12 suspected illegal miners remanded after Bosomtwe Forest Reserve operation

Twelve suspected illegal miners have been remanded into police custody following a two-day operation in Ghana’s Bosomtwe Range Forest Reserve in the Ashanti Region.

The arrests were made by officials from the Bekwai Forest District of the Forestry Commission, who carried out the operation on 31 July and 1 August 2026 as part of efforts to remove illegal mining activity from the protected forest.

The enforcement team identified groups allegedly operating in Compartments 1, 10 and 12 of the reserve. The operation also led to the immobilisation of an excavator and the seizure of a range of equipment believed to have been used in illegal mining activities.

Items confiscated included one tricycle, seven changfan machines, 21 pumping machines, two power plants, two generators and an air blower.

The 12 suspects Abu Naa, Adakwa Mathew, John Tibootey, Nurudeen Issah, Henry Peter, Ruth Agbenyo, Anthony Amadi, Sesi Mclean, Benjamin Owusu, Richard Atta, Sumaila Mohammed and Abel Nti were subsequently brought before the Bekwai Circuit Court.

Presiding over the case, His Honour Isaac Apeatu ordered that the accused persons be remanded into police custody. They are due to return to court on 11 and 12 August 2026.

The Forestry Commission said one other person, Abena Ahenkan, escaped during the operation. She is alleged to have been the leader of one of the illegal mining groups discovered in the forest and is currently being sought by the authorities.

The Commission said it remained committed to protecting Ghana’s forest reserves from illegal mining, warning that enforcement operations would continue against people whose activities threaten the country’s forests and natural resources.

The latest operation was conducted specifically within the Bosomtwe Range Forest Reserve by the Bekwai Forest District as part of a wider effort to tackle illegal mining in protected areas. The authorities’ actions included both the arrest of those suspected of involvement and the removal or disabling of equipment connected with the alleged operations.

The accused persons remain in police custody pending their next appearances before the Bekwai Circuit Court on 11 and 12 August. Abena Ahenkan remains at large as the search for her continues.

By Benjamin Aidoo