Kemenhut halts illegal gold mining in North Sulawesi forest
One excavator and five people were secured in Bolaang Mongondow, with two later named suspects in the case.
The Ministry of Forestry stopped unlicensed gold mining in the Mobungayom Limited Production Forest area in Bolaang Mongondow regency, North Sulawesi. The joint operation began with a public report that was then verified by the Sulawesi Region of the Forestry Law Enforcement Agency together with the Kotamobagu Police, TNI, Brimob, and forest rangers. When officers arrived, an excavator was still operating inside the forest area. Authorities secured one excavator and five people at the site, and investigators later named two of them as suspects: the heavy equipment operator and the person responsible for the activity. Forestry law enforcement director general Dwi Januanto Nugroho said the investigation would be expanded to trace the equipment owner, financiers, people who gave the orders, and others suspected of involvement.