The Ghana Navy has rescued seven suspected stowaways from a Belgian-registered crude oil tanker off the coast of Tema after the vessel raised an alarm over individuals hidden in its rudder trunk.

The rescue followed a distress call through the Maritime Operations Centre after the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Abidjan alerted Ghanaian authorities on May 13, 2026, a citinewsroom.com report on May 17, 2026, has said.

The tanker, MT Cap Felix, was operating about 200 nautical miles south of Tema Harbour at the time.

“The Navy immediately deployed Ghana Navy Ship Achimota under the command of Commander Ishmeal Kofi Quansah to intercept the vessel at sea,” said Flag Officer Commanding the Eastern Naval Command, Commodore Solomon Aseidu-Larbi, speaking to the media on May 16.

GNS Achimota left Tema Harbour at about 7 pm the same day and reached the tanker, where naval officers safely rescued the seven male suspects from the rudder trunk.

Ghana faces spending pressure after IMF exit – Joe Jackson warns

Commodore Aseidu-Larbi said preliminary investigations suggest the men are from a Ghanaian community in Côte d’Ivoire and may have boarded the tanker illegally while it was anchored in Ivorian waters.

He added that MT Cap Felix is a Belgian-flagged crude oil tanker with a gross tonnage of about 82,000 tons and IMO number 9380738. Its last port of call before the incident was Abidjan.

The suspects have been handed over to the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Ghana Immigration Service, and Marine Police for further investigations and possible prosecution.

“They would first be profiled before being transferred to the Ghana Police Service for further action,” a Ghana Immigration Service officer told the media.

NAD/AE

Watch highlights from Day three of the African Athletics Championships