Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, has questioned the basis of his prosecution in an alleged illegal mining case, arguing that individuals who claimed ownership of seized items have instead been turned into prosecution witnesses.
Testifying before the Criminal Division of the High Court in Accra, presided over by Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, the accused, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, maintained under cross-examination that he had been unfairly singled out by the Republic.
According to him, weapons, gold, vehicles, and other items retrieved during operations were wrongfully attributed to him, despite others allegedly admitting ownership.“I have been brought to court, meanwhile those who claimed the items belong to them have been left and are now witnesses against me,” he told the court.
Wontumi further denied any involvement in illegal mining activities, commonly known as galamsey, insisting he neither authorised nor participated in such operations on the concession belonging to Akonta Mining Company Ltd, where he serves as a director.
He stated that he was not present at the site at the time of the alleged activities and had no knowledge of the seized items.
During proceedings, Deputy Attorney-General Justice Srem-Sai led the cross-examination, probing the operations and administrative compliance of the third accused company, Akonta Mining.
Under questioning, Wontumi admitted that the company had not filed annual returns with the Registrar of Companies and had never held board meetings, explaining that the company had not commenced operations due to lack of parliamentary ratification.
He, however, acknowledged that the company had previously been involved in litigation with Samartex Timber and Plywood Company Limited over land use rights. The court was told that although both entities held rights over the same land, Akonta Mining was restrained from operating until it completed its documentation. The prosecution tendered a May 19, 2023 judgment of the Sekondi High Court in that matter as evidence.
Wontumi also denied allegations that he granted permission to one Henry Okum to undertake mining activities on the concession or assisted him in acquiring heavy-duty equipment.
Instead, he claimed Okum had approached him to undertake land reclamation and coconut planting, with an understanding to share proceeds upon maturity. He admitted, however, that there was no written agreement to that effect.
The accused further rejected claims that he deliberately avoided visiting the concession to distance himself from illegal mining activities, insisting that only the sector minister has authority to assign mining rights.
“I cannot assign a concession to anyone. That power rests with the minister,” he told the court.
The prosecution put it to him that his business model involved acquiring mining leases and allowing others to engage in illegal mining for a share of the proceeds, a claim he described as “falsehood with no evidence.”
Meanwhile, defence counsel Andy Appiah-Kubi prayed the court for additional time to file witness statements for two defence witnesses said to be outside the jurisdiction.
However, the prosecution opposed the request, arguing that no such statements had been filed and urging the court to close the case.
Ruling on the matter, Justice Kocuvie-Tay granted the defence an extension until May 28, 2026, to present its witnesses, failing which the court would close the case and proceed to addresses. The case was accordingly adjourned to May 28, 2026.
Andy Appiah Kubi, defence counsel leads his client
Q. Mentioned your full name to the court?
A. My name is Bernard Antwi Boasiako
Q. Do you know the third accused?
A. Yes
Q. How are you related to the third accused company?
A. I know the third accused company that it has a lease to operate. I am a director of the company.
Q. Do you have the authority of the third accused company to give evidence on its behalf?
A. Yes, my Lady
Q. You have two documents discovered in this case? One filed on May 5, 2026 and the other filed on the 6th of May, 2026. What do you want to do with it?
A. I want to rely on this documents as my evidence-in-chief.
Mining lease from the government of Ghana, letter from Akonta Mining Company Ltd. to the regional security counsel, investigation cautioned statement of Henry dated 7, July 2025, police investigative caution statement of Alhassan Mohammed date 7 July, 2025, police investigative caution statement of Alex Obeng.
Cross-examination by Justice Srem-Sai – Deputy Attorney General
Q. Do you know anyone by name Kwame Antwi?
A. Yes, my Lady
Q. Where does he live?
A. He was then living at Tarkwa but between the years 2021 and 2022, he made his mind to travel and since then I’ve not heard from him.
Q. How are you related to this Kwame Antwi?
A. We are directors of Akonta Mining Ltd.
Q. Tell the court the last time that you, as directors of Akonta Mining, filed your annual returns with the registrar of companies?
A. I can’t remember.
Q. Have you ever filed an annual returns on behalf of A3?
A. The company is not operating.
Q. I’m suggesting to you that you have never filed your annual returns on behalf of A3 at the Registrar of Companies?
A. My Lady we have never operated.
Q. I am putting it to you that a company must file its returns regardless of whether they work or operate or not?
A. I don’t know.
Q. Have you ever held a board of directors meeting for A3?
A. No my Lady. We’ve never had or held a meeting.
Q. Has A3 ever been engaged in civil litigation with a company called Samartex Timber and Plywood Company limited?
A. Yes, my Lady
Q. The subject matter of that litigation was on the operations of A3. Do you know?
A. That is not so.
Q. Kindly take a look at this document. It is a copy of the court’s ruling in the case that A3 had with Samartex in the Sekondi High Court. Is that not so?
A. Yes my Lady. Samartex Company is a timber company and they are on the same land the government gave me as a lease. And so when we got our licence to work. We were supposed to know where we have to build structures and where we were to place our machines when they are brought.
They also told us that that is the same place they would also want to build their office. So, they took us to court. The court stated to us that we have a lease for mining and they also have a license for lumbering, but we do not have parliamentary ratification to work. So we should go and complete documentation before we could do anything. That is why I’m saying we have never worked.
Prosecution: We wish to tender the judgment of the High Court Sekondi delivered May 19, 2023.
Q. I am putting it to you that based on…you have said it is not true that A3 has not commenced business?
A. That is not true. We never worked.
Q. Do you know PW2, Mr. Henry Okum?
A. I got to know him when he went to Akonta. But before then I did not know him.
Q. Tell the court when PW2 went to Akonta.
A. I got to know that in 2024 Henry Okum said he had gone to Minerals Commission and had seen that Akonta Mining Company is located at site.
Q. Mr. Okum is a small scale miner. True or false.
A. I don’t know.
Q. On January 15, 2026, Mr. Okum told this court that you wrote a letter on behalf of A3 to Western REGSEC to clear illegal miners from A3’s concession. Did you write that letter?
A. I remember that since we started appearing before this court and up till now, there about 40 groups of illegal miners on the land currently as we speak. So, I write a letter to the Director of CID.
Q. On May 19, 2026, Mr. Mireku-Duker told this court that you wrote a letter to the Regional Security Council, Western Region to go and clear A3’s concession of illegal miners. Did you write any such letter?
A. Yes, my Lady
Q. You handed A3’s concession to Henry Okum to enter and work. True or false?
A. That is not true.
Q. You also assisted Henry Okum to purchase earth moving equipment including excavators so he could use them to work on A3’s concession. True or false?
A. My Lady, that is not so. What I know is that Mr. Okum went onto the site to cover dark holes on the land and I also did not assist him to purchase any earth moving equipment.
Q. You gave permission to Henry Okum to go onto A3’s concession. Did you ever go there to see what he was doing on the land after you allowed him to go to the land.
A. I’ve not been onto the land. But what I know is that he has reclaimed land and planted about 18,000 coconut trees on it per the videos he brought to me.
Q. Do you know is it is the duty of a minerals rights holder to ensure that the concessions given is used only in accordance with the terms of the licence he has been given?
A. Yes, my Lady
Q. I am putting it to you that by failing to go and see what exactly Henry Okum was doing on the land, you have it performed your duties?
A. That is not true.
Q. Do you have any record of what you told Henry Okum to go and do on A3’s concession?
A. I don’t have any documentary issues with PW2 apart from the fact that he should reclaim the land and plant coconut tree, which he has done that when it matures we share. That is why Mr. Ernest Obeng and Obeng Manu said they reclaimed the land and planted coconut.
Q. Apart from documents, which you have told this court that you didn’t have evidence of your instructions to PW2, do you have any other record, which evidences this alleged instruction to PW2 that he could only carry out reclamation on A3’s concession?
A. No. There’s none.
Q. I’m suggesting to you that you knew at the time that PW2 approached you that PW2 was a small scale miner.
A. I’m not aware. He told me he is a service support worker.
Q. I am putting it to you that it is because you knew that he is a small scale miner that you gave him permission to enter A3’s concession and to mine.
A. My lady that is not true. Akonta Mining, our interest is gold. And that you have to pay millions of Dollars before you acquire mining licence. And if the reason why we acquired the licence is gold, why would we give the profit that we will gain from mining to another person to mine while Akonta Mining will not gain anything from it.
So it is not true. He came that he wanted to reclaim the land and plant coconut so that when it matures we share. Akonta Mining never had any mining contact with him and he is also not part of Akonta Mining.
Q. I am putting it to you that because you knew the purpose of allowing him to enter A3’s concession was to mine, you helped him to purchase heavy duty earth moving equipment to use on the land for mining?
A. That is not true. From the beginning, when I was called to the police station they told me that Mr. Martin Kpebu says I have gone to do galamsey. And that they have arrested people with guns, cars and gold which they said was mine. When the time came for evidence to be taken, the one who reported me did not avail himself for me to question him. The guns, the ammunition, the gold, the cars are not mine.
Martin Kpebu and co. who made a report that they have arrested PW2 and PW1…to see gold, guns, ammunition and cars and they said they were not doing galamsey and I was not arrested at the scene where I have not given permission to anyone neither has A3 given permission to anyone to go and mine on the concession and all the items they confiscated at the scene and I do not know anything about them. I rather has been brought to court and the people who claimed the items belong to them have been left and brought to court as witnesses against me.
Q. I am putting it to you that you chose not to visit A3’s concession and to be seen there simply because you want to avoid any physical connection, which with what PW2 and his employees were doing for you?
A. My lady that is not true. Now that I have been brought here what they are charging with me is that a land that belongs to Akonta Mining I have assigned it to PW2. My Lady, I cannot do that. It is only the minister who has that power to do that.
Q. Finally I’m putting it to you that it is your business model to acquire mining lease, but to allow other people to engage in the actual illegal mining activities and to pass on the proceeds to you?
Q. My lady that is not true. It is falsehood that has no evidence and that is why Mr Kpebu and co who initially went to report could not come before this court with evidence that I have given any assignment to anyone or that I’m working on said land. I never worked there. Martin Kpebu does not know me.
Q. Finally, finally I’m putting it to you that the proceeds you get from your business model is within the illegal mining community, called ‘good will’ or ‘percentage.
A. That is not true. Nobody will go to Registrar of Companies and go for thieves to go and work on the land.
My lady for example in 2025 Anglogold Ashanti killed about 20 people who were illegally working on their land. And that no large scale mining company will allow any other person to mine on their concession. Where their interest is gold. No large scale mining company will allow any other person to mine on their concession.
As we speak now there are illegal miners on the concession. Also last week NAIMOS claimed they arrested about 275 illegal miners both locals and foreigners.
Kubi- Defence counsel: the challenge we have is that two of our witness are out of the jurisdiction. That they have been away before the CMC. I have information that they are all coming next week. The first person will be in the country on Tuesday. We still intend to rely on their evidence.
We pray that that your ladyship shows mercy and allow us to file the witness statements of our two witnesses in the early part of next week and possibly give evidence in the later part of the week.
DAG: we are opposed to the prayer. Just last week counsel informed that the alleged witnesses were going to arrive and he will file their witness statements this week. Today counsel is giving another day for their arrival.
What is clear however, is that there are no witness statements before my lady in respect of which my lady could take an adjournment.
Secondly, even if there were witness statements, the rule CI 87 and the practice direction and the evidence decree give this court the power to close the trial where the witness is unavailable to be cross-examined. We, therefore, pray that my lady will reject this prayer.
Judge: it is the considered view of this court that at all material times this court has exercised its discretion under article 296 and article 19(1) of the 1992 constitution. As far back as the month of March this court ordered the accused person to file his witness statement…
As of today he is praying for extension of time to file additional witness statements. I do not know how much time accused person wants this court to give him in terms of article 19(1) of the constitution.
I will further make reference to rule 4…
Having read the said rule, this court will extend time till the 28 of May, 2026 for the accused person to put their witness in the box in default of which the court will assume they do not have any other witnesses and close this matter for addresses to be filed.
This case is adjourned to 28 May, 2025 for the accused to call their next witness.
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