The Koforidua High Court 3 in the Eastern Region has granted bail to Nana Asare Duodu Gyimah III, also known as Kwadwo Gyimah, who is facing charges for allegedly using forged documents in his enstoolment and subsequent gazetting as chief of Akyem Ayirebi in the Eastern Region.
The court on Monday June 1,2026 granted the accused bail in the sum of GH¢500,000 with two sureties, each required to possess a valid Ghana Card.
Nana Asare Duodu Gyimah III pleaded not guilty to two charges: possessing forged documents and uttering forged documents.
Charges
According to the charge sheet, the first count alleges that the accused, sometime in 2024 at Oda in the Eastern Region, knowingly possessed a forged statutory declaration purportedly made by Abusuapanyin Kofi Kumi, Head of the Bretuo Royal Family, dated November 3, 2023, with intent to deceive.
The second count alleges that he used the same statutory declaration to support his claim and facilitate his enstoolment as chief of Ayirebi, despite knowing the document was not genuine.
The complainant, Prof. Nana Owusu-Frimpong, a native of Akyem Ayirebi and a principal member of the Bretuo Royal Family, told the court that the Ayirebi stool became vacant in 2017 following the death of Obrempong Gyapire Agyekum II.
According to the complainant, customary processes were initiated for the selection of a new chief.
Two candidates, Kwadwo Asante and Kwadwo Gyimah, were presented to the Queen Mother, Nana Adwoa Adomakoa II, who has the authority to nominate a candidate from the Bretuo Royal Family.
Following consultations, the Queen Mother nominated Kwadwo Asante on September 29, 2019.
He was subsequently vetted and approved by the kingmakers and later endorsed by Nana Tabi of Anamase, acting head of the Nifa Wing of the Kotoku Traditional Council.
After fulfilling the customary requirements, including the payment of a dowry, Kwadwo Asante was installed as chief of Ayirebi on May 5, 2021, and reportedly remains in possession of the black stool and other traditional assets of the town.
However, the complainant alleged that Kwadwo Gyimah independently installed himself as chief between March and May 2022 and was later sworn in at Oda without following the established customary procedures.
The prosecution further alleges that while litigation over the Ayirebi stool was ongoing, Kwadwo Gyimah submitted documents through the Oda Traditional Council to support an application for gazetting at the Regional House of Chiefs.
Among the documents was a statutory declaration allegedly signed by Abusuapanyin Kofi Kumi on November 3, 2023.
The complainant contends that the declaration could not have been authentic because Kofi Kumi had died on July 13, 2023, several months before the document was purportedly signed.
The complainant also disputed claims in the declaration that the black stool was in the possession of Kwadwo Gyimah, insisting that it remains with Kwadwo Asante, now known as Obrempong Gyapire Asante III.
The court has adjourned the case to June 15, 2026, for case management.
Source:Mybrytfmonline.com
