A native of Nsoatre in the Sunyani West District of the Brong Ahafo Region, Patrick Ampofo, on Thursday morning allegedly set fire to the abandoned Hinneh Ankranfo Palace at Nsoatre.

Patrick, who is said to be mentally ill, is in police custody and would soon be arraigned before court.

The palace, according to residents, had been abandoned for over 10 years since the demise of the Omanhene.

People who spoke to the paper linked the fire to the chieftaincy dispute in the community, while others believed that it was actually the suspect who set it ablaze.

When DAILY GUIDE visited the burnt palace, weeds have engulfed it as it had not been used for a long time.

Speaking to Detective Ebenezer Darkwa of the Nsoatre Police, he said he got a hint of the fire around 7:30am and rushed to the scene to ascertain the cause of the fire only to be told that the suspect was seen hovering around the area that morning.

The suspect, according to the residents, had been burning people’s farms and other properties.

The detective said the suspect was the one occupying the abandoned palace. He stated that after the fire service had put out the fire the police went in search of the suspect and when they reached his house he run to hide on top of the roof.

He said the youth in the town starting throwing stones at him but he refused to come down. When they tried climbing the roof, he jumped down and was arrested.

Detective Darkwa revealed that they found substances believed to be marijuana and a lighter in his pocket after the arrest. The suspect, he said, would be arraigned before court on November 1, 2013.

The palace drums, the abandoned car of the late Omanhene and other things were burnt.

Attempts by DAILY GUIDE to speak to some of the chiefs in the town proved futile as they said they had left everything to the police to handle.