The Ejisu Divisional Police Command has released the parents and an uncle of the five-month-old baby allegedly stolen at the Asafo Market in Kumasi, after they were earlier arrested for falsely accusing a woman of stealing the child.

The three - Freda Owusu, her husband Emmanuel Acheampong, and Mr. Osei Kuffour, a relative of Freda Owusu - were picked up after they identified a baby found with a traveler, Aliya Salomey, as their missing child, and circulated the claim on social media.

A subsequent identification parade conducted at Ejisu proved that the baby in Aliya Salomey's custody was not theirs, leading to their arrest for false information and defamation.

Police have now released the trio after preliminary screening.

In a new development, however, the police have arrested the woman under whose care Freda Owusu reportedly left her child before the baby went missing at the Asafo Market.

The woman, whose name has been withheld for investigations, is currently in custody and assisting police with enquiries.

"The parents and the uncle of the missing child have been released after interrogation, but the woman who was allegedly entrusted with the baby before it went missing has been arrested to assist with further investigations," Ejisu Police Commander, Chief Superintendent Samuel Kofi Gamson, told Nhyira News.

The baby was reportedly stolen from the Cape Coast Bus Terminal section of the Asafo Market, at the area known as Opera Site, in the early hours of Sunday, September 20, 2026.

How False Accusation Arose

The case took a dramatic turn when the Ejisu Divisional Police arrested Aliya Salomey, who was travelling with a baby on board a VIP bus heading towards Accra after fellow passengers became suspicious of her interaction with the infant and reported her at Ejisu.

She was granted police enquiry bail after her husband appeared at the station and testified that she was his wife and that the baby belonged to them.

According to the Ejisu Divisional Police Commander, Chief Superintendent Samuel Kofi Gamson, no official report of a missing child had been filed at Ejisu at the time she was granted bail.

The parents of the missing baby later went to Ejisu, identified a photograph of the baby and the suspect as their missing child and his abductor, and posted the claim on social media, prompting police to re-arrest Aliya Salomey.

After the identification parade, the family admitted the baby was not theirs.

Case Transferred

Meanwhile, arrangements are in place to conduct a DNA test on the baby found with Aliya Salomey to scientifically establish maternity before she is formally cleared of the child-stealing allegation.

The entire case has now been transferred to the Asokwa Police Station for further investigation, where the parents initially reported the theft of their child.

"We have transferred the case to the Asokwa Police Station, where the parents first reported their child's disappearance, for further investigation," the Commander confirmed.

Police say investigations are ongoing to trace the missing infant and to establish the circumstances under which he went missing while under the care of the newly arrested caretaker.