The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) has carried out a massive raid on “Gangway,” a notorious illegal mining and crime hotspot in Aboso, located in the Prestea-Huni Valley District of the Western Region.
The operation, which took place in the early hours of Monday, October 6, 2025, was led by a heavily armed NAIMOS Task Force that descended on the enclave, dismantling makeshift structures and destroying equipment used for illegal mining activities. Thick clouds of smoke filled the air as dozens of wooden shanties known to be hideouts for illegal miners, drug dealers, and gamblers were torched in what officials described as a swift and coordinated offensive.
According to NAIMOS, the raid led to the arrest and surrender of hundreds of residents, many suspected of engaging in galamsey and other unlawful acts. The team also seized parcels of narcotics, including 11 wraps of Indian hemp, highlighting the deep connection between illegal mining and drug trafficking in the area.
This latest crackdown follows an earlier warning issued by NAIMOS in June 2025, when miners and criminal gangs were cautioned to vacate the Gangway area. Despite repeated appeals from traditional authorities, including the chiefs of Aboso, illegal activities persisted, prompting the Secretariat’s decisive intervention this week.
In a related operation, NAIMOS extended its action to the Dadwen-Dompim stretch in the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipality, where officers seized or destroyed 15 water-pumping machines, a generator, and three Chanfangs. Several illegal mining structures were also set ablaze as part of the government’s intensified war on galamsey.
The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, under which NAIMOS operates, reaffirmed its commitment to reclaiming degraded lands and restoring order in mining communities. Officials say the Secretariat’s latest success is a strong signal of the government’s unwavering resolve to combat illegal mining in all its forms.
“With this bold strike, NAIMOS has once again demonstrated its unyielding resolve to dismantle illegal mining networks, reclaim degraded lands, and restore law and order across the Western Region,” the Secretariat stated.
Source: gbcghanaonline