The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) has stepped up its fight against galamsey with coordinated operations that delivered major breakthroughs in the Western North and Ashanti Regions on Tuesday, October 21, 2025.
In the Western North Region, a joint task force stormed the Tano Anwia Forest Reserve in the Aowin District, where they intercepted a heavily armed group engaged in illegal mining. Among those arrested was a Chinese national suspected to be the excavator operator.
The team seized four pump-action guns, 22 cartridges, and three buckets containing a black substance believed to be mining material.
Officials say the arrests represent a significant stride in neutralizing armed mining syndicates operating within forest reserves.
The same day, NAIMOS extended its operations to the Boin River Forest Reserve in Enchi, continuing its mission to protect critical ecological zones from destruction.
In a parallel operation in the Ashanti Region, the task force acted on intelligence and moved into the Asuboa Mponua area in Asante Akim, where six excavators were discovered.
Two were non-functional, while the remaining were immobilized. Several items, including hoses, fuel containers, and a heavy-duty water pump, were destroyed, and a generator was seized.
The team later advanced to the Praakwa Forest Reserve in the Juaso District, where illegal mining was ongoing along the Pra River.
The operation led to the destruction of six mining boats, multiple washing platforms, and the arrest of eight illegal miners.
