Ghana’s Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) has frozen the bank accounts of Akonta Mining and its owner, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, also known as Chairman Wontumi, in connection with alleged financial irregularities. Sources confirmed to the Daily Graphic that the accounts were frozen under Section 56(1) of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2020 (Act 1044), which grants the FIC the authority to restrict access to accounts if there is reasonable suspicion of illicit financial activity.
This action highlights the FIC’s heightened efforts to combat financial crimes in Ghana. The agency has recently intensified enforcement actions against individuals and companies suspected of violating anti-money laundering laws.
The freezing of Chairman Wontumi’s accounts marks a significant step in the government’s ongoing campaign against corruption and financial misconduct, particularly in the natural resources sector. In an official directive to financial institutions, the FIC ordered that all transactions involving Chairman Wontumi, Akonta Mining, and Hallmark Civil Engineering Limited be halted “pending further instructions.”
This investigation is the latest in a series of high-profile financial probes being led by the FIC under its current leadership. Chairman Wontumi, who has faced increasing public scrutiny, is at the centre of controversy as Akonta Mining’s operations have come under government scrutiny. The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, recently directed that Akonta Mining’s operating licence be revoked due to alleged illegal activities.
In a press briefing in Accra last Monday, Minister Buah labelled Akonta Mining as a “criminal syndicate,” accusing the company of engaging in unauthorised mining in protected forest reserves. This followed an intelligence-led raid on six mining sites by security agencies and Forestry Commission personnel, which led to the arrest of 51 illegal miners and the seizure of 30 excavators and other equipment. The raid uncovered illegal mining operations in the Samreboi enclave of the Western North Region, breaching the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 995).
The investigation and subsequent account freezes are a part of Ghana’s broader efforts to curb corruption and illegal mining activities, particularly within the country’s mining sector.
