The police in Kogi state have announced the arrest of a 100-level Biology student of the Federal University Lokoja named Jeremiah Paul, who has been thought to be associated with the death of his colleague Abigail Damilola.
The suspect, according to the police, hails from Kaduna State, northern Nigeria. During an interrogation by the police, he confessed to the crime, explaining that he had demanded N400,000 ransome from the family before killing the victim. Despite the payment of the ransom from the family, the suspect had taken the victim to an uncompleted building, where he took her life after the ransom was paid to him.
The suspect, after the murder, according to police explanations, demanded an additional ten million naira from the family. The police disclosed that the victim was traced and arrested after the second demand was made by the suspect.
The suspect claimed he had committed the crime all by himself, and no part of the lady’s body was cut off, but police findings have proven that some parts of the lady’s body were not found when the body was recovered.
The suspect disclosed that he had decided to kill the lady because the victim had seen his face and recognised him for fear of exposure. He had decided to take the life of the lady.
The police public relations officer in the state, in a chat with a journalist on Thursday about the incident, confirmed that the incident had taken place in the state. He explained that after the family had reported the case of the victim missing, the operative started a search for the suspect, which resulted in the arrest.
He stated that he killed her because she had seen his face, and he didn’t want her to escape and expose him.
The PPRO explained that the officer of the command had swung into action, resulting in the arrest of the suspect, Jeremiah Paul, a 21-year-old 100-level student at Federal University, Lokoja. He noted that the suspect was arrested on Wednesday by police. The suspect, according to the police, had confessed to abducting the victim on September 4th 2024.
He explained that the suspect disclosed that he kidnapped her and demanded a ransom of N400,000 from the parent. According to him, after collecting the money, he strangled the girl and mutilated her body. He then buried her body in the Lokoja area. Yesterday, Wednesday, he led the police to the scene where he buried the girl.
A video that has circulated on social media in the past day shows Jeremiah confessing to the crime, claiming it was his first time committing such a crime.
The PPRO confirmed that the recovered body of the victim had been taken to the mortuary, where it had been deposited. He also noted that the police were still investigating the incident to ensure no other victims were involved in the killing.
