A 27-year-old Ghanaian, Frederick Kumi, popularly known as Abu Trica, has taken the Government of Ghana and the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to the High Court, alleging torture, unlawful detention, and gross violations of his fundamental human rights following his arrest over suspected cyber fraud.
In an application filed at the Human Rights Division of the High Court in Accra, Kumi is seeking GH₵10 million in compensation for what he describes as “cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment” after his arrest on December 11, 2025.
The suit lists the Minister for the Interior, the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC), the FBI, the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), and the Attorney-General as respondents.
According to the application, Kumi alleges that his arrest and detention were characterised by physical abuse, coercive interrogations involving foreign agents, and the unlawful seizure of his personal belongings.
He claims that more than 15 armed officers stormed his apartment at the Airport Residential Area while he was playing video games with friends, immediately handcuffed him, and kept him restrained from morning until late evening without food, water, or rest.
A central claim in the suit concerns the alleged involvement of FBI agents. Kumi asserts that while in the custody of Ghanaian authorities, he was interrogated by three foreign nationals introduced as FBI agents, despite their lack of independent policing powers in Ghana.
He alleges that the agents compelled him to sign documents he could not fully understand due to limited literacy and threatened to implicate him in fraudulent transactions amounting to $8 million if he failed to disclose passwords to his mobile phones.
Court documents argue that the decision by Ghanaian authorities to allow the FBI agents to interrogate him without access to legal counsel violated Articles 14 and 19 of the 1992 Constitution.
The applicant further claims that while he was in detention, officers from NACOC and EOCO carried out unauthorised searches at his Swedru residence, referred to as “Abu Trica’s Mansion,” in his absence.
He alleges that the officers seized several high-value items, including a Lamborghini, a Mercedes, a Cybertruck, multiple iPhones, MacBooks, an Alienware laptop, a PlayStation 5, a Starlink Wi-Fi modem, as well as Cartier watches, jewellery, and silver chains. Kumi maintains that some of the items belonged to friends and that no inventory or receipt was provided for the seized property.
Additionally, he accuses EOCO of breaching his right to the presumption of innocence by describing him as a “notorious cyber-criminal” in an official statement prior to any court determination.
Beyond the GH₵10 million compensation, Kumi is seeking several reliefs from the court, including orders to exclude evidence obtained through what he describes as coercive interrogations and unlawful searches, an injunction to prevent his extradition or deportation while the case is pending, and a directive restraining the FBI from exercising investigative or interrogation powers over him within Ghana.
The case is expected to be heard at the Human Rights Division of the High Court in February 2026, with its outcome likely to influence future boundaries on the involvement of foreign law enforcement agencies in Ghana and the protection of citizens’ rights in complex cybercrime investigations.
