Mass Remand in EPA/NAIMOS Clashes: Over 300 Residents Detained Amid Claims of Mistaken Identity and Wrongful Arrests
In a sweeping crackdown on illegal mining activities, more than 300 residents from communities across Ashanti and Ahafo Regions have been remanded into prison custody for two weeks following violent confrontations involving personnel from the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and accompanying journalists.
The arrests, executed in pre-dawn military-police operations on Wednesday, November 12, 2025, have sparked outrage, with families and local leaders decrying what they describe as indiscriminate detentions and a case of mistaken community identity.
The operation targeted Dadwene and Anwona in Ashanti, alongside Hwidiem, Kenyase, Goaso, and Marhani in Ahafo, with an additional raid conducted in Ehi, Volta Region. Security forces allege the residents were involved in an assault on an EPA monitoring team earlier in the week.
However, eyewitness accounts and viral social media footage paint a starkly different picture: lines of mostly male detainees, many barefoot and in distress, forced to perform physical exercises on the streets while pleading ignorance of any wrongdoing.
Central to the controversy is the claim that authorities stormed the wrong Dadwene. Residents insist the intended target was a community along the Obuasi–Dunkwa road—known for galamsey hotspots—rather than the Dadwene settlement on the Kumasi–Obuasi stretch, home to law-abiding families and workers. “They came to the wrong place,” said one local leader. “Our people are farmers, teachers, electricians—not miners.”
The suspects were transported en masse to Kumasi, where they were arraigned before a circuit court and remanded without bail.
They are scheduled to reappear on Thursday, November 27, 2025. Outside the Kumasi Central Prisons, emotional scenes unfolded as relatives queued for hours, some clutching identification documents in hopes of securing release.
Kukuaa Amissah, whose husband was among those detained, recounted the ordeal:
“My husband showed them his ID card—he’s an electrician with AGA [AngloGold Ashanti]. But they didn’t listen. They ransacked our room, took him away, and never told us what he did wrong.”
Similar testimonies have emerged from Hwidiem and Kenyase, where residents say security personnel ignored alibis, national IDs, and employment records.
Tano North MP Gideon Boako has condemned the operation as “overzealous and unjust,” calling for an independent probe and the immediate release of those wrongly arrested. “This is not anti-galamsey enforcement—it’s collective punishment,” he stated.
The joint task force, comprising military and police units under NAIMOS, defended the raids as necessary to restore order after an EPA team was reportedly attacked, their equipment destroyed, and journalists threatened. However, no official statement has addressed the allegations of mistaken location or excessive force.
The incident has reignited national debate over the government’s aggressive anti-galamsey campaign, with critics arguing that heavy-handed tactics risk alienating innocent communities and undermining public trust. Human rights advocates are calling for due process, transparent investigations, and compensation for those wrongfully detained.
As families cling to hope ahead of the next court date, pressure mounts on authorities to review evidence, refine intelligence, and ensure future operations target actual offenders—not entire towns. The case has become a flashpoint in Ghana’s ongoing battle against illegal mining, raising urgent questions about justice, accuracy, and accountability in law enforcement.
