Nana Yaw Boadu, a former Special Monitoring and Evacuation Officer of the Inter-ministerial Committee On Illegal Mining (IMCIM), has been apprehended by the Asokwa District Divisional Police Command.
His arrest was made at the residence of Nana Bi-Kusi Appiah II, Chief of Manso Nkwanta in the Ashanti Region after he allegedly said he was ordered by the presidency to come and confiscate some excavators in the area.
Speaking in a live interview on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem morning show, Francis Asibi, head of the monitoring team at IMCIM, confirmed the arrest of the man, stating that he had even written a report of his conduct to the Committee.
According to him, there have been several complaints of him extorting huge sums of monies from miners using the name of the IMCIM as well as names of some ministers.
“It is not part of our job to take monies from miners whose excavators have been seized, we don’t do that,” he told host of the show, Chief Jerry Forson.
Mr. Asibi welcomed his arrest saying it dispels the notion held by the public that members of IMCIM extort monies from illegal miners, which is not the case.
He further revealed that, aside Operation Vanguard and Galamstop, some five different groups claiming to be with IMCIM, have been identified to be extorting monies from illegal miners as well as seizing their excavators.
He, therefore, urged the police service to ensure that the five different groups are arrested.
Superintendent Owusu Pienim, the District Commander of the Asokwa District Police Command, said investigations have commenced into the arrest of Mr. Boadu.
According to him, the validity of Mr. Boadu’s claim that he was sent by the Jubilee House to confiscate excavators in the area will be ascertained.
