Sixteen people have been arrested by the police for attacking and robbing illegal gold miners, popularly called �galamsey� operators, in parts of the country.
The suspects include two police and five military personnel and nine civilians.
The security personnel are said to have teamed up with some civilians to rob the miners of gold dust and mobile telephones at gun-point. In one of the operations at Denyire Nyinawusu, near Dunkwa-On-Offin, on July 21 they succeeded in bolting with GH�1,910 and some gold dust belonging to Chinese �galamsey� operators.
Those arrested are Constable Murtala Musah of the Buffalo Unit, Kumasi; Bismark Ntow, of Zongo Police, Kumasi; Stephen Nsor, a community policeman, attached to the Central police station, Kumasi.
The military personnel are Lance Corporals Farouk and Tommy, both of the Fourth Battalion of Infantry, Kumasi; Privates Ahmed Ridewan and Nasser Gideon, both of the Air Borne Unit in Tamale and Lance Bombadier Frimpong oof the 66 artillery regiment in Ho.
Their civilian counterparts are Isaac Asare, John Appiah, Solomon Opoku, Kofi Gyan, Ohene Gyan Dacosta, Kwaku Francis, Ibrahim Anas, Jonas Nyarko and Yaw Nkrumah, a taxi driver.
The Ashanti Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Augustine Gyening, said the arrest followed measures to clamp down on robberies involving police and military personnel.
Speaking to newsmen here, the Commander said the exercise was in fulfillment of the Police Administration�s pledge to flush out all criminals in the military and the police as part of its responsibility to the good people of Ghana.
The operations were carried out at various mine sites at Konongo, Amansie West, Amansie Central and Dunkwa-on-Offin.
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