On Tuesday, Smith presented a certificate at a press conference claiming he was the new world record holder for an 820-hour, 25-minute cook-a-thon, which started on February 1 and ended on March 6, 2024.
During the briefing at La Palm Royal Beach Hotel in Accra, the chef declared, “Today is a day I will forever remember. I am incredibly humbled and honored to stand before you today as the Guinness World Record holder.”
However, Alina Polianskaya, PR Executive for Guinness World Records (GWR), confirmed to the BBC that his certificate was invalid, stating, “No, this is not true at all. He does not hold the GWR title, and that is not our certificate.”
“The current and true record holder is: The longest cooking marathon (individual) is 119hr 57 min 16 sec and was achieved by Alan Fisher (Ireland) in Matsue, Shimane, Japan, from 28 September to 3 October 2023,” he added.
After announcing his record and parading his certificate, the Chef was arrested for alleged fraud.
According to Ghana Media, Smith was arrested for “defrauding one of the sponsors, Amadia Shopping Mall, of his cooking marathon.”