How photojournalist was killed in Kogi

A photojournalist with the Kogi State-based media outfit, Inside Story, Ayo Aiyepeku, has been reportedly killed in the Government Reservation Area of Lokoja, the state capital. He was allegedly killed by one Adebayo Pelumi. The suspect was alleged to be sharing an apartment with the deceased in the same area. The incident reportedly happened on […]

A photojournalist with the Kogi State-based media outfit, Inside Story, Ayo Aiyepeku, has been reportedly killed in the Government Reservation Area of Lokoja, the state capital.

He was allegedly killed by one Adebayo Pelumi.

The suspect was alleged to be sharing an apartment with the deceased in the same area.

The incident reportedly happened on Tuesday evening when the suspect allegedly invited the deceased from his office and repeatedly hit him on the head shortly after he stepped outside.

• Benue trains teachers in digital literacy, ICT-based learning
• Women at centre of Nigeria’s human trafficking crisis – NAPTIP

According to a witness, who is a staff of the media outfit, they were editing video and photos in the office around 7:30 pm when the suspect came in and invited the victim to help him at his poultry farm.

“It was around 7:30 pm when the suspect called him, but he didn’t know that Ayo was not the only person in the office,” the witness stated.

He added, “Immediately Ayo got out, Adebayo hit him with iron, repeatedly, and killed him there.

“I saw the suspect lifting the body into a deep freezer before moving the body into his Hilux Van, prompting me to raise an alarm. I called some people on the phone who mobilized the vigilantes in the area, but before they came, Adebayo had taken away the dead body.”

The witness added that along with the vigilantes, they searched the area but could only spot bloodstains in the freezer and around the poultry stall.

He added, “While the vigilantes were still with us, the suspect drove into the compound with his van.

‘’When he saw us, he turned back and refused to stop; but the vigilantes chased him, and along the line, his van had an accident during the chase, which made him jump out of the vehicle and run away.”

The witness, who craved anonymity, stressed further that upon checking the van, they discovered that it was also stained with human blood.

“The body was yet to be recovered; we feared that Ayo might have been killed for ritual purposes,” he alleged.

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP William Aya, confirmed the incident.

He said, “A case of culpable homicide was reported today at ‘A’ Division of the state police command, involving a suspect who is on the run.

“We have ordered the ‘A’ Division to transfer the case to the state headquarters for proper investigation, which was done.

“The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has commenced investigation, while operatives are on the trail of the fleeing suspect in an attempt to arrest him and bring him to book.”

 

Prime suspect found dead in hotel

The suspected killer of Kogi photojournalist, Ayo Pelumi, has reportedly committed suicide in a private lodge in Lokoja, Kogi State.

The suspect allegedly murdered his friend, identified as Ayo Aiyepeku, on Tuesday by smashing him on the head with an iron object, rendering him unconscious.

He then reportedly dismembered the victim.

It was gathered that the suspect loaded parts of the body into his Hilux van and drove off to an unknown location, returning a few hours later to find security operatives, including vigilantes and sympathizers, who had responded to a distress call from the victim’s colleague at his premises.

In an attempt to escape, security operatives shot the tires of his Hilux, but he still managed to flee the scene.

However, at about 2pm on Thursday, the police, acting on a tip-off, stormed a lodge where the corpse of the suspected killer was recovered.

A bottle of Coca-Cola and a bottle of Sniper (a type of pesticide) were reportedly found in the hotel room where his lifeless body was discovered.

According to one of the hotel staff, who pleaded anonymity, Pelumi checked into their hotel on Wednesday afternoon but was found dead on Thursday around 1pm when a steward went to clean the room at checkout time.

The hotel management then alerted the police, who identified him as the prime suspect in the murder of Ayobami.

The police have since deposited the remains of the suspected killer at the mortuary of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lokoja.