A 30-year-old man is alleged to have died in police custody after he was refused bail at Jachie Pramso in the Ashanti Region.

Ernest Acheampong was arrested by police on Saturday for allegedly stealing a mobile phone.

It is alleged the suspect committed suicide by hanging while in custody, but his family has vehemently refuted the claims by the police.

According to the family of the deceased, Ernest Acheampong was arrested by two police officers for phone theft while on his way to work on Saturday.

The suspect is said to have resisted arrest, resulting in a cut on the face of one of the officers.

Ernest was later arrested by the police.

Brother of the deceased, Kofi Owusu, says efforts to get the suspect released were unsuccessful.

“Our Uncle had gone to the station on Saturday to seek bail for him but was unsuccessful. They told us it was a weekend so they can’t admit him on bail. We were there on Sunday as well. The police again refused us bail on Monday 6th March since it was a holiday,” he said.

The family was called on Tuesday to the police station to the news of the demise of their relative.

The family says the police claim that their relative committed suicide is untenable.

Kofi Owusu added, “My uncle went to the police cells to meet his lifeless body hanged dead. He had cuts on his chest but we don’t believe it was suicide. They said he used a bed sheet in the cells to commit suicide.”

Meanwhile, the body of the deceased has been deposited at the morgue.