The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, will spend the night in police custody after failing to satisfy bail conditions totaling ₵25 million in two separate illegal mining-related cases before the Criminal Division of the High Court in Accra.
Earlier in the day, the NPP executive was placed on a stop list and granted ₵15 million bail after pleading not guilty to six mining-related charges filed by the Office of the Attorney-General.
First Case: Six Charges Over Unlicensed Mining
The first case involves allegations that Chairman Wontumi, through his company Akonta Mining Company Limited, assigned mineral rights without approval and facilitated unlicensed mining operations, in violation of Ghana’s mining laws.
Appearing before the court, Wontumi and Akonta Mining both pleaded not guilty to all six counts. A second accused person, Kwame Antwi, identified as a co-director of the company, is currently at large.
Second Case: Illegal Mining in Tano Nimiri Forest Reserve
Later in the day, Chairman Wontumi appeared before another High Court in connection with a second criminal case involving illegal mining activities in the Tano Nimiri Forest Reserve at Samreboi in the Western Region.
In this case, Wontumi and four others face seven charges, including:
- Undertaking mining operations without a license,
- Felling trees in a forest reserve without authorization, and
- Erecting unauthorized structures within a protected forest zone.
The court, after listening to both the prosecution and defense, granted him ₵10 million bail with two sureties, one of whom must justify the bail with landed property.
However, as of Tuesday evening, the bail conditions had not been met, leading to Wontumi’s continued detention in police custody overnight.
Wontumi Pleads Not Guilty to All Charges
Chairman Wontumi has pleaded not guilty to all 13 combined charges across the two cases, insisting he has not breached any mining laws.
The Attorney-General’s Office is prosecuting both cases as part of a broader crackdown on illegal mining (galamsey) and alleged abuse of mining concessions in forest reserves.
