Officers intercepted 142 parcels of suspected Indian hemp on the Bimbilla–Tamale road and refused cash allegedly offered to let the consignment pass.
Police in the Northern Region have arrested four men and seized 142 compressed parcels of suspected Indian hemp, after officers turned down GH¢50,000 allegedly offered to them to look the other way.
The arrests followed an operation on the Bimbilla to Tamale route on Thursday, October 15, 2026, at about 6:30 p.m.
How the operation unfolded
According to Ghanaian Times, a statement signed by the Northern Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Wisdom Lavoe, said the operation was carried out by the Command's Special Operations Team, known as Red Maria, acting on intelligence.
The team stopped a mini commercial van with registration number GW 7800-14. The driver was named as 46-year-old Alhassan Zeblim, who was suspected of moving narcotic drugs.
A search of the vehicle turned up 142 parcels of suspected Indian hemp packed into four jute sacks of the type widely called "Ghana Must Go" bags.
Three more arrests
The police statement said the driver named Ibrahim Yussif, 34, a tricycle rider based in Tamale, as the person meant to receive the load.
Ibrahim Yussif later turned up at an agreed meeting point with his brother, Bawa Yussif, 56. A fourth man, Mohammed Haruna, 32, was also arrested and was later identified as the owner of the consignment.
All four are in police custody to assist with investigations.
The rejected GH¢50,000
The Command said the four suspects offered the arresting officers GH¢50,000 to influence the outcome of the operation. The officers refused the money.
The Northern Regional Police Command praised the team for both its speed and its integrity, and called on other officers to show the same standard of professionalism on duty.
What happens next
The suspects and the seized items, including a tricycle, have been handed over to the Regional Drug Law Enforcement Unit. That unit handles narcotics cases and will take the investigation forward before any charges are filed in court.
The police statement did not say when the four are expected to appear before a court.
Why it matters
For readers following Ghana from the United States and elsewhere, two details stand out in this case.
The first is the route. Bimbilla, in the Nanumba North area, and Tamale, the Northern Regional capital, sit on a busy inland corridor, and police intelligence work on that stretch is increasingly how such consignments are caught.
The second is the bribe. Public complaints about money changing hands at checkpoints are common, so a command publicly confirming that its officers rejected a five-figure offer is the kind of detail the Police Service is keen to put on record.
None of the allegations have been tested in court, and the four men are presumed innocent until a court decides otherwise.
