Fresh controversy has engulfed the murder case involving the killing of Abamba Queen Mother, Nana Serwaa Asamaa Agyankoma I, after the court where some murder suspects have been arraigned questioned police over the death of a key suspect linked to the investigation.
The development unfolded during proceedings involving the Chief of Akokoa and Nifahene of the Atebubu Traditional Area, Nana Owusu Sahkofi, also known as Charles Kofi Owusu, who is standing trial alongside other accused persons over the murder of the queen mother.
According to accounts from the courtroom, one of the most dramatic moments occurred when the presiding judge asked police to explain the circumstances surrounding the death of one of the suspects, Nana Yaw Bediako, who the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Christian Tetteh Yohuno, paraded at a press conference in Atebubu, as the one who shot the queen mother in February.
What is shocking is that Nana Bediako was among those the IGP paraded that day. There is suspicion among his co-accused persons that the police killed him to hide evidence, and that others could also be killed.
Police reportedly informed the court that the suspect died “in the process of arrest”. However, the explanation is said to have immediately raised concerns because the deceased suspect allegedly died about a week after his arrest while being transported from Atebubu to Techiman.
The deceased suspect is widely believed to have been the central figure whose alleged statements formed the basis for implicating the Akokoa chief in the murder plot. His death has intensified public suspicion and triggered renewed calls for an independent inquiry into the circumstances under which he died while in police custody or transit.
Despite concerns raised during the proceedings, the court reportedly remanded the Akokoa chief in custody for two weeks.
Three persons, including the Chief of Akokoa in the Atebubu Traditional Area, have been charged with conspiracy to commit murder and murder over the killing of the Queen Mother of Abamba, Nana Serwaa Asamaa Agyankoma I, at Atebubu in the Bono East Region.
The accused persons are Issahaku Alhassan, also known as Sule Yangari, a 66-year-old convict prisoner currently serving a sentence at Sunyani Central Prisons; Abdul Razak Ibrahim Langa, 32, a trader residing at Agona Swedru; and Nana Owusu Sahkofi, also known as Charles Kofi Owusu, 56, a businessman and Chief of Akokoa, who is also the Nifahene of the Atebubu Traditional Area.
According to court documents, the accused persons, together with Nana Yaw Bediako, now deceased, allegedly conspired to murder the Queen Mother on February 25, 2026.
The prosecution said the accused persons acted with a common purpose to commit the crime of murder, contrary to Sections 23(1) and 46 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).
The second count alleges that the accused intentionally caused the death of Nana Serwaa Asamaa Agyankoma I through unlawful harm on the night of February 25, 2026, at about 11 pm at Atebubu.
Further tension emerged in the courtroom when the third accused person, Abdul Razak Ibrahim Langa, openly expressed fears about his own safety while in police custody.
According to persons present during proceedings, Langa told the court that he did not trust the police because his statements were allegedly not being accurately represented by investigators.
He reportedly appealed directly to the judge for his testimony to be formally recorded, expressing fears that he could also die while in police custody.
Langa is also said to have informed the court that the deceased suspect appeared healthy before they departed Atebubu in separate police vehicles.
His remarks have heightened anxiety among supporters and relatives of the Akokoa chief, especially following the sequence of events surrounding the arrests, allegations concerning the removal of CCTV systems from the chief’s residence, and the death of the suspect during transit.
The handling of the arrests has also generated wider public debate over due process and constitutional protections for suspects.
Critics of the investigation argue that some of the accused persons were allegedly kept in police custody for close to a week before being presented before a court, despite constitutional provisions requiring arrested persons to be brought before a judge within a stipulated period.
Questions have also been raised over whether sufficient regard was given to those constitutional safeguards when some suspects were publicly paraded before the media in the presence of the Inspector-General of Police in Atebubu.
Meanwhile, additional controversy has emerged over alleged audio recordings linked to the first accused, Issahaku Alhassan, also known as Sule Yangari, whom investigators reportedly consider the key link between the Akokoa chief and the alleged murder conspiracy.
Sources close to the matter claim that Yangari had previously sent audio messages to Nana Sahkofi in which he allegedly admitted that although he knew the chief, the chief did not personally know him.
The recordings are also said to contain requests by Yangari for assistance from the Akokoa chief in relation to disputes over lands connected to business interests associated with Kennedy Agyapong and Oppong Bio.
In another alleged recording, Yangari reportedly accused the Akokoa chief of attempting to transfer lands under the authority of Otumfuo Osei Tutu II to the Dormaa Traditional Area.
Supporters of the Akokoa chief argue that the alleged recordings weaken the police narrative and cast doubt on claims that the chief sponsored the killing of the queen mother.
The latest courtroom developments have deepened fear and mistrust across Atebubu, Akokoa and Amantin, where tensions remain high following the murder.
Residents have also been discussing reports that some individuals believed to have close links with the Amantin Traditional Area have fled the town since the queen mother’s killing.
Among the names reportedly being mentioned by residents is Mohammed Hamza, who sources claim is currently on the run and no longer believed to be in custody.
For many residents, the matter has evolved beyond a murder investigation and is now being viewed as a broader test of public confidence in the criminal justice system, police professionalism, and the ability of state institutions to conduct a transparent and credible investigation into one of the Bono East Region’s most sensitive criminal cases in recent years.
Police brief facts presented by Detective Superintendent Vitus Kyaallo stated that the complainant, Kofi Lewis, 40, worked as an attendant at a bar owned by the deceased.
The deceased, who was the Queen Mother of Abamba in the Amantin Traditional Area, had reportedly closed from her bar on the night of the incident when the complainant escorted her home to the Atebubu Methodist School area.
According to the prosecution, immediately after the deceased alighted from her vehicle at the entrance of her house, Nana Yaw Bediako, who had allegedly hidden in the dark, emerged and opened fire on her multiple times with a pistol.
Police officers from Atebubu who responded to the scene found the Queen Mother lying in a pool of blood with multiple gunshot wounds at her doorstep.
She was rushed to the Atebubu Government Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
The prosecution said the gunmen fled the scene and went into hiding after the shooting.
Police investigations later led to the arrest of Abdul Razak Ibrahim Langa and the late Nana Yaw Bediako during an intelligence-led operation at Kasoa on May 9, 2026, in connection with other alleged crimes.
During investigations, Abdul Razak Ibrahim Langa allegedly confessed to police that he and Nana Yaw Bediako carried out the killing of the Queen Mother at Atebubu using a pistol.
Investigators further alleged that Nana Owusu Sahkofi contracted the killers and offered them payment to carry out the murder.
The prosecution also claimed that before his death, Nana Yaw Bediako led police officers to the residence of Nana Owusu Sahkofi at Fawoade in Kumasi for his arrest.
According to the police brief, during the attempted arrest, Nana Owusu Sahkofi allegedly pleaded with officers not to arrest him and promised to pay GH¢200,000 to secure his release.
The prosecution alleged that he immediately paid GH¢100,000 to some police officers before he was subsequently arrested.
Police say investigations are still ongoing as efforts continue to apprehend other suspects believed to be on the run.
