The Koforidua Circuit Court A has sentenced a Togolese national, Yaw Shaibu, to 18 years imprisonmenet with hard labour for engaging in illegal mining activities at Akyem Mouso in the Atewa West District of the Eastern Region.
A crackdown on illegal mining got Shaibu arrested following the destruction of the environment due to illegal mining activities also known as ‘galamsey’.
The court, presided over by High Court Judge Her Lordship Abigail Animah Asare, who was serving in an additional capacity at the circuit court, convicted Shaibu after he pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit a crime related to illegal mining and engaging in mining without a valid license.
Shaibu was also fined 10,000 penalty units alongside his prison sentence for both counts.
The 18-year prison term will run concurrently, meaning Shaibu will serve both sentences at the same time. However, the fine, which translates to a total of 20,000 penalty units, will run consecutively. This means that the financial penalties for each count must be paid separately, increasing the total amount he owes.
Shaibu pleaded with the court to allow him to go back to his country and wouldn’t return to Ghana to indulge in galamsey again, when given the chance to speak before his sentencing.
But the judge said despite having the right to appeal the sentencing, the devastating nature of his crime, considering the environmental impact, warranted the firm sentence given to him.
Her Lordship Animah Asare, delivering her sentence, asked the court interpreter to inform the audience of the environmental ramifications of illegal mining and urged those involved in galamsey to stop.
In addition to Shaibu’s sentencing, the court also addressed the cases of five other individuals arrested for alleged illegal mining at Akyem Adasawase. These individuals, namely Eric Niko, David Kodza, Robert Mawuli, Awuli David, and Nana Kojo Ayimadu, had been arrested on October 16, 2024, by the Ghana National Association of Small-Scale Miners Taskforce. The court granted them bail, but only after significant deliberation.
