Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Minister for Information

The Government has said it did not use the services of external security personnel to rescue the two Canadian women who were kidnapped in Kumasi.

According to the Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah the rescue team was made up of officials from the CID and BNI, among others.

The Minister said eight suspects, five Ghanaians and three Nigerian have been arrested in connection with the kidnapping.

He said the two women are currently undergoing medical treatment.

He said this at a press briefing in Accra.

“The operation involved the CID of Ghana Police Service, the Bureau of National Investigations, the Special Weapons and Tactics Unit of the National Security Council and Defence Intelligence. No foreign assets were involved in the operation.”

The two Canadian girls were rescued on Wednesday morning.

Kidnapping of girls

The Canadian girls were kidnapped at the Kumasi Royal Gulf Club, Ahodwo around 8:25 pm on June 4, 2019.

The Police in a statement on the matter said the two victims were aged 19 and 20 and “are volunteers with an NGO known as Youth Challenge International based here in Ghana.”

The development comes to add to the growing agitation in the country particularly in the Western Region where three young girls are yet to be found after going missing for over six months.

Following the kidnapping of the two Canadians, some Embassies and High Commissions in the country such as Australia and the United Kingdom have issued warnings to their citizens about likely crimes in the country including kidnapping.

Despite the recent incidents, kidnapping is still considered a rare occurrence in Ghana.