Justice Lydia Osei Marfo has wished for a stiffer punishment for galamsey magnate, Aisha Huang, but for the laws under which she was tried.
The judge, who jailed the kingpin of illegal mining 4 years and six months with a fine of GHC48,000.00, says it was her desire to compensate Ghana adequately for the crimes committed by Aisha Huang against the state.
However, Act 900, which set a maximum penalty of five years for engaging in mining activities without a license, under which the galamsey mogul was tried, limits her to the duration slapped on her.
Before delivering her sentence Monday, December 4, 2023, Justice Marfo intimated that, “I wish I had the right to impose the punishment under the current law.”
Meanwhile, under the new legal regime introduced by the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act 2019, Act 995, Aisha Huang could have faced a minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 25 years in prison.
In November 2022, Aisha Huang faced charges on four counts; engaging in mining activities without a license, facilitating the operation of individuals in mining without a license, illegal employment of foreign nationals, and entering Ghana while prohibited.
She was reported to have re-entered Ghana through the Aflao border to engage in mining activities in October 2022, despite having been deported in 2018. The state had filed a nolle prosequi into similar charges at that time.
Throughout the over one-year trial, the Chinese illegal miner pleaded not guilty to all counts except the charge of entering Ghana while prohibited from doing so.
The state presented eleven witnesses, including farmers who testified to selling farmlands to the convict and witnessing her engaging in illegal mining on the lands. State prosecutors also produced video evidence demonstrating the level of devastation caused by Aisha Huang.
After carefully considering the evidence, the judge concluded that the “state has discharged its burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt.”
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