The arrests were made on September 4, 2026, after the Commission’s Rapid Response Unit (RRU) conducted a covert operation around Sagyimase in Compartments 61 and 62 of the reserve, under the Kyebi Forest District.
The operation involved 17 personnel drawn from the Assin Fosu, Akim Oda and Juaso Forest Districts. The team was deployed at about 1:30 a.m. to intercept suspected illegal mining activities taking place inside the protected forest.
According to Citi News, the officers encountered a group of miners actively working at the site. While 12 suspects were arrested, several others reportedly fled into the surrounding bush.
The operation also resulted in the seizure of five motorbikes, 11 shovels, water hoses, blankets used for washing gold and three gallons of petrol.
The seized motorbikes comprised three Royal motorbikes, an Apsonic Aloba and an Apsonic Paul Sport.
The Forestry Commission said the 12 suspects, along with two of the seized motorbikes and other exhibits, had been handed over to the Kyebi District Police Command for further investigation and possible prosecution.
The remaining three motorbikes have been secured at the Kyebi District Office of the Forest Services Division.
The Commission said the operation was completed without casualties and formed part of its intensified efforts to prevent illegal miners from operating within protected forest reserves.
The latest enforcement action comes as concerns persist over illegal mining in the Atewa Range Forest Reserve, one of Ghana’s important biodiversity and water catchment areas.
The reserve provides the headwaters of the Birim, Densu and Ayensu rivers, making its protection important to water supply and the survival of communities that depend on the rivers.
The Forestry Commission has therefore reaffirmed its commitment to sustained enforcement operations to identify and remove illegal miners from forest reserves across the country.
