The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAiMOS) has launched a sweeping crackdown on “Gangway,” a notorious hub for illegal mining and criminal activity in Aboso, within the Prestea-Huni Valley District of the Western.

In a pre-dawn operation on Monday, October 5, 2025, a heavily armed NAiMOS Task Force stormed the enclave, dismantling makeshift shanties that had long served as hideouts for illegal miners, drug dealers, and gamblers.

Thick plumes of smoke billowed over the area as wooden structures and mining equipment were set ablaze in a coordinated security offensive.

The operation caused shock and surrender among residents, many of whom were allegedly involved in galamsey and related illicit trades.

Dozens reportedly turned themselves in peacefully to authorities.

During the raid, operatives seized several parcels of hard drugs, including 11 wraps of Indian hemp, revealing the deep link between illegal mining and narcotics trafficking in the community’s shadow economy.

This decisive action follows an earlier operation in June 2025, when NAiMOS operatives warned illegal miners and criminal gangs to vacate the area.

Despite repeated appeals from traditional authorities, including the Chiefs of Aboso, unlawful activities persisted — prompting the latest intervention.

In a related exercise, NAiMOS teams extended the operation to the Dadwen-Dompim stretch in the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipality, where they seized or destroyed 15 water-pumping machines, a generator, and three Chanfangs used for illegal mining.

Several unauthorised mining structures in the area were also demolished.

Officials from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources say the latest operation forms part of the government’s intensified campaign to eradicate galamsey, reclaim degraded lands, and restore law and order across the Western Region.

The successful raid reaffirms NAiMOS’s determination to dismantle illegal mining networks, disrupt criminal economies, and protect Ghana’s natural resources for future generations.