Four illegal miners jailed 16years, fined GHC96k

To God be the glory great things He has done for us. We have a judge who ought to be celebrated, Her Honour Mercy Addei Kotei, you are a model judge for ensuring that we got a custodial sentence and a fine. Thanks to the prosecution who also did a great job. The families of the convicts’ should stop the tears, what did they do to dissuade their relatives from destroying our future and our now. But they have a point that if we are jailing our own for 16 years, we should jail the foreigners more as the law stipulates. So I hope our leaders are listening, deportation is not a punishment and an option.

The question to ask is that for the same Eastern Region, what happened to these 4 Chinese who were arrested in 2017. The story was reported by Starrfm – https://starrfm.com.gh/2017/04/er-four-more-chinese-illegal-miners-arrested/

Please read the story as told by https://starrfm.com.gh

Four illegal miners have been jailed four years each by the Koforidua Circuit Court ‘B’ Friday for engaging in galamsey in the Atewa Forest Reserve.

Additionally, they were fined Ghc24,000 each.

The convicts are Kwaku Ampaabeng,32, Kwabena Apaw,39, Evans Ahenkorah,33, and Yaw Effah Boateng,51, residents of Akim Oda Nkwanta and Akim Apinamang.

They were charged for conspiracy to commit a crime, with mining without a license, and Mining without License.

The convicts pleaded not guilty to the charges with some arguing that they were in forest to search for herbs to prepare herbal medicine, but after eight months of trial they were found guilty after prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that they were indeed mining in the Forest Reserve hence the sentence by the Court Presided over by Her Honour Mercy Addei Kotei.

The facts of the case presented to Court by the Prosecutor, Dickson Donkor- an Assistant State Attorney was that complainant in the case is a team of Forestry Taskforce from Kibi Range Division of the Forest Services of the Forestry Commission.

He said, on August 23, 2018 at about 6:30 am while the Taskforce was on its routine patrol duties at Krenkren portion of the Atewa Forest Reserve near Potroase, a group of young men numbering about 20 including the convicts were seen busily engaging in illegal mining with seven water pumping machines but upon seeing the task force took to their heels .

He said the task force, however, managed to arrest the four convicts after a hot chase.

During interrogation at the Regional Police Headquarters by the CID, the convicts failed to produce license permitting them to mine therefore charged with the offense.

Family members of the convict present in court rained curses on government for jailing Ghanaians and leaving Chinese. According to them, the convicts are members of the ruling New Patriotic Party and therefore threatened to vote against the government in 2020.

Beatrice Kwakyewaa, wife of one of the convicts could not hold herself together after the judgment. She told Starr News she has five children with the convict who is the breadwinner.

However, the Kibi Range Manager of the Forestry Services, Jones Agyei Kumi was happy the laws have been applied to serve as a deterrent to many illegal miners who have been invading the Atewa Forest reserve to mine causing destruction to the vegetation and Biodiversity.

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