Some of the suspects
The police has arrested eight (8) foreign nationals for engaging in illegal gold exploration and purchase in the Banda District of the Bono Region, an act which contravenes the new Gold Board Act, Act 1140 of 2025.
Police officers at the site of operation retrieved items, including a cash amount of GH¢23,450, quantities of raw gold and gold dust, mercury, and a lighter used in gold processing as exhibits.
The suspects include Sayaba Ziba, Kienu Dobou, Osman Tunabu, Nana Alhassan, and Wadrago Abdulai.
The rest are Aliu Sali, Ibrahim Wulba, and Alhassan Imoro.
The suspects, made up of Nigerians, Ivorians, and Gambians, were arrested while actively engaged in illegal mining and gold trading operations in Wewe community, Banda District.
They are currently in police custody, assisting the regional police command with their investigations. The police said they were operating without a licence.
A press release signed by Chief Inspector Thomas Akeelah, the Ghana Police Service’s spokesperson for the region, indicated that the suspects were arrested on October 2, 2025, at Wewe following sustained intelligence and surveillance.
The statement said the items retrieved from the suspects would be forwarded for forensic examination as part of the investigation, after which they would be prepared for court after further investigation.
The Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), National Security and the police, in an earlier operation on May 14, apprehended several foreign nationals attempting to smuggle kilograms of gold out of the country.
Six suspects were apprehended in two separate operations. The first batch of three suspects were arrested in the Ashanti Region before the enforcement of the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025 (Act 1140).
These individuals were arranged to be deported after their arrest occurred before the April 30 deadline for foreigners to exit Ghana’s local gold trade.
The second batch of three suspects were arrested in Anyinam after the new law took effect.
These individuals faced prosecution under the new law, which reserves local gold trading exclusively to the Gold Board. Authorities confiscated gold counting machines and cash (dollars) from them.
The Ghana Gold Board has issued a stern warning to individuals trading gold without a licence.
As of May 1, 2025, the board noted that it will be a punishable offence to purchase or deal in gold in Ghana without a valid licence from the Ghana Gold Board.
This move aims to curb illegal gold trading, smuggling, and price distortions in the gold market.
FROM Daniel Y. Dayee, Sunyani