Authorities at Kotoka International Airport (KIA) have arrested a British woman for attempting to smuggle over 17 kilograms of cannabis out of Ghana, the second such arrest involving a British national in less than 24 hours.

The incident has triggered heightened security measures and renewed scrutiny of the country’s vulnerability as a potential transit hub for international drug trafficking.

The woman, whose identity has not yet been disclosed, was scheduled to depart Accra on British Airways flight BA 2066 to Gatwick Airport in the United Kingdom.

She was intercepted during routine pre-boarding checks at KIA, where a thorough search of her luggage uncovered 32 slabs of compressed cannabis hidden in her suitcase. Field tests confirmed the substance weighed approximately 17.72 kilograms.

Officials from the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) immediately took the suspect into custody.

She was later transferred to NACOC’s headquarters for further interrogation and is expected to be charged under Ghana’s strict narcotics laws once investigations are completed.

Her arrest follows closely on the heels of a similar seizure just a day earlier, on May 18, when another British traveler was caught attempting to smuggle 53.6 kilograms of suspected narcotics through the same airport.

That suspect, also apprehended by NACOC officers, is likewise in custody and facing prosecution.

A Pattern Emerges: Ghana in the Drug Trafficking Spotlight

These consecutive busts have cast a spotlight on KIA’s growing challenges in combating international drug smuggling, particularly with foreign nationals using Ghana as a transit point.

While Ghana has historically positioned itself as a cooperative partner in global counter-narcotics efforts, the arrests raise questions about broader trafficking operations and whether organized networks are targeting the country’s airports for illicit exports.

A senior official at NACOC, speaking on condition of anonymity, said investigations are underway to determine whether the two British suspects are linked and whether a coordinated trafficking ring may be exploiting vulnerabilities in airport security or border control systems.