The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Christian Tetteh Yohuno, has ordered the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Headquarters to take over investigations into an attack on the Director of Operations of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) and his team at Hwidiem in the Ahafo Region.
According to a statement from the Public Affairs Directorate of the Ghana Police Service on Monday, November 3, 2025, the incident occurred on Saturday, November 1, when the NAIMOS team arrested a group of illegal miners operating near Bronikrom.
The team retrieved several items, including a Smith & Wesson pistol, two magazines, 21 rounds of 9mm ammunition, an unregistered Range Rover, an unregistered Toyota RAV4, and multiple mobile phones.
While preparing to hand over the suspects to the Hwidiem Police Station, the Member of Parliament for Asutifi North, Ebenezer Kwaku Addo, allegedly arrived at the scene with a group of men and demanded that the suspects be released.
When his request was refused, the group, according to the police forcibly removed the handcuffs from the suspects and chased the NAIMOS team away.
The situation escalated later that day when a mob of about 600 people, reportedly incited by the MP, stormed the Hwidiem Police Station.
The group demanded the release of the arrested miners and seized vehicles, vandalizing the NAIMOS Director’s vehicle and damaging parts of the police station in the process.
Reinforcement teams from the Ahafo Regional Command, together with military personnel, were deployed to restore calm.
The Zongo Chief of Hwidiem, the police said, also intervened to help mediate the situation and ensure the safe evacuation of the NAIMOS team. The Chief’s vehicle was damaged during the chaos, but no injuries were reported.
The Police Service has strongly condemned the attack and cautioned against any form of interference with law enforcement operations. A special operation has since been launched to track down and arrest all individuals involved in the attack to face prosecution.
Meanwhile, the Asutifi North MP has been invited by the CID to assist with the ongoing investigation.
Below is a copy of the statement
Source: Starrfm.com.gh
