The Manhyia District Police Command has arrested a 58-year old mason for posing as the brother of Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and for defrauding people in the name of the chief.
Nana Kojo Amoah Ampem Okogyeabour, was alleged to have paraded himself as a chief and a brother to the current occupant of the golden stool.
A complimentary card found in his possession with is name boldly written on it, has the inscription ‘Director/Brother of Otumfuor’. The suspect also claimed to be the founder and director of a non-registered non-governmental organization by name Fighting Against Corruption For Ashanti chiefs.
Arrest
Briefing the media on the arrest, the Manhyia District Police Commander, Superintendent of Police, Rev Nyamekye Adane-Ameyaw said the suspect was arrested when three men from the Abinkyi market had gone to the Manhyia palace with a ram to meet him.
He said the suspect had asked the three men to meet at the Manhyia palace where he was going to plead with the Asantehene to intervene and stop their eviction from where they currently trade.
The three were said to be goat sellers at the Abinkyi market and were being evicted from the land by the land owner. According to the police commander, when the three men got there, they insisted on getting into the palace with the ram and this raised the suspicion of the palace guards and the police who detained them.
He said it was when Nana Okogyeabour came to meet the three men that he was picked up.
Allegations
Supt Rev Adane-Ameyaw said the suspect claimed to be the one invested with the custody of the lands from Railways to Abinkyi market and have been issuing eviction threats to all tenants on the land.
He said when news about his arrest went round, one Ishmaila Seidu, a businessman in Alabar told the police that in November 2014, Nana Okogyeabour, a native of Ahenema Kokoben, collected an amount of $4,450 from him to be given to the Asantehene as the latter needed the foreign exchange for a trip outside of Ghana.
According to him, the suspect was to return with the cedi equivalent of the said money but never did.
Denial However, he said the suspect denied ever collecting any money from Seidu.
Again, Supt. Rev Adane-Amenyaw said the suspect told the police that though he was a royal, he was not a direct brother of the Asantehene but a cousin. The suspect is currently in police custody while investigations continue.
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