police seized 120 pre-registered SIM cards and equipment
Who triggered it
Actor: Nigerian and Ghanaian fraud network operating around Aflao
Attribution: Ghana Police Service intelligence-led operations; suspects described as part of a wider network impersonating prominent figures
Motive: Financial gain and harvesting of personal information
How it happened
Attack vector: Deepfake videos of the President and First Lady on Facebook, TikTok and WhatsApp directing viewers to pay or share details
Root cause: Easy access to generative video tools and pre-registered SIM cards; no deepfake-specific law, prosecutions rely on existing offences
Timeline
- Two suspects, Bernard Mensah and Michael Ebo Sarfo, arrested for deepfakes of Mahama and his wife
- Eleven arrested in Sogakope, Dabala, Tongu, Akatsi and Aflao
- Five more arrested in Aflao; laptops, routers, 120 SIM cards and a vehicle seized
- Nine remanded, two bailed; court return date 25 May
Response
Arrests, remand and prosecution; police warned that sharing deepfake content is a criminal offence
Current status: Under investigation
Sources (open in a new tab)
- Graphic Online graphic.com.gh
- Rainbow Radio rainbowradioonline.com
- OECD.AI Incidents Monitor oecd.ai
Cite this case
Ghana police arrest 16 over AI deepfake videos of President Mahama used to solicit money. AI Threat Watch, case ghana-mahama-deepfake-arrests, May 7, 2026. https://aithreat.io/cases/ghana-mahama-deepfake-arrests/
Permanent link: https://aithreat.io/cases/ghana-mahama-deepfake-arrests/