In a significant judicial decision, the Court of Appeal has acquitted and discharged Yaw Asante Agyekum, who was previously sentenced to 35 years in prison in 2010 alongside the notorious armed robber Ataa Ayi, who received a 160-year sentence.
Agyekum was originally arrested in 2002 and convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery. The prosecution claimed he worked as a mechanic for Ataa Ayi’s gang, which terrorized residents of Accra in the late 1990s and early 2000s. However, Agyekum consistently maintained his innocence.
In his appeal, Agyekum’s legal team argued that there was insufficient evidence linking him directly to any of the crimes committed by Ataa Ayi and his gang. Notably, Agyekum had no legal representation at the time of his original conviction.
The three-member panel of Justices Aboagye Tanoh, Stephen Oppong, and Janapare Bartels Kodwo unanimously agreed with the defense. They ruled that the prosecution had failed to present adequate evidence to justify Agyekum’s conviction and sentence.
As a result, the Court of Appeal has overturned the conviction, bringing an end to Agyekum’s 14-year-long incarceration.
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