EOCO Seizes 15 Luxury Cars from NPP’s Ashanti Chairman Wontumi
Ashanti Regional New Patriotic Party (NPP) chairman Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as “Chairman Wontumi,” confirmed on Tuesday that the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) has impounded about 15 of his luxury vehicles, including a Bentley and a Rolls-Royce. Wontumi told radio hosts he bought the cars from a local dealer and that all import duties had been paid.
“I bought them from Bright Selby at Asylum Down near the NPP office. He registered them, paid the duties, and did everything. My Bentley, Rolls-Royce, and others are all there,” Wontumi said in an interview on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem program. He described the seizure as unfair but said he would “rely on divine intervention” rather than immediate public protest.
Wontumi’s public statement follows multiple media reports and social media posts over the past 24 hours that EOCO officers had taken a number of high-value vehicles from properties linked to him. The anti-graft agency has in recent months intensified operations targeting suspected illicit imports, stolen-car networks and cases of suspected money laundering. These lines of inquiry, according to reporting, overlap with earlier investigations that prompted Wontumi’s arrest in May.
EOCO has not issued a full public docket listing the seized vehicles or the precise legal basis for the recent action in a standalone press release as of this writing. Several local news outlets and social media accounts posted video clips and audio of Wontumi speaking to radio hosts after the seizures, and local broadcasters carried footage from scenes outside properties where vehicles were collected.
Separately, the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) said it recovered three government vehicles from Wontumi’s residence as part of efforts to retrieve state assets cited in loan-default or misappropriation investigations. MASLOC’s chief executive described the recovery as consistent with the agency’s procedures for reclaiming vehicles tied to unpaid obligations.
Reactions have been swift and, at times, partisan. Supporters of Wontumi criticized the operation as politically motivated, while opponents and some commentators argued the seizures reflect a broader clampdown on high-value illicit imports and financial misconduct. Social media users circulated short clips of Wontumi emotionally addressing the seizures and reiterated claims that his purchases were legitimate.
Wontumi has been a high-profile figure in Ghanaian politics and commerce, known for a flamboyant lifestyle and a visible fleet of expensive cars. His arrest in late May after an invitation by the Criminal Investigations Department and subsequent EOCO involvement related to allegations including fraud, causing financial loss to the state and money laundering, according to prior coverage.
In his radio interview, Wontumi said he would not contest the seizure in the media immediately, insisting instead that facts would vindicate him: “I have been quiet because I know that at the right time, God will intervene and speak for me,” he told Adom FM. His comments were widely circulated by local outlets and in social media posts that documented the scene at his residence and the transport of vehicles.
EOCO spokespeople did not provide a public, itemized list of the seized assets to reporters by the time this article was filed. Journalists covering the story noted the agency has in recent months emphasized cooperation with international partners on vehicle trafficking and import documentation and has used asset seizures as part of investigations into organised criminal activity.
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