The Office of the Attorney-General has filed a six-count criminal charge sheet at the High Court (Criminal Division) in Accra against the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Wontumi, over alleged violations of Ghana’s mining laws.
He is charged alongside Kwame Antwi and Akonta Mining Company Limited, which is owned by Wontumi. According to court documents, the second accused, Kwame Antwi, is currently at large.
The charges stem from alleged unauthorised mining operations at Samreboi in the Western Region and are grounded in the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), as amended by the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 995).
In the first charge, prosecutors claim that in 2024, Wontumi allowed two individuals, Henry Okum and Michael Gyedu Ayisi, to conduct mining activities within Akonta Mining’s concession without obtaining written approval from the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources. This, according to the Attorney-General, breaches Sections 14(1) and 99(2)(b) of the Minerals and Mining Act.
A similar charge has been brought against Kwame Antwi, who, as a director of Akonta Mining, is also accused of permitting unauthorised mining within the same concession, violating the same provisions of the law.
The third charge targets Akonta Mining Company Limited itself. The firm is alleged to have allowed unauthorised mining to take place on its concession without the required ministerial consent, making it liable under corporate responsibility provisions of the Act.
The Attorney-General further accuses Wontumi of deliberately facilitating mining activities by the same two individuals, who did not hold valid licences to operate. Prosecutors contend that he enabled their operations within Akonta Mining’s concession in breach of the Minerals and Mining Act.
Kwame Antwi faces a similar allegation of intentionally aiding unlicensed miners on the company’s concession. The state maintains that his conduct also constitutes a violation of the same legal provisions.
The final count is directed at Akonta Mining Company Limited, with the company accused of enabling unlicensed mining within its concession — an act that constitutes a corporate offence under Section 99(2)(b) of Act 703.
The case, filed on October 6, 2025, by the Attorney-General’s Office led by Dr. Dominic Ayine, highlights the state’s increasing use of existing mining laws to address the growing menace of illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey. It is expected to test the extent of both individual and corporate accountability under Ghana’s mining regulations.
Source: Adomonline
ALSO READ:
- Chairman Wontumi granted GH₵1 million bailÂ
- Chairman Wontumi’s trial over alleged galamsey begins today
Read the full charge sheet below:
