Two young ladies, Beauty Buerkie Buertey, 21, and Maura Amissah, 23, are in Elmina Police custody for allegedly attempting to smuggle Indian hemp to inmates at the Ankaful Maximum Security Prison.

A Police statement signed by Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Patrick Bentum of the Public Affairs Unit and made available to the Ghana News Agency said investigations had begun into the matter.

ASP Bentum noted that on Monday, January 26, 2026, at about 1840 hours, Prison Officers at the Ankaful Maximum Security Prison arrested the suspects and handed them over to the police after food items laced with Indian hemp were seized from them.

During inspection, pepper sauce (shito) concealed in a container and mixed with substances suspected to be Indian hemp was found.

The Police said samples of the pepper sauce were sent to the Narcotics Control Commission in Cape Coast for testing, and the substances tested positive for Indian hemp.

After interrogation, Buertey stated that the food was brought from Accra to be given to her family members in prison.

The Police appealed to the general public to desist from lacing food items with narcotics when visiting inmates, stressing that such acts breach prison laws.