An illegal Chinese miner in Ghana has been arrested after he shot three locals with an AK47.
The suspect was immediately arrested by police and the wounded men taken to hospital, according to Spy Ghana.
The Chinese man was reportedly one of a group of four who have since been arrested for illegally mining in the area, a situation which had caused tension in the local region.
These tensions resulted in locals attacking and looting the illegal operation, which in turn caused the Chinese miner to open fire on the looters.
The level of illegal mining in Ghana, particularly by Chinese workers, has risen of late and seen a number of violent outbursts.
Late last year a Ghanaian government crackdown on illegal mining in the country killed a 16 year old Chinese miner, sparking protests from China.
It comes as China seeks to have more influence and presence on the continent, while gaining access to its relatively untapped minerals and metals.
The police raid on the alleged gold mine saw around 100 Chinese workers arrested on the suspicion of illegal gold mining.
At the time Richard Kofi Afenu, sectoral policy and planning manager at Ghana’s Mineral Commission explained that "most of these Chinese illegal miners are heavily armed and shoot at anyone that gets near them.
"In this case, they opened fire when police tried to arrest [these Chinese miners], it is not as though police wanted to shoot them.
Africa is now seen as the new hotspot by China, as lax rules and regulations as well as high levels of mineral wealth attracts potential miners.