Policemen of the Ogidi Division of the Anambra State Police Command have arrested the Commander of the Ojoto Community Vigilance Group and two other suspects linked to the alleged kidnap and murder of a tricycle operator, Christian Onah.
Onah, a 25-year-old commercial tricycle operator who hails from the Ovoko community in the Igbo-Eze South Local Government Area of Enugu State, was declared missing when he did not return home after he went out for his usual business on May 28, 2023.
Until his disappearance, Onah was said to be residing in the Oba community, in the Idemili South Local Government Area of the state.
A yet-to-be-identified neighbour reportedly raised the alarm over his sudden disappearance and subsequently reported the matter at a nearby police station.
Speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, the neighbour said when Onah’s whereabouts remained unknown for some days, the owner of the tricycle he was using for commercial purposes on hire purchase engaged the services of a security tracker and it led to the arrest of a man in possession of the missing tricycle.
The neighbour said, “On further interrogations, the man confessed to buying the tricycle from the Ojoto Community Vigilance Group and took the police operatives to the place.
“When the police arrested the vigilante official that sold the tricycle to him, he subsequently mentioned the vigilante commander as the one who masterminded the abduction and subsequent killing of Onah. He said they threw his corpse in a river in the Mmili John Ojoto community.”
Onah’s father, Emmanuel, who had been grieving over the death of his son, demanded justice, adding that the suspects linked to the crime had refused to disclose the whereabouts of his son’s corpse.
While calling for a thorough investigation into the matter, the deceased’s father urged police authorities to fish out all those involved in his son’s death.
Contacted for a reaction on the development, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Ikenga Tochukwu, said he had not been briefed about the incident.
Ikenga promised to reach out to the police division concerned for a proper update but had yet to get back to our correspondent as of the time this report was filed.
However, a senior police officer from the Ogidi Division who pleaded anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, said the commander of the vigilance group and other suspects were arrested on Wednesday.
He added that the Ojoto community leaders and stakeholders were interested in the matter, adding that the police had intensified efforts to arrest other suspects linked to the crime.
Credit: Punch
