The reported murder of Ayo Aiyepeku, a 27-year-old photojournalist in Lokoja, Kogi State, has left many puzzled.
While some reports claimed Aiyepeku, who worked with Inside Story, was murdered on Tuesday evening, others said it happened on Wednesday.
According to a PremiumTimes report, Jacob Adebayo Pelumi, the suspected killer, was a staff member of the Nigerian Correctional Services (NCoS) and a neighbour of the deceased.
Pelumi was reported to have lured Aiyepeku to his poultry farm, where he “struck him on the head with an iron object and dismembered the body”.
Then the suspected killer wound up dead in Abidan 115 Hotel in Lokoja. The police found his body in a hotel room on Thursday. They said he died by suicide.
READ ALSO: Murder or Accident? How 9 Died on Ojuelegba Bridge on Sunday
On Friday, the government ordered the hotel to be sealed to “preserve evidence and facilitate a thorough inquiry by the relevant authorities”.
At the time of filing this report, the photojournalist’s body has not been recovered. There is also no report of any arrest linked to the reported murder.
William Ovye Aya, the police spokesperson in Kogi, could not be reached for comments on Sunday, as phone calls went unanswered. The text and WhatsApp messages FIJ sent to him had also not been responded to at press time.
READ ALSO: Kogi Community Buries Over 30 Residents Killed by Fulani Herders
AIYEPEKU’S FAMILY CALLS FOR JUSTICE AND HIS BODY
The family of Aiyepeku is calling for justice. They also called on the authorities to ensure the recovery of his body.
Speaking with journalists on Saturday, James Aiyepeku, the photojournalist’s father, said, “I’m pleading with the state and the executive state governor to help me fetch out the body of my child.”
Timothy Aiyepeku, the photojournalist’s elder brother, also urged “everybody who has power and authority to see that justice is served”.
The family described the photojournalist as a calm and hardworking young man, who had no social life.
FIJ reached out to the elder brother on Sunday via LinkedIn, but no response had been received at the time of publication.
The post Mystery in Lokoja: Photojournalist Feared Murdered, Body Missing… Then Suspect Commits Suicide appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.