The High Court in Accra has imposed a sentence of 20 years in prison on Bernard Antwi Boasiako, the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), commonly referred to as Chairman Wontumi, for each of the two counts for which he was found guilty in the Akonta Mining illegal mining case.
These sentences are to be served concurrently.
Furthermore, the court has levied a fine of 10,000 penalty units for each count against Wontumi.
Akonta Mining Limited, which was also found guilty on two counts, has been fined 15,000 penalty units for each count.
Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay determined that Wontumi was guilty on Counts One and Four, while Akonta Mining Limited was convicted on Counts Three and Six, after concluding that the prosecution had established all necessary elements of the offences beyond a reasonable doubt.
The convictions came after the court rejected a last-minute motion from the defence that sought to postpone the judgment and refer constitutional matters to the Supreme Court.
This application, submitted on July 16, 2026, contended that the constitutional issues raised in the defence’s written submission required interpretation by the highest court.
However, Justice Kocuvie-Tay ruled that Section 99(2)(b) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703) was explicit and did not conflict with Article 19(11) of the 1992 Constitution.
Referencing the case of R v. Mainkankan, the judge stated that constitutional referrals are only warranted in instances of genuine ambiguity.
