By Opesika Tetteh Puplampu
Accra, Jan. 26, GNA – The Ghana Navy has conducted a series of intelligence-led operations that disrupted suspected illegal bunkering activities along parts of the Volta Region coastline, resulting in the seizure of large quantities of fuel and specially modified canoes.
A statement issued by the Department of Public Relations of the Ghana Armed Forces said personnel from the Naval Base Nutekpor carried out an anti-illegal bunkering operation on Tuesday, January 13, 2026, targeting areas along the Abeliakorpe and Atokukorpe landing beaches in Aflao.
The statement, signed by Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin, Acting Director General of Public Relations of the Ghana Navy, said the coordinated raid, which took place between 0500 and 1340 hours, focused on several stash houses and makeshift structures suspected to be used for illegal fuel storage and distribution.
The operation led to the seizure of 162 twenty-five-litre gallons and 32 two-hundred-litre barrels filled with fuel.
It added that in a related operation on Thursday, January 15, 2026, the Navy intercepted seven specially modified canoes, locally referred to as “Dendes”, suspected to be used for illicit bunkering activities along the Keta–Denu–Aflao coastline.
The seized canoes were found to be carrying 378 empty barrels designed for smuggling fuel at sea.
The statement noted that the perpetrators fled upon sighting the Navy ship, abandoning the canoes, which were subsequently seized and towed to the Tema Harbour.
The Ghana Navy reaffirmed its commitment to securing the country’s maritime domain and combating illegal activities that threaten national security, marine biodiversity and the sustainability of Ghana’s blue economy.
It also urged coastal communities to support security agencies by providing timely information on suspicious maritime activities.
GNA
Edited by Laudia Anyorkor Nunoo/Lydia Kukua Asamoah