A member of parliament for Ghana's ruling party has been arrested in the US in connection with heroin smuggling.
A spokesman for the US embassy in Ghana identified the arrested official as Eric Amoateng, a from the New Patriotic Party (NPP) who had previously applied for and obtained a US visa.
Ghana's Deputy Interior Minister Nkrabea Effah-Dartey said Mr Amoateng was arrested on November 12th by US drug authorities and had tried to plead parliamentary immunity.
"Eric Amoateng was arrested in connection with the alleged trafficking of 136 kilos of heroin," Mr Effah-Dartey said, confirming that another Ghanaian man was also arrested.
Mr Amoateng would automatically lose his seat if convicted on drug smuggling charges, Mr Effah-Dartey added.
Ghana's Joy FM radio station said the heroin involved in the case was concealed in seven crates of pottery flown from London. Officials could not confirm this.
The NPP said in a statement it wished to distance itself from what it said was Mr Amoateng's "reckless" behaviour.
"A conduct of this nature is harmful to the image of the party, parliament and the nation. We consider this deplorable and unpardonable," read the NPP communique.
If Mr Amoateng had not sought parliamentary approval to travel, he would be stripped of his parliamentary seat as he had now been absent from parliament for 14 sessions, Mr Effah-Dartey said.