The High Court in Accra has affirmed the extradition of Frederick Kumi, popularly known as Abu Trica, to the United States to stand trial over his alleged involvement in an $8 million romance scam targeting elderly victims.
The decision followed the dismissal of an application filed by his lawyers challenging an earlier ruling by the Gbese District Court granting a request by the Attorney-General for his extradition to the United States to face charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering.
Following the ruling, security officers reportedly rearrested Kumi to facilitate the extradition process.
His lawyer, Oliver Barker-Vormawor, confirmed indicated that the legal team intended to challenge the decision at the Supreme Court.
"I am out of Ghana for work. I just heard that the case of Abu Trica has been fast-tracked and a judge has just ordered his extradition. Hmmm. FBI 1 – Abu 1. I guess this issue goes to the Supreme Court," he wrote.
Before the latest ruling, the High Court had granted Kumi bail in the sum of GH¢30 million with two sureties, both to be justified with landed property.
The grant of bail came after he had remained in custody since his arrest in December 2025 during a joint operation involving Ghanaian security agencies and their counterparts in the United States.
His earlier attempts to secure bail while the extradition proceedings were pending had been unsuccessful, with several High Courts dismissing applications filed on his behalf.
District Court ruling
On March 27 this year, the Gbese District Court cleared the way for Kumi's extradition after rejecting preliminary objections raised by his lawyers.
The defence had argued that the offences of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering were not extraditable under the 1931 Extradition Treaty between Ghana and the United States and that the request was politically motivated.
However, the court dismissed the objection.
"Money laundering and conspiracy, though not specifically mentioned in the 1931 treaty, and in the case of conspiracy and money laundering, the same has been catered for in the above-named UN Convention. The preliminary legal objection is therefore overruled," the court, presided over by Her Honour Anna Akosua Appiah Gottfried Anaafi Gyasi, ruled.
The District Court subsequently granted Kumi 15 days within which to challenge the extradition order at the High Court.
Human rights suit
At the time the extradition order was made, Kumi's lawyers had also commenced separate proceedings at the High Court challenging both the extradition process and the alleged violation of his constitutional rights by state security agencies and the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.
In his suit, Kumi alleged that officers of the Narcotics Control Commission, the Economic and Organised Crime Office, the Attorney-General's Department, and the FBI subjected him to torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment during his arrest on December 11, 2025.
According to him, he was kept in handcuffs from morning until late evening without food, water, rest, or other necessities, causing him physical and psychological distress in violation of Article 15 of the 1992 Constitution.
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