The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) has arrested two Chinese nationals and intercepted several Burkinabè workers during a series of coordinated anti-galamsey operations across the Western North and Western Regions.

The arrests, carried out on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, followed intelligence reports linking foreign nationals to illegal mining within the Tano Anwia Forest Reserve in Jomoro.

According to NAIMOS officials, access to the reserve was initially blocked by some forest guards, but operatives eventually gained entry and discovered an active mining site along the Tano River.

During the raid, a Toyota Land Cruiser V8 attempted to escape the scene, but operatives apprehended two Chinese nationals, while a third suspect fled.

The task force found four excavators—three already immobilised and the fourth disabled on-site—alongside evidence of river diversion, two high-powered water pumps, and 12 makeshift mining camps, all of which were destroyed.

Recovered items included GH¢10,050 in cash, mobile phones, two-way radios, fuel drums, and excavator control panels. The detained Chinese nationals have since been transferred to Accra for further interrogation.

Preliminary investigations suggest the suspects operated under the pretense of a community mining initiative allegedly sanctioned by Nana Kwame Nkansah, the local chief of Jomoro. NAIMOS believes the Chinese nationals acted as financiers, providing capital and logistics to sustain illegal mining activities in the area.

In a statement, NAIMOS reaffirmed its commitment to cracking down on both local and foreign sponsors of illegal mining, warning that “no one will be spared if found complicit.”

Meanwhile, in a related operation at Essipong near Asankrangwa, NAIMOS officials inspected Bugart Mining, where Burkinabè nationals were discovered working close to the Kwama stream and a major road.

Although the company’s representatives presented a 2012 mining licence, authorities questioned the legality of employing foreign nationals without valid work permits.

A CAT excavator was immobilised, and the company was directed to report to the NAIMOS headquarters in Accra on Thursday, October 9, along with all foreign workers, for verification and further investigation.