Chinese citizen bags jail term in Ghana over illegal gold mining

A Chinese national has been sentenced to jail by a Ghanaian court over illegal gold mining in the West African country

The court sentence has brought a conclusion to a case that began in 2017 and shed light on Chinese involvement in the practice.

Aisha Huang was sentenced to four and a half years in prison and a fine of 48,000 Ghanaian cedis ($4,000) by a court in Accra, according to Huang’s lawyer Hope Agboado.

The Chinese national initially pleaded not guilty but changed her plea to guilty as the trial progressed.

Her lawyer stated that he had asked the court to impose a fine and deport her rather than sentencing her to jail.

Hope Àgbàdo stressed that he and Huang are still considering whether to file an appeal to overturn the judgment.

The gold, oil, and cocoa rich West African nation is dealing with an epidemic of illicit mining, with Chinese nationals accused of heading some of the activities that have devastated large tracts of forest, polluted water bodies, and sometimes encroached on big-scale miners’ concessions.

Ghana is facing its worst economic crisis in decades as the price of goods rose at an average of 41% over the past year and candidates are expected to campaign along this line among others.