49 illegal miners arrested after NAIMOS team ambush in Western Region

A security operation in the Western Region has ended with 49 suspected illegal miners in custody after armed men opened fire on a state anti-galamsey team working in the Nzema East area.

The confrontation began on Tuesday, 28 April 2026, when operatives from the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat, known as NAIMOS, were attacked inside the Ghana Rubber Estates Limited plantation. According to the Secretariat, the assailants, believed to be illegal miners, fired several rounds from pump-action guns at one of its Zonda pickup vehicles.

No member of the team was injured. NAIMOS said its officers pulled back tactically and quickly began a follow-up operation aimed at identifying those behind the ambush and tracing the weapons used.

That response came in the early hours of Thursday, when operatives launched a cordon-and-search exercise at Adiewoso and nearby communities in the Ahanta West District. The raid, carried out within the GREL plantation enclave, produced a large number of arrests and cash seizures.

In all, 114 people were initially rounded up and taken to the Adiewoso Community Centre for screening, questioning and identification. After verification, 49 were identified as suspected illegal miners and kept in custody. Others were released after the exercise established that they were not directly connected to the mining activity.

Among those cleared were eight casual workers of GREL and 12 senior high school students. Artisans and other local residents who were also detained during the sweep were later let go.

NAIMOS said one pump-action gun was recovered during the operation. Officers also seized more than GH¢226,000 believed to be linked to illegal mining.

Part of that amount, GH¢140,000, was allegedly found in a Toyota Raize said to belong to Daniel Avoka. Another GH¢86,710 was found in a white Toyota Hilux, along with two containers holding small ball-like substances wrapped in paper and suspected to be gold. Police arrested the owner of the Hilux, Ebenezer Cobbinah, who is now assisting with investigations.

The operation also led to the seizure of substances suspected to be Indian hemp and cartons of cigarettes believed to be tied to the mining network.

NAIMOS said three of the suspects are foreign nationals: Abdul Karim from Niger, and Nash Ishaku and Eliyasu Sie, both from Burkina Faso.

The Secretariat added that the exercise was conducted with support from GREL management and officers from the Agona Ahanta Police Command, whose role included helping to separate legitimate plantation workers from suspected illegal miners.

All 49 suspects have now been handed over to the Agona Divisional Police Command for further investigation and possible prosecution.

NAIMOS says the operation shows it will continue to pursue illegal miners, especially those working on lawfully acquired concessions, and insists that armed resistance will not stop enforcement efforts.