Nine nationals of Ghana who were part of a fake Paralympic team have disappeared after entering the territory of Norway to prepare for the Fjordkraft Bergen City Marathon on Schengen visas that were obtained with forged documents.
As revealed by the authorities, the fake team of 11 members was created with the purpose of its participants remaining in the EU irregularly despite them entering on short-term Schengen visas.
However, the fake team’s plan did not go as intended, as the Norwegian authorities found out their intentions when they failed to register to participate in the event and issued alerts to the other Schengen member states and diplomatic missions in Ghana.
In an official document issued by Ghana’s Ministry of National Security, it has been disclosed that nine members of the fake team have been running away and there is still no information about their whereabouts.
Reports indicate the absconding of members of the Ghana Paralympic team to other Schengen states following their arrival in Oslo, Norway, on April 25, 2024, for the Fjordkraft Bergen City Marathon.
As for the other two members of the team, it has been revealed that one member, the coach of the team, has passed away, whereas another member has been caught by the Norwegian authorities after attempting to leave for Sweden.
2 Paralympic Officials of Ghana Have Been Suspended Following the Scandal
Following this scandal, the National Paralympic Committee has suspended two officials for counterfeiting Schengen visa documents and helping the 11 members to enter the Norway irregularly.
According to an official statement by the National Paralympic Committee, the suspension of the two officials is indefinite. The statement also suggested that the officials will not return to their roles now that they have been involved in the scandal.
Will the Scandal Affect Issuance of Schengen Visas to Ghanaians?
While the EU authorities have yet to make an official statement on the matter, it is believed that stricter rules will apply for Schengen visa applicants from Ghana in the future.
As for the people involved in the scandal, in line with the Schengen rules, once they are deported to Ghana, they will be banned for a period from entering the Schengen Area.
According to statistics published by SchengenVisaInfo, in 2023, Ghanaians applied for 45,421 Schengen visas. However, only 23,400 of them received a positive decision on their application, whereas 21,226 had their Schengen visa application rejected.
