An 18-year-old Senegalese goalkeeper, Cheikh Touré, has been murdered in Ghana after falling victim to a network of scams and extortion.

According to reports, he was killed by kidnappers after his family was unable to raise the ransom they demanded.

His death was confirmed by Senegal’s Minister of African Integration and Foreign Affairs, who issued a statement announcing the tragic killing of the young goalkeeper after his lifeless body was discovered in Ghana.

The Minister explained that Cheikh had been deceived into believing he was travelling to Ghana for a trial with a professional club. The scam resulted in his being held hostage by his captors, who demanded a ransom from his family in exchange for his release.

The statement added that Touré’s body, currently deposited at the Ebenezer Tarfo morgue in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region, will be repatriated once the necessary authorisations are completed.

The Senegalese Embassy has dispatched two representatives to Kumasi to collaborate with local authorities on the required administrative and judicial procedures, while maintaining close contact with the victim’s family.

The Cyber Security Authority in Ghana recently reported a rise in cyber crimes in Ghana. According to the CSA, Ghana has lost over GH¢19 million to cybercrime between January and September this year. This marks a 17 percent increase in cyber crimes compared to the same period last year.

The Authority’s Head of Law Enforcement and Liaison at the CSA, Colonel George Eduah Bessi, made this revelation during a cybersecurity awareness webinar organised by the Africa Centre for Digital Transformation.

He expressed concern over the growing trend of online crimes in Ghana, highlighting the dangers it poses to the economy. Earlier in the year, the authority reported a steep rise in cybercrime, with a record 2,008 cyber incidents, marking a 52 per cent rise from 2024.

In a related development, Ghana Police, in a joint operation with the International Police (INTERPOL), cracked down on scammers in the country, arresting sixty-eight suspected individuals involved in romance scams and sextortion.

In a release shared by INTERPOL on its official website, the international security agency revealed that the operation, dubbed Operation Contender 3.0 and funded by the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office under the African Joint Operation against Cybercrime project, discovered that these criminal syndicates caused USD 450,000 in financial losses, with USD 70,000 recovered in cash.

“Ghanaian authorities arrested 68 individuals, seized 835 devices and identified 108 victims. Their investigations revealed USD 450,000 in financial losses, with USD 70,000 recovered,” excerpts of the statement revealed.

According to INTERPOL, the operation was targeted at criminal networks exploiting social media and dating platforms to carry out romance scams and sextortion.

“The crackdown targeted transnational criminal networks exploiting digital platforms, particularly social media, to manipulate victims and defraud them financially. Specifically, the operation focused on romance scams, where perpetrators build online relationships to extract money from victims, and sextortion, in which victims are blackmailed with explicit images or videos,” the statement said.

According to INTERPOL’s 2025 Africa Cyberthreat Assessment Report released in June, “two-thirds of surveyed African member countries said cyber-related offences make up a medium-to-high proportion of all crimes.”

The Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) on the other hand, in a joint operation on Friday, October 17, busted a human trafficking syndicate operated mainly by Ghanaians and Ivorians.

In a statement shared the same day, the crime intelligence agency announced that following the raid, it had successfully rescued 26 victims of human trafficking, comprising sixteen (16) Ghanaians and ten (10) Ivorians.

These nationals had fallen victim to job opportunity scams run by individuals posing as recruitment agents for QNET, a multinational company known for its wellness and lifestyle products.

The operation, dubbed “Operation Quest,” was conducted by EOCO’s Anti-Human Trafficking Unit in collaboration with QNET, around 10:30 a.m.

“The operation, code-named Operation Quest, followed intelligence that some foreigners and Ghanaians had been trafficked under the guise of employment with the QNET Company — a reputable organisation that trades in wellness and lifestyle products.

The suspects include two (2) Ivorians and seven (7) Ghanaians, while the victims were made up of ten (10) Ivorians and sixteen (16) Ghanaians,” the statement noted.

The organisation clarified that these individuals had no legitimate ties to the company and were exploiting QNET’s reputation to carry out their illicit activities.

“All nine (9) suspects are currently in the custody of EOCO to assist in investigations,” parts of the statement added.

EOCO cautioned the public against falling for such scams and advised that all reports of employment offers purportedly from QNET be directed to the appropriate authorities. It also reminded the public that the company is working to restore its reputation, which has suffered due to impersonation by groups and agencies using its name for fraudulent recruitment schemes.

“EOCO wishes to advise the general public to report all cases of individuals and groups who claim to be agents of QNET who can provide job opportunities at the company, either in Ghana or abroad.