A reconnaissance mission by the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) in the Ahafo Region on Saturday, November 1, 2025, turned violent after the Member of Parliament for Asutifi North, Ebenezer Kwaku Addo, allegedly led a mob to attack the NAIMOS Director of Operations and his team.
according to the Facebook post by Erasmus Asare Donkor, the Director of Operations, Colonel Buah, was in the region with ten soldiers to identify a location for the permanent deployment of a NAIMOS field task force.
The mission formed part of the Secretariat’s plan to strengthen operations against illegal mining.
While travelling along the Goaso–Hwidiem highway, the team saw an excavator engaged in mining near Bronikrom.
They moved to the site and arrested several individuals actively mining. The Director instructed the suspects to refill the pits they had dug.
The arrested persons were asked to call the site owner. The first person to arrive identified himself as a Defence Intelligence representative from the Ahafo Region. A man named Alex later arrived in a Toyota RAV4 and claimed ownership of the site, while another man in a Range Rover was also arrested.
A search of the suspects’ vehicles uncovered a Smith and Wesson pistol, two pistol magazines, twenty-one rounds of nine-millimeter ammunition, twelve mobile phones, a black side bag, GH₵11,000 cash, a power bank, and a Lexus ignition key.
As arrangements were made to convey the suspects to the Hwidiem Police Station, Hon. Ebenezer Kwaku Addo arrived at the scene with several men. The MP allegedly stated that he had been sent by Hon. Collins Dauda, MP for the area, and demanded that the arrested persons be released and their handcuffs removed.
The Director refused the request, explaining that the arrests were lawful and the suspects would be handed over to the police. The MP and his group allegedly became violent, took the handcuff keys from a soldier, released the suspects, and chased the NAIMOS team toward the Hwidiem Police Station.
When the Director and his team reached the police station to lodge a report and hand over the suspects and exhibits, a crowd of about six hundred people had gathered. The mob, allegedly incited by the MP, demanded the release of the suspects and seized vehicles and threatened to attack the soldiers if their demands were not met.
The situation became violent. The Director’s Toyota Hilux pickup was vandalized, and the mob threatened to burn down the police station. Reinforcements led by Chief Superintendent Prince Odom-Koduah, the Ahafo Regional Crime Officer, were deployed with support from Superintendent John Atanga, Divisional Commander for Goaso, and Superintendent Opoku Yamoah, District Commander for Kenyase.
Despite the reinforcements, tensions remained high until the Zongo Chief of Hwidiem, Alhaji Mohammed Bashiru Zarikyi, intervened and appealed for calm. As night fell and power went out, the security agencies, together with the Zongo Chief, decided to release the keys to the seized vehicles to prevent further violence.
The Zongo Chief offered his Toyota Sequoia 4×4 to transport Colonel Buah and his team to safety at the Newmont Site in Kenyase under police escort.
During the evacuation, the vehicle was attacked, and its rear windscreen was broken. No injuries were recorded.
NAIMOS officials, including the Director of Operations, were safely escorted out of the area. The Secretariat confirmed that the incident would not affect its ongoing operations against illegal mining.
Below is his post:
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1AXRoJYA7g/?mibextid=wwXIfr
