The operation, led by ASP Bawah Abdul Jalil, was triggered by intelligence reports
The fight against illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, intensified on Friday, August 22, 2025, when the Special Anti-Galamsey Task Force launched a daring operation in the Dwendwenase Forest Reserve, leading to the seizure of two excavators.
The operation, led by ASP Bawah Abdul Jalil, was triggered by intelligence reports indicating that Chinese nationals were engaging in illegal mining within the reserve.
A 37-member team, supported by six service vehicles, stormed the site in the early hours of Friday.
Upon their arrival, the illegal miners abandoned their operations and fled, leaving behind two heavy-duty excavators.
“One of the excavators was found to be inoperable, but the second was successfully loaded onto a low-bed carrier for transport.
“As the team was preparing to return to base, fresh intelligence pointed to another hidden machine in Atta Ne Atta village, where an excavator had been concealed in a cocoa farm.
“Despite deliberate tampering intended to disable it, the task force, with technical assistance managed to start the machine and impound it,” a police statement said.
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Both excavators were later transported to the Patase operational base for further processing.
Authorities have reiterated their commitment to sustaining the crackdown on illegal mining, which has caused extensive destruction to Ghana’s forest reserves and water bodies.
AM/BAI
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