Anti-Galamsey Task Force Clash with Bonteso Residents Over Excavator Seizure Leaves Five Injured, Assembly Member and Two Others Arrested

A violent confrontation between the Anti-Illegal Mining Task Force and residents of Manso Bonteso in the Amansie West District has resulted in the arrest of Assembly Member Hon. Patrick Asare and two other individuals, leaving five residents injured.

The incident, which occurred on Wednesday, August 13, 2025, reportedly began when the task force entered the community to seize an excavator suspected of being used for illegal mining (galamsey) activities.

According to some residents, personnel from the task force allegedly fired live ammunition into a crowd during the operation, injuring five people. They further claimed that two electricity transformers serving the community were damaged in the process. “The officers fired at our people, injuring five of them, and also damaged two of our transformers. This has left parts of the community without electricity,” residents lamented.

The other arrested individuals, identified as Akwesi Amponsah and Owusu Alexander, are currently in police custody at the Manso Adubia Police Station.

Some residents have appealed to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to personally intervene to calm tensions and ensure a peaceful resolution to what they describe as repeated harassment by security personnel.

However, the District Chief Executive (DCE) for Amansie West, Hon. Prince Manu Morrison, has offered a different version of events. He explained that the excavator in question was being used by residents to dig sand from an old mining site for construction purposes. He suggested that the task force might have mistaken the activity for illegal mining. “The community members were using the excavator to collect sand for building. Unfortunately, the task force thought it was a galamsey operation,” Hon. Morrison clarified.

Tensions remain high in Manso Bonteso as residents call for an independent investigation into the incident and demand measures to prevent similar clashes in the future.