The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) has swooped and rescued the Atwima Mponua Forest Reserve from the claw of illegal miners (galamseyers) and armed brutes in the Ashanti Region.
Some illegal miners on site fled on seeing the Task Force. The team consequently conducted series of raids within the forest, destroying several makeshift structures at the sites.
They as retrieved and immobilized nine Excavators, seized two Toyota HILUX Pickups and one Nissan pickup, all concealed in the Forest.
The Task Force also set ablaze and burnt five (5) Chanfang machines, several personal belongings, fuel dumps, old excavator engines found at the various sites. Seven (7) water pumping machines from the site belonged to the illegal miners.
The Task Force from NAIMOS in close collaboration with troops drawn from the 4th Infantry Battalion of Ghana Army, and representative from the Forestry Commission (FC), on 17 September 2025, conducted the operation at Anhwiafutu in the NKAWIE Forest District of the Offin Shelter Belt of the Ashanti Region.
Following local intelligence, the NAIMOS led force, this paper learnt, arrived at the area in the dawn hours of the day, witnessing signs of Excavator tracks all over the community.
The marks signalled that several machines had been clearly tracked out of the area hours to the morning and arrival of the Task Force. When the team got to the forest area, there was evidence of massive illegal mining at different parts of the forest.
The New Crusading GUIDE gathered that the team subsequently raided a house in the areas which was reportedly accommodating some Foreign Chinese Illegal miners.
NAIMOS investigations confirmed that 12 Chinese illegal miners stayed in that house and had fled the house at dawn. A search conducted in the house however revealed 18 Excavator batteries, 31× Buckets of grease, one Gas cylinders, one Mini car washing machine, and one Excavator radiator.
The nine Excavators seized were all immobilized because of lack of low bed to convey them out of the Community