The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) has intensified its nationwide crackdown on illegal mining, recording what it says is another major success at Hiawa Koofrom in the Amenfi Central District of the Western Region.
The intelligence-led operation resulted in the arrest of three Chinese galamseyers, the seizure of a pump action gun with four cartridges, and the impounding of two excavators used for destructive mining along the Ankobrah River.
NAIMOS said acting swiftly on credible intelligence received from an informant who provided the GPS location of the illegal mining site, the taskforce departed for Hiawa Koofrom at approximately 0910 hours.
Upon arrival, the team encountered both Chinese and Ghanaian illegal miners, who had been alerted by local Okada riders of the approaching taskforce. Several suspects fled into the forest, but the taskforce successfully apprehended three (3) Chinese nationals.
A Nissan Navara vehicle was seized at the scene, together with a pump action shotgun with four cartridges, and mobile phones belonging to the arrested suspects. The team also discovered two excavators alongside large heaps of sand and paydirt, evidence of extensive environmental degradation along the riverbank.
Following the arrests, arrangements were made for the suspects to be transported to NAIMOS Headquarters in Accra for further investigation. The excavators were handed over to the Enchi Regional Coordinating Committee for safe custody pending further legal directives.
Shortly after the arrests, the taskforce discovered another mining site approximately 300 meters away, where chanfang machines were found and subsequently destroyed.
The Director of Operations at NAIMOS, commenting on the operation, commended the team’s swift response and tactical execution despite facing challenging terrain and vehicle malfunctions.
He noted that the delayed movement caused by faulty vehicles highlighted the urgent need for reliable logistics support, especially in regions where poor road networks and rough forest trails impede rapid deployment.
He emphasized that the Secretariat remains relentless in its mission to dismantle illegal mining networks and protect Ghana’s water bodies, forest reserves, and farmlands from further destruction.
“This operation once again demonstrates NAIMOS’s zero-tolerance stance toward illegal mining, regardless of nationality or status. We will continue to pursue offenders, seize their tools of destruction, and restore our environment for future generations,” he stated.
The successful Hiawa Koofrom operation adds to NAIMOS’s growing list of decisive actions, reinforcing its role as the only nation’s enforcement agency in the fight against illegal mining and a pillar of Ghana’s environmental protection efforts.
Source: Erastus Asare Donkor
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