Fresh controversy continues to surround investigations into the killing of Abamba Queen Mother, Nana Serwaa Asamaa Agyankoma I, as growing public attention shifts to convicted prisoner Issahaku Alhassan, alias “Sule Yangari”, whom police describe as a central figure in the murder at Atebubu.
The controversy has intensified with reports that the 66-year-old convicted prisoner continued to operate criminal networks from prison long before the Atebubu murder investigation emerged publicly.
The Herald has listened to audio recordings, believed to be voice notes, allegedly sent by Sule Yangari from prison using a mobile phone to one of the accused persons in the case.
Yangari, who has reportedly served time at Ankafo Prison and Sunyani Central Prison, is alleged to have maintained active communication and operational influence outside prison despite being incarcerated.
In one of the recordings, a voice believed to be that of Yangari referred to the long-standing tensions between the Dormaahene, Osagyefo Oseadeeyo Agyemang Badu II, and the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, while vowing that certain lands in the Amantin area would not fall under the Dormaa Stool.
Residents within the Amantin community claim Yangari’s continued influence outside prison had long been widely known locally. His connection to some influential traditional leaders is widely known, too.
According to several residents, Yangari allegedly maintained close operational links with individuals outside prison and remained involved in local disputes even while serving his sentence at the Sunyani Central Prison. He boasted about forwarding these voice notes to people, even while in prison.
The murder gained national attention after the Ghana Police Service acknowledged during a press conference addressed by Inspector-General of Police, Christian Tetteh Yohuno and Bono East Regional Police Commander Osei Shaibu that Yangari had allegedly coordinated the murder from prison using his mobile phone.
For many residents, the police admission by the police confirmed long-standing suspicions of weaknesses in Ghana’s prison service, with some convicted criminals continuing to run networks from behind bars despite officially serving prison sentences.
Community members in the Atebubu-Amantin are also alleging that before his incarceration, Yangari had repeatedly been arrested in connection with robbery cases and other criminal activities within the area.
According to residents, one recurring pattern associated with Yangari was his alleged tendency to mention prominent individuals as accomplices whenever he was arrested. Some residents claimed that individuals previously named by Yangari in criminal investigations were detained for periods before police investigations failed to substantiate the claims against them.
This background, residents say, partly explains growing scepticism within Amantin regarding claims linking the Chief of Akokoa and Nifahene of the Atebubu Traditional Area, Nana Owusu Sahkofi, also known as Charles Kofi Owusu, to the murder of the queen mother.
Several residents argued that claims the Akokoa chief sponsored the killing of his own cousin, the queen mother, fit what they describe as an established pattern in which Yangari allegedly implicates individuals connected to disputes in which he has personal interests.
In another audio recording, sent by Yangari from prison to Nana Owusu Sahkofi ahead of their arrest.
Yangari admitted in the voice notes that although he knew the Akokoa chief personally, the chief did not know him.
The recordings also contain requests by Yangari for Nana Owusu Sahkofi’s support in disputes over lands connected to cassava starch processing and cassava feedstock cultivation projects linked to NPP’s presidential hopeful, Kennedy Agyapong and another businessman identified as Oppong Bio.
Yangari also admitted that he and his associates were operating on approximately 30 acres of disputed land while he remained in prison.
Supporters of the Akokoa chief argue that the voice recordings undermine the police narrative that the chief contracted Yangari to murder the queen mother.
Instead, they claim the recordings portray Yangari as someone seeking legitimacy, support and influence from traditional authorities in the area.
The revelations have also reignited concerns about the effectiveness of Ghana’s prison supervision systems.
Many residents say the police’s admission that Yangari operated external activities from prison validates years of speculation that criminal networks continue to function from inside some correctional facilities.
Observers say the issue now extends beyond the murder investigation itself and raises broader national security concerns regarding prison monitoring and control mechanisms.
Questions are now being raised over how a convicted prisoner maintained access to mobile phones, communication channels and operational influence outside prison for an extended period without detection or intervention.
Critics argue that if a convict prisoner could allegedly coordinate criminal activities and maintain influence from prison, including allegedly directing individuals from Kasoa in the Central Region, it exposes serious weaknesses within the correctional system.
Attention has also turned to the silence of the Ghana Prisons Service, led by Patience Baffoe-Bonnie, following the police disclosure.
Many residents say they expected prison authorities to immediately announce an internal investigation into how a prisoner allegedly continued external operations while incarcerated.
However, as public debate intensifies, the Prisons Service, especially its Director General, Mrs Baffoe-Bonnie, has yet to publicly comment in detail on the allegations.
The murder case itself took another dramatic turn on Monday when fresh controversy emerged during court proceedings involving the accused persons.
According to accounts from the courtroom, the presiding judge questioned police over the death of Nana Yaw Bediako, one of the suspects linked to the investigation, whom the IGP had earlier publicly identified during a press conference in Atebubu as the alleged gunman who shot the queen mother.
Police informed the court that Nana Yaw Bediako died “in the process of arrest”. The explanation immediately generated concern among some of the accused persons and observers in court.
The other accused questioned how the suspect died about two days after the IGP paraded them following the arrest and transfer from Atebubu to Techiman. They claimed he had not shown any signs of illness before his death.
Nana Yaw Bediako is widely believed to have been the individual whose alleged statements formed the basis for implicating the Akokoa chief in the alleged murder conspiracy. His death has since intensified public suspicion and triggered calls for an independent inquiry into the circumstances surrounding his death while in police custody or transit.
Further tension reportedly arose in court when 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 appealed directly to the judge to formally record his testimony, expressing fears that he could also die while in custody.
Langa is also said to have informed the court that Nana Yaw Bediako appeared healthy before they departed Atebubu in separate police vehicles.
Despite concerns raised during proceedings, the court remanded the Akokoa chief in custody for two weeks.
The Akokoa chief others, have been charged with conspiracy to commit murder and murder over the killing of Nana Agyankoma I at Atebubu in the Bono East Region.
The accused persons are Sule Yangari, a convict prisoner serving a sentence at Sunyani Central Prison; Abdul Razak Ibrahim Langa, a 32-year-old trader from Agona Swedru.
According to court documents, the accused persons, together with the late Nana Yaw Bediako, allegedly conspired to murder the queen mother on February 25, 2026.
The prosecution alleged that the accused persons acted with a common purpose to commit murder contrary to Sections 23(1) and 46 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).
The developments have heightened anxiety among relatives and supporters of the 56-year-old businessman and Chief of Akokoa, particularly following allegations that CCTV systems were removed from the chief’s Kumasi residence during his arrest, where a plain-clothed police officer was accused of acting unprofessionally during his arrest.
Critics of the police investigation have also questioned whether some suspects were kept in custody for periods exceeding constitutional limits before being presented before the court.
Additional controversy has also emerged over prosecution claims that Nana Owusu Sahkofi allegedly attempted to offer GH¢200,000 to police officers during his arrest, including an alleged initial payment of GH¢100,000.
The allegation has since been strongly denied by family supporters and relatives of the chief, who claim the money was voluntarily surrendered after police allegedly demanded that he produce all cash available in his house.
Family members who were in the house around 2 am on the day of his arrest have also accused police officers of destroying CCTV systems at the residence to conceal what occurred during the arrest.
However, police investigations continue as authorities pursue other suspects believed to be on the run.
The murder of the Abamba Queen Mother remains one of the most sensitive and emotionally charged criminal cases in the Bono East Region in recent years.
For many residents of Atebubu, Amantin and Akokoa, the case has evolved beyond a murder investigation into a test of confidence in law enforcement, the prison system, due process and the ability of state institutions to conduct transparent and credible criminal investigations.
