A 38-year-old man who was arrested on an allegation of defiling his 11-year-old stepdaughter has died in a police cell.

Emmanuel Cudjoe, a carpenter and resident of Ayensudo, near Elmina, was arrested and detained in a police cell at Egyeikrom in the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) area of the Central Region.

He was apprehended on Sunday, May 10, 2026, in relation to the alleged defilement.

He was, however, found dead later in the day at the police cell, in what police sources have said was a suspected suicide case.

The Public Relations Unit of the Central Regional Police Command has indicated to Graphic Online that the suspect was found dead in a holding cell at the Egyeikrom Police Station on the same day of his arrest.

Preliminary police information suggests that he allegedly used a strip of fabric taken from the edge of a blanket provided in the cell.

He was found hanging inside the cell.

Following the incident, officers from the Elmina District Police Command, together with personnel from the Regional Crime Scene Management team, visited the station to assess the situation.

Initial observations, according to the police, showed no visible signs of physical assault or struggle on the body, although a piece of cloth was found tightly secured around his neck.

The body has been deposited at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital morgue.

Investigations are still ongoing.