The Koforidua Circuit Court ‘B’ has jailed three illegal Miners four years each for illegally mining gold in the Atewa Forest Reserve.
The convicts are to additionally pay a fine of GH₵36, 000 each.
The convicts, Kofi Abraham, 21, Yaw Afrifa, 28, and Bismark Gyamfi, 21, all pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit crime, illegal mining and Mining without license.
The Prosecutor, Kwasi Opare Wiredu told the Court Presided over by Her Honour Mercy Adei Kotei that, the complainant is a Forestry Services official in charge of the Atewa Range Forest Reserve.
He said the convicts were arrested on February 26, 2018 by the Forest guards of the Forestry services led by Anyinam Range Manager, Palmer Aikens at the Anyem Bormaa portion of the Atewa Forest Reserve while mining in the deep forest reserve together with one other who escaped arrest.
The arresting officers retrieved a pumping machine, pick axe, four metal buckets, a washing carpet, shovel and head pan.
The three convicts before their sentence pleaded to the court to forgive them because they engaged in the act to get money to feed themselves.
The Begoro District Manager of the Forestry Services, Kwame Oteng Awuah told Kasapa News after the judgement that the swift sentence will boost morale of officers to relentlessly continue to clamp down on recalcitrant illegal miners who have diverted their attention into the Atewa Forest Reserve.
