The Saraya territorial brigade conducted a large-scale operation on the night of December 16, 2025, dismantling an illegal mining operation in the Falémé area, despite it being subject to a decree suspending mining activities. The operation took place in the village of Bantinkhoto, in the commune of Missirah Sirimana, following a precise intelligence report indicating clandestine activities being carried out under cover of darkness.

Alerted to the presence of mining operators in a strictly prohibited area, law enforcement deployed a rigorous surveillance and intervention operation. After several hours of observation, the gendarmes executed a carefully prepared operational plan, catching the perpetrators red-handed in the act of illegal mining.

On the site, ten individuals, including a suspected leader, were arrested while they were extracting mineral substances less than 100 m from the bed of the Falémé, using two mechanical shovels.

However, the area is subject to a decree suspending all mining activities within a 500-meter radius of the Falémé River. Marker posts had already been installed to clearly delineate the prohibited boundaries. Despite these measures, the operators allegedly chose to operate at night in order to circumvent controls and illegally exploit the protected area.

The operation resulted in the seizure of two mechanical shovels and the arrest of the ten offenders, who are now being prosecuted for illegal exploitation of mineral substances, damage to the forest domain and violation of the decree suspending mining activities in the Falémé area.

Through this intervention, the territorial gendarmerie brigade of Saraya reaffirms the determination of the defense and security forces to fight against illegal mining and to preserve the environment, in a context where these clandestine practices represent serious threats to ecosystems and local populations.