The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS), has seized 5 excavators in the Assin North District Assembly, following a swoop on Tuesday, June 17, 2025.
The excavators have since been handed over to the Assin North District Assembly, as investigations continue.
The crack down, which was carried on the orders of the Director of Operations for NAIMOS, also disabled three excavators which could not be moved from the mining site.
The team, acting on intelligence, left Accra around 03:00 hours and headed for the Assin Fosu area and the Assin North General areas, where they teamed up with four NADMO officials who served as local guides to the mining sites.
The operation then took place in the towns of Ayittey, Agave, Assin Asempaneye and Ntowkron, all within the Assin North Municipality, where mining activities were occurring, especially in the Pra River — which was being used for washing minerals, resulting in massive pollution.
On seeing the task force, the illegal miners fled the scene, with some crossing the river to escape arrest.
The task force, however, managed to demolish the makeshift structures on the sites, including the recovery of an ID card belonging to one Mr. Cobinah Timothy.
Other items such as generators, pumping machines and Changfans were also retrieved after which the team returned to Accra on Wednesday, June 18 around 03:00 hours.
The exercise, which is expected to continue in other galamsey hotspots across the country is part of efforts by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources to deal decisively with illegal mining under the direction of the sector minister, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah.
