A former security guard has been sentenced to three years and four months in prison after stealing £117,200 from a bank in the United Kingdom and fleeing to Ghana to evade arrest for nearly four years.
Kwabena Kissi, 40, was jailed by Snaresbrook Crown Court after pleading guilty to fraud by false representation over the July 2022 theft.
Prosecutors told the court that Kissi exploited his previous job with a cash handling company to impersonate a cash collection officer.
Using his knowledge of the bank’s cash collection procedures, he gained access to the money and stole £117,200.
Investigators described the theft as a carefully planned operation that took advantage of established security procedures and the trust of bank staff.
The court heard that Kissi boarded a flight to Accra the day after the theft.
He remained in Ghana for almost four years, where he said he had been caring for his sick mother.
His time on the run ended when he returned to the United Kingdom on March 26, 2026.
Police, who had been monitoring for his return, arrested Kissi shortly after he landed at Gatwick Airport.
Investigators said they identified him after he booked an Uber using his real name and mobile phone number. The phone number had already been linked to the 2022 investigation.
Although Kissi initially denied being the suspect, evidence recovered from the device connected him directly to the crime.
Kissi pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation in April 2026.
A separate charge of possessing criminal property was later withdrawn.
The court sentenced him to three years and four months in prison, bringing the long-running case to a close.
