As fraud goes this surely has to be not only one of the most bizarre, but certainly the most elaborate cases. A fake US Embassy has been shut down in Ghana after being operational for 10 years. Yes, 10 whole years!
The Embassy was reportedly being run by Turkish and Ghanaian organised crime syndicates. The fake Embassy offered a range of services during its 10 year reign; counterfeit US Visas, fake bank records, educational records and birth certificates were all issued at the fake Embassy.
The embassy even advertised its wide range of services on flyers and billboards that were present throughout not only Ghana but also Cote d’Ivoire and Togo.
As you can imagine, the illicit services did not come cheap and fraudulent documents could set you back as much as $6,000 each.
The fact that the fake embassy was able to run for so long uninterrupted certainly raises a few eyebrows and could mean that some local and state officials might have been involved.
An international task force has been set up to help bring all the criminals to justice and several arrests have already been made. During the recent raids, 150 passports along with counterfeit visas were also seized.