A pastor and two others who allegedly attempted to bury a five-month-old baby alive at a refuse dump at Abofrem near Bibiani in the Western North Region have been remanded into lawful custody by the Bibiani District Court.

The accused are Richmond Frimpong, also known as Prophet, 36, a pastor; Beatrice Agyapongmaa, 23, a hairdresser and the baby's mother; and Emmanuel Appiah.

An accomplice, Donkor, a 53-year-old farmer, is at large.

Frimpong and Agyapongmaa have been charged with conspiracy to commit crime, to wit attempted murder. Frimpong faces an additional charge of attempted murder.

Appiah and Donkor have been charged with abetment of crime, to wit, attempted murder.

The court, presided over by Mr Lord Delvin Essandoh, did not take their pleas and refused a bail application by counsel for the accused persons.

Chief Inspector B.O. Agyemang, leading the prosecution, told the court that the baby, currently in the custody of Agyapongmaa’s grandmother, remained at risk and prayed the court to place the child in a care home.

The court, in the interest of justice and the welfare of the child, ordered the Social Welfare Office to conduct a social enquiry and submit a report within five days.

The case has been adjourned to May 5, 2026.

Prosecution said the complainant, Winfred Agbah, a 29-year-old security guard and Unit Committee Member at Abofrem, received information on April 10, at about 2200 hours, that some persons were attempting to secretly bury a child at a refuse dump.

He proceeded to the scene and allegedly found Frimpong, Appiah and Donkor preparing to bury the baby, who was wrapped in cloth and being held by Appiah.

When questioned, the three allegedly claimed the child was dead. However, after inspecting the baby, the complainant realised the child was alive.

Prosecution said Frimpong allegedly tried to persuade the complainant to allow them to proceed, but he refused and took the suspects to the Chief of Abofrem.

Investigations revealed that Agyapongmaa is the biological mother of the baby, whose neck had reportedly been unstable since birth. In search of a remedy, she was directed to Frimpong.

Prosecution said Frimpong told Agyapongmaa that the child had been described as “Nsuoba” and required spiritual intervention.

He allegedly asked her to provide items including eggs, schnapps, powder, incense, a fowl and a cannonball stone for rituals.

After the rituals, Frimpong allegedly assured her the baby would die soon and asked her to return to Kumasi.

On April 9, 2026, Agyapongmaa reportedly returned to inform him that the baby was still alive. Prosecution said they then agreed that euthanasia (mercy killing) was the best option.

Frimpong allegedly asked her to leave the child in his room to complete the process and later declared the baby dead.

Appiah, who had visited Frimpong, allegedly assisted in confirming the supposed death.

The prosecution said Frimpong, Appiah and Donkor later took the baby to the refuse dump, where Donkor dug a grave and they attempted to bury the child before the complainant intervened and rescued the baby.

The matter was reported to the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit at Bibiani, leading to the arrest of the accused persons.

Prosecution said the suspects admitted the offence in their caution statements and that police were preparing a duplicate docket for the Attorney-General’s Department for advice.

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Pastor and two others remanded for attempting to bury baby alive

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