The Gbese District Court has reportedly brought an abrupt halt to extradition proceedings involving social media personality Frederick Kumi, widely known as Abu Trica, after discharging him and two other accused persons linked to an alleged multimillion-dollar online fraud case originating in the United States.
The decision was confirmed by their lawyer, Oliver Barker-Vormawor, who said the court cleared all three individuals of the charges before it. According to him, the moment the ruling was delivered, officers from the Narcotics Control Commission attempted to take his clients back into custody inside the courtroom, a move that reportedly angered the presiding judge.
Barker-Vormawor disclosed the development in a Facebook post on Monday, January 26, 2026, detailing the tense scenes that followed the discharge.
“Just finished at the Gbese District Court. Abu Trica and 2 others have been discharged. NACOC just tried to rearrest them inside the court room. Judge offended,” he wrote.
The case before the Gbese District Court was centered on whether Abu Trica and his co-accused would be extradited to the United States to stand trial over an alleged romance scam said to have defrauded elderly Americans of more than $8 million.
Abu Trica was initially picked up by Ghanaian security agencies on Thursday, December 11, 2025, after US authorities filed an indictment accusing him of playing a role in a sprawling online fraud operation.
Court documents unsealed by the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio allege that the scheme operated from 2023 and targeted senior citizens across several states. Prosecutors claim members of the network relied on artificial intelligence tools to fabricate identities and cultivate emotional relationships with victims on social media and dating platforms.
Investigators say those relationships were later exploited to solicit money and valuables, often under the guise of medical crises, travel needs or supposed investment deals. The indictment further accuses Abu Trica of helping to distribute funds sent from Ohio to accomplices based in Ghana and other jurisdictions.
U.S. prosecutors have listed charges against him including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to launder money and a forfeiture specification tied to the alleged proceeds of the scheme.
