The Tema District Court has sentenced a Nigerian national to 12 months’ imprisonment with hard labour for attempting to unlawfully acquire a Ghanaian passport.

Mohammed Ogbona, alias Mohammed Alhassan, was also convicted on additional charges of unlawful entry and the fraudulent acquisition of a Ghanaian birth certificate and National Identification Card.

Presiding judge, Madam Benedicta Antwi, handed down the sentence after Ogbona pleaded guilty. He was fined 200 penalty units (GH₵2,400.00) each for attempting to obtain a Ghanaian passport and a National ID through false declarations.

In default of payment, he is to serve six months’ imprisonment with hard labour.

For acquiring a Ghanaian birth certificate through false declaration, the court sentenced him to 12 months’ imprisonment. He was also fined 400 penalty units (GH₵4,800.00) or, in default, serve an additional three months’ imprisonment.

An additional fine of 50 penalty units (GH₵600.00) was imposed, with a one-month prison term in default. All sentences are to run concurrently.

The prosecution, led by Inspector Jerry Foster Segbefia and supported by ASI Gillian Biney, told the court that the 32-year-old factory hand at Cimaf Cement was arrested on 16 June 2025 at the Tema Passport Application Centre during the passport application process, following suspicions regarding his nationality.

Ogbona had claimed to be a Ghanaian named Mohammed Alhassan, born at Tema General Hospital to Ghanaian parents — Alhassan Varga, a former military officer, and Rose Tetteh. However, he failed to provide evidence or lead investigators to the said parents.

Subsequent investigations revealed that he was born in Enugu State, Nigeria, to John and Rosemary Ogbona, and no birth record existed for him at the Tema General Hospital.

“He wanted the Ghanaian passport to travel to the United Kingdom for greener pastures,” Inspector Segbefia stated.

The court heard that Ogbona had engaged an agent to falsify his identity and had successfully secured a Ghanaian birth certificate (entry number 774) and a Ghana Card (ID number GHA-730706520-0) before booking an online passport application.

Further investigations established that he had entered Ghana through an unauthorised route near the Aflao border, without travel documents or immigration clearance.

Inspector Segbefia said that following a thorough investigation, Ogbona was arraigned, and the prosecution called for a custodial sentence to serve as a deterrent to the growing trend of identity fraud and unlawful entry.