An armed attack on a National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) convoy in the Western Region triggered a swift retaliatory intelligence operation that ended in the arrest of 49 suspected illegal miners at the Ghana Rubber Estates Limited (GREL) plantation in Adiewoso, Ahanta West District, on Thursday, April 30, 2026.
The sequence of events began two days earlier. On Tuesday, April 28, a group of armed illegal miners operating within the GREL plantation opened fire on a NAIMOS taskforce vehicle, a Zonda pickup, stationed in the Nzema East area, discharging multiple rounds from pump-action weapons. NAIMOS personnel withdrew without casualties, but the brazen attack immediately set in motion an intelligence-gathering exercise to locate the perpetrators.
Acting on credible intelligence, NAIMOS launched a cordon and search operation across Adiewoso and surrounding communities between 3:30am and 4:30am on Thursday. A total of 114 individuals were apprehended and taken to the Adiewoso Community Centre for screening. Following thorough verification conducted with the assistance of GREL management and officers from the Agona Ahanta Police Command, 49 were positively identified as suspected illegal miners. Eight others were confirmed as GREL casual workers, 12 were found to be senior high school students, and the remainder were artisans and community residents with no involvement in illegal mining. All legitimate GREL employees were exonerated and released.
Among those arrested, three were identified as foreign nationals: Abdul Karim of Niger, and Nash Ishaku and Eliyasu Sie, both from Burkina Faso.
The search yielded significant recoveries. Operatives found one pump-action firearm, GH¢140,000 in cash discovered inside a Toyota Raize belonging to a suspect named Daniel Avoka, and an additional GH¢86,710 alongside two containers of small ball-like substances wrapped in paper and believed to be gold, all found in a white Toyota Hilux. The owner of the Hilux, Ebenezer Cobbinah, was arrested at the scene and is assisting investigators. Substances suspected to be Indian hemp and cartons of cigarettes believed to be linked to the mining operations were also seized, bringing total cash recovered to over GH¢226,000.
The 49 confirmed suspects were subsequently handed over to the Agona Divisional Police Command for further investigation and prosecution.
The Adiewoso operation is the latest and most significant enforcement action at a plantation that NAIMOS and the Western Regional Security Council have repeatedly identified as a critical galamsey flashpoint. NewsGhana reported in April that GREL logged more than 70 illegal mining incidents in the first quarter of 2026 alone, with the state-backed plantation, in which government holds a 26.75 percent stake, losing approximately 10,000 rubber trees to illegal excavation.
NAIMOS said the April 28 ambush would not deter its operatives and reaffirmed that no intimidation or armed resistance would prevent the secretariat from executing its national mandate to protect Ghana’s natural resources.
