Five persons have been arrested for engaging in illegal sand-winning activities at Gonsie, a suburb of the Weija Gbawe Municipality in the Greater Accra Region.

The suspects were arrested on Thursday evening in an operation led by the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Patrick Kumor.

Mr Kumor, giving the details of the arrest, said it was a joint police-military operation to crack down on people who operate at night.

“It was an ambush, there was no way the suspects could run. The police fired warning shots at them and so they had no option but to cooperate.

“The Assembly works during the day and so you don’t see them around, their operations are mostly at night,” he said.

Mr Kumor bemoaned the activities of the miners which he said are destroying roads within the area and have the potential of causing a mudslide.

Meanwhile, he has indicated the suspects will soon be arraigned.

“We cannot continue this way. I have warned them time and time again that when these issues come to my attention I will ensure that the suspects are apprehended. No culprit will be spared,” he noted.