Menzgold tragedy: Over 300 customers have reportedly died since 2018 collapse -Coalition

The human cost of the Menzgold financial scandal has taken a devastating and fatal turn, as the Coalition of Aggrieved Menzgold Customers has revealed that more than 300 of its members have passed away since the gold dealership abruptly collapsed in September 2018.

In a sombre statement issued on Tuesday, the coalition disclosed that the staggering death toll is not from the collapse itself, but from the relentless psychological, physical, and financial toll of waiting for justice. Many of the deceased, according to the group, succumbed to stress-induced hypertension, diabetes complications, and severe depression—conditions aggravated by the trauma of losing their entire life savings and the despair of watching the courts drag on for nearly eight years.

The collapse of Menzgold, which was founded by CEO Nana Appiah Mensah (NAM1), left thousands of Ghanaians—including teachers, petty traders, retirees, and civil servants—stranded with locked-up investments. The company had promised its clients exorbitant returns on gold-backed investment schemes, but when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ordered it to cease operations in 2018, it exposed a multi-million-cedi financial hole. Independent estimates suggest the company owes investors upwards of GHC 1.6 billion, making it one of the largest financial frauds in Ghana’s recent history.

“We are not just fighting for money; we are mourning our dead,” a spokesperson for the coalition lamented in the statement. “While NAM1’s legal team continues to file applications for adjournments and court delays, our members are dying on the streets and in their homes. Some have sold their properties and sunk into abject poverty. They cannot afford healthcare, and now, they are losing their lives.”

The criminal trial against NAM1 remains pending before an Accra court, where he is facing multiple charges including abetment of crime, defrauding by false pretences, and operating a financial institution without a valid license. While he has been granted bail on several occasions and continues to appear in court, the substantive adjudication of the case has been notoriously protracted, with numerous procedural adjournments frustrating the prospects of a timely resolution for victims.

In response to this grim revelation, the coalition is making a desperate and urgent appeal to both the judiciary and the Attorney General’s Department to expedite the trial process. Furthermore, they are calling on the government to intervene by establishing a dedicated compensation framework specifically tailored for the most vulnerable clients—particularly the families of the 300-plus deceased victims who will never get to see their money again.

As the legal machinery grinds slowly forward, the haunting statistics released by the coalition serve as a stark, tragic reminder that the Menzgold saga is no longer merely a corporate or financial crisis. For hundreds of Ghanaian families, it has become a devastating, life-or-death humanitarian tragedy.