A man, 26, popularly known as Efutu, and unemployed, was on Thursday morning burned to death in a suspected arson attack in a ghetto, at Assin Fosu.
The incident occurred when fire swept through his wooden structure in the early hours of the day.
His charred body was discovered after firefighters and police responded to a distress call from residents around 0700 hours.
Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Rosemond Duncan, Assin Fosu District Crime Officer, said personnel from the Ghana National Fire Service were called in to extinguish the blaze, but the structure had already been destroyed when they arrived.
Some residents suspected foul play, alleging that a group of mechanics in the area had previously threatened to burn Efutu alive or evict him from the structure, accusing him of stealing from their shops.
“It’s no surprise. The fitters warned they would burn him or drive him out. That’s why we believe they intentionally set the place on fire,” one resident claimed.
Others, however, believed the fire may have been accidental as they recounted that Efutu was seen earlier behaving erratically while smoking, raising the possibility that a discarded cigarette might have started the fire.
Tensions flared after the incident when some angry youth, believed to be friends of the deceased, confronted the police with sticks and clubs, demanding the immediate arrest of the mechanics.
To prevent further unrest, the District Police requested reinforcement from the Regional Command, the Divisional Police, and the Formed Police Unit (FPU).
ASP Duncan confirmed that the body had been deposited at the St Francis Xavier Hospital morgue in Assin Fosu with investigations ongoing to establish the exact cause of the fire.
