Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George, has cautioned the public against sharing, downloading, rebroadcasting, or profiting from a viral video allegedly recorded secretly by a Russian national involving several Ghanaian women.

Speaking at a press briefing together with officials from the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, the Minister emphasised that distributing the footage is not only unethical but also constitutes a criminal offence under Ghana’s laws.

“Do not share, download, circulate, or monetise this illegal content. Doing so constitutes a criminal offence,” he cautioned.

Mr. George emphasised that the government is handling the issue with urgency and has already initiated steps to obtain crucial evidence.

“The Government has initiated steps to trace and secure relevant digital and financial evidence,” he revealed.

He also warned that the inquiry is not limited to the foreign national alleged to have made and circulated the videos.

“Any individual, including Ghanaian nationals, who has shared, rebroadcast, or redistributed the illegal material is also liable under our laws,” he said.

The matter concerns a foreign national who is alleged to have enticed Ghanaian women, secretly filmed intimate encounters without their consent, and then shared the videos online, reportedly for profit.

The Minister clarified that the issue is not about moral judgment or the personal decisions of consenting adults, but rather about illegal activity.

Earlier, Mr. George stated that the government has already begun legal proceedings and is working to extradite the suspect and prosecute him under Ghana’s cybersecurity laws.

Benjamin Madugu, Director of Communication, International Cooperation, and Strategic Partnership at the Cyber Security Authority (CSA Ghana), has condemned the actions of a Russian national linked to videos involving approximately 40 Ghanaian women.

Speaking in an interview with Sammy Kay Media on February 13, 2026, Madugu described the situation as unacceptable and a breach of Ghana’s cyber and privacy laws.

He emphasised that it is wrong for any foreign individual to enter Ghana and secretly record women in intimate situations, particularly with the intention of publishing such content online.

“It is unacceptable for a foreign national to come into our country and, for some reason, decide to record our ladies in the manner that he did. That is not acceptable, and it is condemnable. It is also an offence under the Cybersecurity Authority Act to record intimate images that both parties had agreed to capture at the time they were getting intimate and then leak those images online,” he said.

Madugu noted that the Authority is treating the matter with seriousness and will carry out the necessary investigations. He explained that the agency’s immediate priority is to determine the current location of the individual at the centre of the controversy.

“We want to find if the individual (Yaytseslav) is still within the jurisdiction. But if he has left, maybe he has not even gone back to Russia. Maybe he has gone to a different country and gone into hiding. But we will look into this matter and be sure about what the situation really is and what action ought to be taken,” he added.

He also warned the public against sharing the videos on social media, stressing that doing so is a criminal offence under Ghana’s cybersecurity laws.

“What we are urging is that if you are not the original person who recorded the video but choose to share it on your social media, that is also an offence under the Act, and it attracts not less than one year and not more than three years’ imprisonment.

"For those who think, ‘I’m not the one who recorded the video; the video is already out, and I’m only sharing it,’ if the affected individuals decide to make an official complaint to the Cybersecurity Authority, such persons can be brought to book,” he added.

Background

A man known as Yaytseslav, who claims to be Russian, became a trending topic in Ghana after videos of his interactions with several Ghanaian women emerged online on February 12, 2026.

Many of the videos showed him in the Accra Mall area, interacting with female shoppers and acquaintances during public outings.

Reports indicate that he later invited some of the women to his apartment, recording their conversations and private encounters using Meta glasses—allegedly without their consent—before sharing the intimate content online.