GHANA PRISONS SERVICE INVESTIGATES ALLEGED PLOT TO POISON CHAIRMAN WONTUMI

The Ghana Prisons Service has opened an investigation into allegations that some inmates at the Nsawam Medium Security Prison planned to poison Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, but authorities say they have not established that any poisoning attempt occurred and have assured the public that the former New Patriotic Party Ashanti Regional Chairman is safe in custody.

Chief Public Relations Officer of the Ghana Prisons Service, CSP Abdul Latif, confirmed the investigation on Wednesday, October 28, saying prison authorities were alerted to the allegation by Wontumi’s spokesperson rather than through a direct complaint made by the imprisoned politician himself. The distinction is significant because several public accounts of the incident had suggested that Wontumi personally reported an attempted poisoning to prison officials.

According to Latif, the Service decided to investigate after Wontumi’s representatives brought the allegation to the attention of prison authorities. The purpose of the inquiry, he said, is first to determine whether there is any truth to the claim and, if evidence supports it, establish what measures should be taken to protect the inmate and address any security failures.

The Prisons Service has so far disclosed no evidence showing that food, drink, medication or any other substance intended for Wontumi was contaminated. Authorities have also not announced the identities of any inmates suspected of involvement, disclosed a possible motive or confirmed whether an actual attempt to administer poison took place. At this stage, therefore, the alleged poisoning remains an allegation under investigation rather than an established incident.

Latif said prison authorities were initially surprised by the allegation because incidents involving inmates attempting to poison other prisoners or prison officers are extremely uncommon within Ghana’s correctional system. He nevertheless stressed that the Service was treating the information seriously because of its responsibility for the safety of people in its custody.

The official assurance came after Wontumi’s spokesperson, Dr. Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, publicly alleged that five inmates had been involved in a plan to poison the former NPP regional chairman. Boakye-Danquah said he learned about the matter after speaking with Wontumi and subsequently contacted officials at Nsawam Prison.

Boakye-Danquah had earlier told media outlets that someone reportedly overheard inmates discussing plans to poison Wontumi and alerted him. He said Wontumi later informed him about the reported threat, after which he contacted the prison commander and was assured that an investigation had begun.

The spokesperson subsequently claimed that five inmates allegedly connected to the matter had been moved from their cells while authorities investigated. The Ghana Prisons Service has not confirmed that account. When specifically asked about reports that the five inmates had been relocated, Latif said he could not confirm the claim.

That difference between the account provided by Wontumi’s representatives and the official position of the Prisons Service remains one of the central unresolved aspects of the story. While both sides agree that authorities are investigating an allegation concerning Wontumi’s safety, the Service has not endorsed the claim that five specific inmates have been identified as participants in a poisoning plot.

The Service has also been explicit that Wontumi is currently safe. Latif said there was no immediate cause for concern regarding his security inside the prison and assured that authorities remained responsible for protecting him in the same manner as other prisoners.

The allegations surfaced as Wontumi marked approximately 100 days in prison following his conviction in July on illegal mining related offenses. On July 20, 2026, an Accra High Court sentenced him to an effective 20-year prison term after finding him guilty on charges connected to mining activities on a concession at Samreboi in Ghana’s Western Region.

The court found Wontumi guilty on six counts, including offenses involving the assignment of mineral rights without the approval of the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources and purposely facilitating unlicensed mining activities contrary to Ghana’s Minerals and Mining Act. The court imposed two 20-year custodial sentences on separate counts to run concurrently, leaving him with an effective sentence of 20 years.

He was also fined 10,000 penalty units, reported as GH¢120,000, while Akonta Mining Company Limited, which was also convicted in the matter, received separate financial penalties.

Wontumi and the New Patriotic Party rejected the judgment after it was delivered, with his legal and political allies maintaining that the conviction should be overturned. His lawyers are pursuing an appeal against both the conviction and sentence, while he has also sought temporary release as the appellate process continues.

The NPP described the High Court decision as flawed following the sentencing and indicated that it would support efforts to challenge the ruling through the judicial process. The conviction represented a dramatic turn for one of the most recognizable regional political figures within the party and came amid intensified national debate over illegal mining, environmental degradation and the enforcement of Ghana’s mining laws.

Wontumi built considerable political influence during his years as the NPP’s Ashanti Regional Chairman, becoming known for his outspoken public appearances, business activities and strong association with party politics in the Ashanti Region, the NPP’s traditional electoral stronghold. His conviction and imprisonment have therefore continued to attract considerable political and media attention.

The latest security allegation is likely to deepen scrutiny of conditions at Nsawam Prison, particularly because Wontumi remains a high-profile prisoner with an active political following outside the facility. However, the Prisons Service has rejected suggestions that his political status has resulted in preferential treatment.

Latif said Ghana’s prisons are governed by regulations that apply to inmates regardless of political position or social standing and denied claims that Wontumi was being treated differently from other prisoners. According to the Service, he is being subjected to the same institutional rules as other inmates.

The official also drew attention to severe overcrowding at Nsawam Medium Security Prison. Latif said the facility was designed for approximately 851 prisoners but is currently holding more than 3,000 inmates, illustrating one of the longstanding structural challenges confronting Ghana’s correctional system.

Overcrowding has remained a recurring concern within Ghanaian prisons, with human rights organizations, legal practitioners and prison authorities repeatedly drawing attention to pressure on accommodation, sanitation, health care and rehabilitation programs. The unusually high inmate population at Nsawam makes the management of security and prisoner welfare particularly demanding.

Wontumi’s representatives have themselves recently used his incarceration to call attention to prison conditions. Boakye-Danquah has said the former NPP official supports reforms including improved inmate welfare, stronger rehabilitation programs and measures intended to improve the reintegration of prisoners into society after completing their sentences.

Those discussions, however, are separate from the specific poisoning allegation now being investigated. At present, there has been no public medical evidence indicating that Wontumi consumed poison, became ill from a suspicious substance or required treatment following an attempted poisoning.

Boakye-Danquah has said Wontumi remains in good condition, and earlier accounts from his representatives similarly stated that no medical report had been received indicating that he had been poisoned. The allegation is therefore centered on an alleged plan or attempted action rather than a confirmed case of poisoning resulting in physical injury.

Authorities have also not publicly explained what investigative steps are being taken. It remains unclear whether prison investigators are interviewing inmates, reviewing access to food and other items, examining surveillance material where available or questioning officers responsible for the section where Wontumi is being held.

The absence of those details is not unusual during an internal prison investigation, particularly when allegations involve prisoner security. Any credible evidence of an attempt to poison an inmate could potentially lead to disciplinary proceedings within the correctional system and, depending on the circumstances and evidence gathered, a criminal investigation involving other state security agencies.

Until that investigation is completed, the allegations require careful distinction between what has been officially established and what has been claimed by Wontumi’s representatives. The confirmed facts are that his spokesperson raised concerns with prison authorities, the Ghana Prisons Service has opened an inquiry and Wontumi remains safe in custody. The Service has not confirmed that a poisoning attempt occurred, has not identified any suspects and has not confirmed reports that five inmates were transferred because of the allegation.

The development comes at a particularly active period in Wontumi’s legal affairs. Apart from the conviction for which he is currently serving a sentence, he is involved in separate proceedings concerning alleged illegal mining activities in the Tano-Nimire Forest Reserve. Prosecutors recently closed their case in that separate trial after presenting witnesses and evidence. Those allegations remain subject to determination by the court and are legally distinct from the Samreboi case that resulted in his current imprisonment.

The poisoning allegation is consequently unfolding against a wider political and legal backdrop in which Wontumi remains both a convicted prisoner pursuing an appeal and a significant personality within NPP politics. His imprisonment has generated statements from party officials and supporters, while his legal team continues to use the courts to challenge the outcome of the case.

For the Ghana Prisons Service, the immediate issue is narrower and institutional: determining whether a credible threat existed inside a state correctional facility and ensuring that a prisoner in its custody remains protected regardless of his political identity or criminal conviction. Authorities have stressed that this responsibility extends to every inmate and that the investigation will establish whether the information supplied by Wontumi’s representatives has any factual basis.

The inquiry will also be important in addressing competing narratives already circulating publicly. Wontumi’s camp has described a specific alleged plot involving five inmates, while the Service has confirmed only that an allegation was brought to its attention and remains under investigation. Until investigators establish what occurred, claims identifying particular inmates or describing a completed poisoning attempt remain unverified.

Wontumi remains at Nsawam Medium Security Prison as his appeal against his conviction and sentence proceeds. Prison authorities have given no indication that the latest allegation will affect his custodial status, and there has been no announcement of a special transfer or other change to his detention arrangements.

The next significant development will be the outcome of the Ghana Prisons Service investigation and whether investigators find evidence supporting the allegation. If the inquiry establishes that a credible plot existed, attention will turn to how such a plan developed inside the prison, whether security procedures were breached and what action will be taken against anyone responsible. If investigators find no supporting evidence, authorities will face the equally important task of clearly communicating that conclusion because of the political attention and security concerns generated by the allegation.

For now, the official position remains limited but clear: an allegation concerning an attempted poisoning has been reported and is being investigated, Chairman Wontumi is safe, and the Ghana Prisons Service has not established publicly that any poisoning attempt occurred.