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Popular Ghanaian musician Shatta Wale has been detained in a tax investigation linked to his purchase of a luxury car, his management has said. <\/p>\n
Wale’s yellow Lamborghini was seized earlier this month at the request of the US, which alleged that the vehicle was tied to the proceeds of a criminal enterprise.<\/p>\n
The network allegedly involved another Ghanaian, Nana Kwabena Amuah, who is serving a seven-year jail term in the US for fraud.<\/p>\n
Wale’s management did not mention the US’ allegations in their statement, saying instead that the artist was detained over “tax obligations”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
In a statement posted on social media, Wale’s team said he had “presented himself voluntarily” to Ghana’s Economic and Organised Crime Office (Eoco) on Wednesday afternoon.<\/p>\n
The Eoco has not yet responded to the BBC’s request for comment.<\/p>\n
Wale, real name Charles Nii Armah, is one of Ghana’s best-known stars. <\/p>\n
He has built a hugely successful career on Jamaica’s dancehall sound, and boosted his global profile by collaborating with Beyonc\u00e9 on her 2019 song Already.<\/p>\n
After his Lamborghini was seized earlier this month in an investigation linked to Nana Kwabena Amuah, Wale denied knowledge of or connection to the Ghanaian.<\/p>\n
He said he was “third-party owner” of the $150,000 (\u00a3110,000) car and that he did not know who had shipped it to the country.<\/p>\n
Eoco said the car would be returned to the US to aid in the restitution of Amuah’s victims.<\/p>\n
Amuah and his co-conspirators had impersonated vendors to defraud nearly 70 public and private organisations across the country, US court records show.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Wale’s management urged fans to remain calm and avoid speculation while the musician remained in detention.<\/p>\n
“We want to assure all fans and the general public that his legal team is fully engaged and actively working with the authorities to resolve this matter,” the statement said.<\/p>\n
The seizure of Wale’s Lamborghini is part of a broader operation – Ghana has been working with the US to dismantle an international fraud network that targets Americans.<\/p>\n
This month, the FBI and US Justice Department extradited and arrested three Ghanaian nationals alleged to be the masterminds of a $100m fraud scheme, which involved romance scams and phishing attacks. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n