Assembly member leads mob to attack Anti-Galamsey Taskforce at Manso Nkwanta
14th August 2025
The Assembly Member for the Manso Nkwanta electoral area in the Ashanti Region allegedly led a group of irate youth to attack the IGP’s Special Anti-Galamsey Taskforce on Thursday at Bonteso.
The clash occurred after the team had seized an excavator from an illegal mining site near Manso Nkwanta.
Eyewitnesses say the attackers hurled stones at the officers in an attempt to prevent them from leaving the site. The confrontation escalated despite warning shots being fired to disperse the mostly community-based crowd.
Two officers — ASP Bawah Abdul Jalil and G/Sgt. Agblekpe Mawuena Yao — sustained injuries during the incident. The taskforce managed to arrest the assembly member, Patrick Asare, along with two others, Osei Vasco and Akwesi Amponsah.
After targeted arrests and additional warning shots, the officers regained control, dispersed the crowd, and transported one of the seized excavators to the Manso Adubia Police Station.
A second machine was left behind due to the tense security situation.
The Manso area remains a hotspot for illegal mining, with years of environmental destruction, including degraded farmland and polluted water bodies.