After spending 23 years in prison, Yaw Asante Agyekum, a mechanic who was wrongly convicted alongside notorious armed robber Ataa Ayi, has been freed. The Court of Appeal overturned his conviction, declaring him innocent of the charges that had kept him behind bars for over two decades.
Yaw Asante Agyekum, a mechanic who was wrongly convicted alongside notorious armed robber Ataa Ayi, has finally regained his freedom after serving 23 years of a 35-year sentence. In a landmark judgment delivered today, June 5, 2025, the Court of Appeal overturned his conviction, citing lack of evidence.
The three-member panel, presided over by Justice Janapare A. Bartels-Kodwo, held that Agyekum could not be linked to the series of robberies carried out by Ataa Ayi. The court ruled that the prosecution had failed to provide sufficient evidence to justify his conviction and sentence.
After eight years of legal battle led by his counsel, George Bernard Shaw, Agyekum was acquitted and discharged. Visibly emotional, he walked free today, having already spent over two decades behind bars for a crime he did not commit.
Agyekum had been convicted by the High Court, which also handed Ataa Ayi a 70-year and a 20-year sentence in separate armed robbery cases.
Other members of the panel were Justices Aboagye Tandoh and Stephen Oppong.
