NAIMOS cracks down on illegal mining, arrests Chinese national on Offin River

The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) intensified its anti-galamsey campaign with a major operation on Saturday, May 16, 2026, at Dawusaso in the Amansie South District of the Ashanti Region. The operation resulted in the arrest of a Chinese national and the destruction of illegal mining equipment on the Offin River. Officials described the operation as following "credible intelligence."

The Manso Adubia taskforce found several individuals, including women, actively engaged in illegal mining between 11:30am and 3:30pm. Xiao Weixin, aged 41 and resident at Dawusaso, was arrested at the scene. Items retrieved from him include an Apsonic tricycle, two Gota sets, and a Huawei mobile phone. The illegal miners had diverted sections of the Offin River into an artificial dam. The taskforce destroyed two changfan machines and discovered three abandoned excavators, including two Caterpillar machines and one Sany excavator. Another group of suspected illegal miners fled and abandoned a drum of diesel when intercepted along the Dawusaso road.

The arrested suspect has been transported to the NAIMOS Secretariat in Accra for further investigation and is expected to be handed over to the Ghana Immigration Service for further legal processes. NAIMOS says the operation forms part of sustained efforts to clamp down on illegal mining activities destroying water bodies, particularly the Offin River, and has reaffirmed its commitment to restoring and protecting the environment.