A 38-year-old carpenter, identified as Emmanuel Cudjoe, has died in police custody at Agyei Krom in the Komenda Edina Eguafo Abirem Municipality of the Central Region, in an incident suspected to be suicide.

Cudjoe was arrested on Sunday, May 10, 2026, at about 5:00 a.m. over allegations of defiling his 11-year-old stepdaughter.

According to police accounts, the station officer at the Agyei Krom Police Station received information from the counter NCO that the suspect had allegedly hanged himself at about 11:00 a.m. the same day using a thin cloth reportedly torn from the edge of his blanket.

The Elmina District Police Command and the regional crime management team were immediately dispatched to the scene to investigate.

Upon arrival, officers reportedly found the suspect hanging against a wall with no visible marks on his body. The ligature was said to be firmly fastened around his neck.

The deceased, described as a native of Ayensudo near Elmina, was pronounced dead at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital after being transported there. Medical officers confirmed his death on arrival.

The Crime Scene Management team processed the scene, after which the body was deposited at the hospital morgue for preservation pending autopsy.

Police have since informed the family of the deceased, while investigations into the circumstances surrounding the death are ongoing.