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Alexander Addo, who is unemployed, pleaded guilty to illegal mining on someone else’s farm. In the event of a default, he will be sentenced to 20 years in jail with hard labor.
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Alexander Addo, a 24-year-old unemployed man, was fined GHC1.2 billion for indulging in small-scale mining without a permit.
Addo entered a guilty plea to the charge. In default, he will do 20 years in hard labor, according to the circuit court in Dormaa-Ahenkro, Bono Region.
The complainant, a farmer, and the convict, according to police prosecutor Emmanuel Asare, were inhabitants of different suburbs in Wamfie, the district seat of Dormaa East, Bono Region.
According to Asare, the complainant had farmland in Wammu near Wamfie, some of which was farmed with plantain and vegetables.
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He claimed that the convict and other ‘galamseyers’ (illegal miners) had taken ownership of the land and caused significant damage to it for more than a year.
Asare went on to say that all efforts by the police and the complainant to apprehend the illegal miners had failed until about four months ago, when the complainant, with the help of some young men, arrested the accused while he was actively engaged in illegal mining on the farmland.
According to the prosecution, the accused escaped while being escorted to the police station.
When the complainant went to her farm around 1700 hours on Sunday, December 12, 2022, she encountered the accused and one other accomplice who were busily mining on the field.
He claimed that the complainant disguised herself and called her son, a witness in the case, to the area, where they discussed how to apprehend the miners.
The complainant and her kid quietly went for home and returned about 1900 hours to find the accused and his accomplice cleaning and sieving some soil near the Wam River’s bank in search of gold.
The prosecutor said the accused and his accomplice fled when they saw the complainant and her son. However, the accused was arrested and handed over to the police.
The convict admitted the offence during interrogation and was sentenced on his own plea.
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