In Ghana’s history, there are certain names that instantly raise eyebrows the moment they are mentioned in some circles.

Such names evoke fear, unease or troubling memories among people who either knew these personalities or had heard stories about them.

One of those names is Dr Sri Yogi Ram Beckley, who was widely known in the early 1990s as a witch doctor and occultist.

His brother, lawyer Roger Beckley, has spoken about whether the family believed Dr Beckley had committed the acts he was accused of.

According to him, as one person out of nine children facing such persistent accusations from places he had lived, including Fadama, Gbawe and Tema, it was difficult for the family to dismiss the claims.

Roger Beckley said people, including family members, spoke to Dr Beckley about his actions but he refused to listen. As a result, he distanced himself from the family and was left to deal with the consequences of his choices.

Dr. Beckley: The notorious witch doctor who terrorized Fadama residents in the 1990s

“Look, we are very proud people, the Beckleys. If one man is doing something and you know it will affect you, you either talk to him or send people to speak to him, and he refused to see reason. The Ewes have a way of handling such a person.

"After all, you are the first born. If you do it well, good for you. If you do it badly, the consequences will follow you,” Roger said in an interview with Crime De La Crime.

According to Roger Beckley, when the allegations about his brother became widespread, some family members confronted him.

However, he noted that he personally did not do so because he had a long-standing grudge with his brother, which persisted until Dr Beckley’s death. He also did not attend his funeral.

He explained that as the first child of the family, Dr Beckley was expected to show responsibility and set an example, but instead he allegedly chose to isolate himself from the rest of the family because of bad deeds.

“Not me. Probably my brother. It’s a big family, he was the firstborn but he isolated himself from the bigger family. It was his responsibility to comport himself, no matter what he was following,” he noted.

Lawyer Roger Beckley further stated that out of the nine children in the family, Dr Beckley, in his view, brought disrepute to himself and the entire family.

“Because the stories people heard about him came from Gbawe, then the next place he lived, and then the last place he lived. You alone, out of nine, or let me say eight, he decided to destroy his name, talk about the entire family,” he added.

Dr Beckley was allegedly linked to the kidnapping of young school children and women, who were reportedly used for ritual purposes in the 1990s and early 2000s.

He and his associates were said to lure victims by posing as buyers of fruits and vegetables or as relatives of missing persons. Other methods were also reportedly used to target victims.

Despite several failed attempts to stop his activities, Dr Beckley’s home was raided by the police in February 1994. During the operation, officers reportedly found school uniforms and human skulls on the premises.

The discovery led to an angry mob setting his house on fire.

He was later put before a Regional Tribunal in June 25, 1994, which granted him a five million cedis bail (GH¢500), after the Adjabeng Community Tribunal had earlier denied him bail.

According to his brother, Dr Beckley passed away sometime between 2011 and 2012, although he could not recall the exact year of his death.

Watch the interview below:



AK/AM