Fifteen excavators that had been impounded as exhibits in an ongoing illegal mining case were on Friday, July 10, removed from the premises of the Enchi District Assembly by armed military personnel in an operation that has raised fresh questions about the enforcement of court orders relating to anti-galamsey activities.

The heavy equipment formed part of 35 excavators confiscated during an anti-illegal mining operation in May 2025 when security agencies clamped down on unauthorised mining activities inside the Tano Anwia Forest Reserve in the Western North Region.

Information gathered indicated that the armed soldiers arrived at the assembly premises in broad daylight with 15 low-bed haulage trucks, surrounded the parked excavators and directed that the machines be released for transportation.

According to sources at the scene, the officers informed officials that they were acting on "orders from above" and subsequently loaded the excavators onto the waiting trucks before leaving the Assembly premises.

The operation reportedly took place despite the existence of ongoing legal proceedings concerning the ownership and custody of the equipment.

The seized excavators were being held as part of investigations into illegal mining activities that allegedly caused extensive destruction within the Tano Anwia Forest Reserve, one of the country's protected forest ecosystems.

Large portions of the reserve affected by the illegal mining operations are yet to be rehabilitated, according to persons familiar with the matter.

The dispute over the excavators is currently before the Sefwi Wiawso High Court, where the concessionaire, Clean Jobs, has initiated legal action concerning the equipment and mining activities within the concession.

As part of the proceedings, the High Court granted an interlocutory injunction restraining the release, transfer or disposal of the excavators until the substantive case is determined.

The order was intended to preserve the status quo while the court adjudicates the matter.

However, on Friday, armed military personnel reportedly entered the Enchi District Assembly compound and removed 15 of the impounded excavators, notwithstanding the pending court process.

The circumstances surrounding the operation and the legal authority under which the equipment was released remain unclear.

Officials at the Assembly were reportedly instructed to allow the machines to be taken away, while no official explanation had been issued at the time of filing this report regarding the basis for the operation or whether the court had varied or set aside its earlier order.