Former security guard Kwabena Kissi jailed after using old uniform to steal £117k from UK Bank

A former security guard has been jailed for 40 months after using his old uniform to trick bank staff into handing him more than £117,000 in cash before fleeing to Ghana, a UK court has heard.

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Kwabena Kissi, 40, a former G4S guard, appeared at Snaresbrook Crown Court where he admitted fraud by false representation after he wore his old uniform, helmet, mask, and visor to the Santander branch in Brixton, south-west London, on July 5, 2022.

CCTV footage played in court showed him walking along the street before entering the bank, where unwitting staff buzzed him through to the secure office and handed him bags of cash containing £117,200. Kissi placed the money in a briefcase and left.

He then changed his clothes and was seen walking along the road carrying a black bin bag containing the cash. He ordered an Uber and was driven away from the scene.

The following day, Kissi flew to Accra, Ghana, where he lived for nearly four years.

Staff at the branch only realised they had been tricked when the genuine G4S guard arrived to make the regular Tuesday collection. Otis Williams, the branch’s vault manager, had bagged up £256,000 in 11 bags. Kissi made off with £117,200 of that amount.

When one of the unsuspecting staff commented that Kissi was “there a little early,” he told them he was on a new route. “No suspicion arose at that stage. He did what any custodian from G4S would have done, he collected bags, put them in a briefcase, and took them out,” the prosecutor told the court.

The prosecutor said: “The penny really dropped when they saw the genuine G4S custodian who was on delivery for that day parked up nearby.”

Kissi was finally arrested in March 2026 after flying back to the UK. He initially claimed it was a case of mistaken identity, but he had used his own name and phone number to book the Uber. When officers searched him at the airport, he was still carrying the same phone he had used during the 2022 heist.

Detective Constable Stuart Ponder, who led the Metropolitan Police’s investigation, said: “We identified Kissi as our suspect thanks to extensive CCTV enquiries and phone evidence that linked him to the minicab he used as his getaway vehicle. When we found that he had left the UK the day after the fraud, we feared he might never come back to face justice. We kept our eyes on him and officers were at the airport to arrest Kissi off the plane when he returned earlier this year.”

Piers Walter, defending, said Kissi fled to Ghana to care for his very ill mother. Judge Rosa Dean told Kissi he had exploited his “inside knowledge” and jailed him for 40 months.

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Marlon Louis, a Santander employee of 25 years who was on duty at the time, said he was “devastated and worried he might lose his job. This person has put my whole life in jeopardy.”

Kissi, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation after showing cashiers false ID. A second charge of possessing criminal property was dropped.

Det Con Ponder added: “This case demonstrates the Met’s commitment to tackling high-value thefts and securing justice – no matter how long it takes.”