A member of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) task force has died after the vehicle carrying the team was involved in a crash in the Obuasi area of the Ashanti Region on Wednesday.
The team was returning from an operation at a mining site near Anyankyirem when their vehicle reportedly veered off the road and overturned. The deceased officer, whose identity has not yet been released, died at the scene. Several other officers were taken to hospital with injuries, some said to be in critical condition.
The task force had spent the day conducting an anti-illegal mining sweep around Obuasi, part of a wider effort to clamp down on unauthorised mining activity in the area. The terrain where the accident occurred is known for steep sections and sharp turns, and early accounts suggest the team was travelling along one of the rougher access routes used during their deployments.
Ashanti Regional authorities described the death as a tragic loss and said support would be provided to the officer’s family. They added that an investigation is underway to determine what caused the vehicle to lose control and whether any operational or mechanical factors contributed to the crash.
The incident has drawn renewed attention to the risks faced by security and regulatory teams in the fight against illegal mining. NAIMOS personnel frequently operate in remote and difficult landscapes, often for long hours, and safety concerns have been raised in the past about the conditions under which the teams work.
Officials say more information will be released once the investigation progresses and the injured officers are stabilised.
