Sam George Pushes Back Against FBI Over Ghana Cybercrime Operation
Samuel Nartey George, Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, has challenged claims suggesting that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) solely executed a major cybercrime operation in Ghana, insisting that Ghanaian law enforcement and intelligence agencies led the exercise with support from the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) and the FBI. In a post on X on Thursday, October 8, 2026, Mr George stressed that combating cybercrime requires international collaboration and warned that the FBI’s portrayal of the operation could undermine future cooperation between Ghana and the United States.
His response followed an announcement by FBI Director Kash Patel that the bureau had dismantled a scam operation in Ghana under its Operation Blackout initiative. According to Mr Patel, the operation uncovered nearly US$10 million in losses involving 89 victims, led to more than 130 arrests or detentions and resulted in the seizure of over 300 devices. However, the FBI did not disclose the identities of those arrested, the locations of the operations or the specific Ghanaian institutions involved. The operation forms part of a broader international effort to combat scam compounds targeting Americans, amid growing cooperation between Ghanaian and US authorities over transnational cybercrime and financial fraud.
