A military officer, believed to be attached to the Tarkwa-Aboso Military Quarters in the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipality, has allegedly been assaulted by suspected illegal miners at Wassa Akyempim in the Wassa East District of the Western Region.

The incident, residents said, happened when the soldier, identified as Timothy Adzakosi, visited an illegal mining (galamsey) site with three of his colleagues for reasons yet unknown.

They said the suspected illegal miners inflicted cutlass wounds on the head and arms of the soldier after they chased him from the site and pounced on him at a fuel station at Wassa Akyempim.

“The military officer was chased by the suspected illegal miners from the site. They chased him to a fuel filing station at Wassa Akyempim, where he finally got tired and could not run further so the suspects got hold of him and butchered him in the head."

"In the process, he used his hands to block any strike to prevent further injuries on his head, and as a result, he sustained serious degrees of injuries on his hands,” the residents stated.

They indicated that the three other officers managed to escape unhurt.

However, information gathered by the Ghana News Agency revealed that Adzakosi is currently receiving medical attention at the Wassa Ateiku Health Centre.

Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports also indicated that two of the suspects had been arrested by the Wassa East District Police Command for further investigations.

All efforts to get the Wassa East police for comments proved futile.