The Suspects
Police officers conducting an operation against gangs suspected of engaging in illegal mining (galamsey) activities and destroying large tracts of land in the process, on Monday arrested three people in two communities in the Atwima Kwanwoma District of the Ashanti Region.
One of them was a community police assistant stationed at Hwediem, near Trabuom in the same district. Other suspects were still on the run.
Mining equipment, including 15 excavators, two water pumping machines, two sets of generator, a motorbike, 20 gallons of fuel and a mattress were seized during the special operation, led by the Asokwa District Police Commander, ASP James Annor.
Confirming the operation, the police chief said the command carried out the operation to dismantle the criminal organization, which members appear to be recalcitrant and operating with impunity.
According to him, the police came across 10 illegal mining sites in the twin communities and managed to arrest three members of the gang (names withheld), with one of them in possession of a pump action gun and seven cartridges.
ASP Annor indicated that the suspects face charges of trespassing, environmental crimes, theft and conspiracy; and would soon be put before court.
The District Chief Executive (DCE), Nana Otchere Tawiah Antwi, commended the taskforce and pledged the Atwima Kwanwoma District Assembly’s total support to flush out illegal miners in the area.
“Galamsey is illegal and once I represent the president here, I am not going to allow this activity to flourish in the district. I’m ready to fight the miners with my last blood,” he pledged.
He called on the general public to collaborate with the assembly to protect the lands and water bodies in the district for the benefit of current and future generations.
Nweneso Nos 1 and 2 and their surrounding communities are home to large deposits of gold, and so illegal miners are attracted to the area.
Last year, government introduced a ban on all forms of small-scale mining following land depletion as well as pollution and destruction of water bodies by illegal miners across the country.
From Ernest Kofi Adu, Kumasi