HOT VIDEO: They made me walk in handcuffs from Kwahu Mpraeso to Nkawkaw – Atta Ayi’s mistaken accomplice

Yaw Asante Agyekum, a motorbike mechanic who was wrongly arrested in connection with one of Ghana’s most infamous criminals, has shared the painful details of his ordeal.

He said what was meant to be a simple visit to his mother in Kwahu Mpraeso in 2002 turned into a nightmare that changed his life.

In an emotional interview on The Nana Aba Series on YouTube, Yaw recalled the moment everything changed.

He explained that he had gone to church in Kwahu when two police officers sat beside him and asked if he was “Akpo,” the mechanic known for servicing motorbikes at Korle Wokon in Accra.

“They asked if I was the one called Akpo and whether I serviced motorbikes at Korle Wonko. One of them even said, ‘I hear you’re good at your work.’ As I tried to pull out my Sony Ericsson phone, they arrested me,” he narrated.

The police claimed he was linked to Atta Ayi, the notorious armed robber who was making headlines in the early 2000s.

Yaw said he explained that he knew Atta Ayi only as a taxi driver who brought him bikes to fix, but had no knowledge of any criminal activities.

Despite this, he was arrested and made to endure a humiliating experience.

“They made me walk in handcuffs from Kwahu Mpraeso to Nkawkaw, with their car following me. They were driving a Tundra, playing reggae music while I walked the entire way on foot,” he added.

At Nkawkaw, he was locked up while the officers went to Kumasi.

His arrest did not end there. The police later picked up his aunt and sister and sent them to WAJU (now DOVVSU), thinking they might also be involved.

Yaw said the police took staged photos of him with weapons and charms, which terrified his family.

“I’ve never held a gun in my life. But they took pictures of me with guns placed in front of me and charms around my neck. When my family saw the photos, they were terrified. The only thing I had on me that day was my motor key,” he recalled.

He said one of Atta Ayi’s associates, Nana Yaw—a man he had also worked for—implicated him after his own arrest.

This led to Yaw being remanded and later convicted.

When Atta Ayi was finally arrested, Yaw said he refused to talk to him, possibly feeling betrayed.

On Wednesday, June 5, 2025, the Court of Appeal overturned Yaw’s conviction. A panel of three judges unanimously ruled that the evidence used against him was only circumstantial and not strong enough to justify a conviction.

His story has triggered conversations about mistaken identity, abuse of power by the police, and the deep scars left by wrongful imprisonment.