The 10 suspects
A total of 10 illegal miners also called ‘galamseyers’ have been arrested in the Central Region by the Central Forward Operating Base (FOB) of Operation Vanguard Joint Task Force.
Seven of the 10 illegal miners were arrested at Mfanteman in the Upper Denkyira East Municipality of the Central Region on Monday, June 4, 2018.
Their names were given as Joe Afful, Yaw Boakye, Kofi Osei, Antwi Nicholas, Talata Gangiba, Emmanuel Coffie and Mustapha Demon.
The rest, including one Chinese national, were arrested on Saturday, June 2, 2018, by the same Central FOB of the task force at an illegal mining site at Breman-Dominase also in the Central Region.
They were identified as Wang, 50, who is of Chinese descent whereas Philip Fordjour, 26, and Duban Klayi, 22 are both Ghanaians.
Briefing DAILY GUIDE on how the first seven were arrested, Squadron Leader Robinson Omane Agyei, Public Relations Officer of Operatioin Vanguard, noted that the Task Force on their regular patrols came across heaps of sand and gravels with some individuals seriously working with excavators.
“The team then moved in and apprehended seven ‘galamseyers’. Following the arrest, the Task Force immobilized two excavators, some industrial water pumping machines and a washing plant on the site”, he revealed.
He added that control boards and monitors were seized as exhibits and that the seven suspects had been sent to the Dunkwa Atekyem Police Station for further investigations.
The 3 Suspects
He indicated that on Saturday June 2, 2018, the same FOB arrested three suspects who were working on an illegal mining site at Breman-Dominase.
He mentioned that following the arrest, the Task Force destroyed several items used by the alleged miscreants in degrading the land. The items included two big water pumping machines and a washing plant as well as other mining equipment.
“In addition, 1 Haojin motorbike and 1 excavator were seized together with two control levers, control board and monitor as exhibits,” he disclosed.
He pointed out that the three suspects had also been handed over to the Atekyem Police Station for further investigations.
He stressed that the Operation Vanguard (OV) Joint Task Force had always maintained that its members were not engaged in any acts of bribery adding “OV will not allow few bad nuts within to tarnish the image of the Task Force and for that matter the Ghana Armed Forces”.
He noted that recent reports in the media about OV personnel allegedly involved in an unauthorised illegal mining operation was revealed by the Ghana Armed Forces through a press release.
“This goes a long way to show that the Task Force and the Ghana Armed Forces frown on misconduct of its personnel,” he indicated.
“These individuals have been placed under close arrest pending investigations. The military has concluded its investigations on the matter and awaiting that of the police for appropriate punishment”, he revealed.
He continued, “Intelligence are that some military, police personnel and some civilians parading as national security operatives, military/police personnel are going round taking bribes from illegal miners”.
He noted that the illegal miners were afraid to complain due to the fact that their activities were illegal, adding “We are warning any such individuals to desist from this fraudulent act before they are apprehended. Let us all help to fight against illegal mining”.
He pointed out that Operation Vanguard would continue to fight to protect the country’s environment now and the future.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi