A federal jury has found US Army Major Kojo Owusu Dartey guilty of several counts of smuggling weapons into Ghana by hiding them within blue barrels of rice and household goods.
The Fort Liberty-based officer, 42, is facing a maximum sentence of 240 months, which is set to be pronounced on July 23, 2024.
The conviction illuminates a global arms trafficking organization and is the result of a cooperative effort between US law enforcement agencies and Ghanaian authorities.
Dartey was accused of conspiracy, smuggling commodities out of the US, illegally exporting firearms without a license, dealing in firearms without a license, shipping firearms without giving the carrier notice, and making false representations in court and to a US agency.
Thanking Ghanaian officials for their cooperation, US Attorney Michael Easley highlighted the investigation’s involvement with the Ghana Revenue Authority and the Office of the Attorney-General of Ghana’s International Cooperation Unit.
Additionally, he expressed gratitude for the assistance provided by the US Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, FBI attachés in Accra, and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
The ATF Baltimore Field Division’s Special Agent in Charge, Toni M. Crosby, emphasized the negative effects of gun trafficking on public safety and applauded the collaborative effort that kept firearms out of the hands of criminals.
Concealed in blue barrels, these weapons—which included handguns, an AR15, 50-round magazines, suppressors, and a battle shotgun—were transported from the Port of Baltimore to the Port of Tema in Ghana along with rice and household goods.
The US Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement, the ATF, and the Army Criminal Investigation Division all looked into the case. Assistant US Attorney Gabriel J. Diaz led the prosecution, and David Ryan of the DOJ Counterintelligence and Export Control Section provided technical support.
Chief US District Judge Richard E. Myers II accepted the verdict.
Here are the key points:
- Charges:
Dealing in firearms without a license
Delivering firearms without notice to the carrier
Smuggling goods from the United States
Illegally exporting firearms without a license
Making false statements to a U.S. agency
Making false declarations before the court
Conspiracy - Details of the crime:
Dartey purchased seven firearms in the Fort Liberty area and had a U.S. Army Staff Sergeant at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, purchase three firearms and send them to Dartey in North Carolina.
He then hid all the firearms, including multiple handguns, an AR15, 50-round magazines, suppressors, and a combat shotgun inside blue barrels underneath rice and household goods.
He smuggled the barrels out of the Port of Baltimore, Maryland, on a container ship to the Port of Tema in Ghana. - Investigation and prosecution:
The Ghana Revenue Authority recovered the firearms and reported the seizure to the DEA attaché in Ghana and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division.
The ATF, Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Gabriel J. Diaz prosecuted it with technical assistance from David Ryan, DOJ Counterintelligence and Export Control Section. - Sentencing:
Dartey faces a maximum penalty of 240 months when sentenced on July 23, 2024.
