UYO
The Akwa Ibom State Police Command has arrested two suspects in connection with the alleged conspiracy and gruesome murder of a 26-year-old man, late Nsikak Joshua, in Oboetim Ikot Ekong Village, Nsit Ibom Local Government Area .
A release signed by the Police Public Relations officer (PPRO), Timfon John, DSP , said the case was reported at the police station on 14th July 2026 at about 8:30 p.m. by one Mr. Ekere aged 52 years, father of the deceased.
According to her ,the complaint alleged that his only son was beaten to death by one Otobong Nelson, also known as “Efok Ikid,” alongside Inemesit Robert, Utibe Clement, and Victor Robert, all residents of the same village.
John said that the complainant further narrated that on 14th July 2026 at about 8:40 a.m., he allegedly brought the corpse to Ekere’s residence ,armed with spades and forcefully demanded that he indicate where the deceased should be buried, dug a shallow grave within his compound, buried the corpse, and thereafter threatened him against reporting the incident to the Police.
The PPRO said upon receipt of the report, detectives commenced immediate investigation and acting on credible intelligence, operatives arrested Otobong Nelson and Utibe Clement on 17th July 2026 at about 3:45 a.m.
She added that during interrogation, the first suspect, Otobong Nelson, made a confessional statement in which he admitted that the deceased had been summoned to answer an allegation of threatening a neighbour with a machete.
Nelson was said to have further confessed that he ordered his subjects, identified as Utibe Clement, Victor Robert, and Inemesit Robert, to assault the deceased with sticks, which resulted in his death.
He also confessed that after the victim died, he and others conveyed the corpse to the deceased’s father’s compound and falsely informed him that his son had been knocked down by a hit-and-run vehicle.
They allegedly advised the father not to take the body to the mortuary, after which the corpse was buried in a shallow grave within the compound.
Following police intervention, the remains of the deceased were exhumed and deposited at the Morgue for preservation and autopsy.
Meanwhile,the Commissioner of Police, Akwa Ibom State Command, Baba Azare has condemned the act in the strongest terms and described it as barbaric, unlawful, and unacceptable.
He directed that the ongoing investigation be intensified to ensure the arrest of all other suspects currently at large and that everyone found culpable is brought to justice.
“The Command wishes to reassure members of the public that no individual or group has the authority to take the law into their own hands. Any person involved in conspiracy, unlawful assault, murder, intimidation of witnesses, or concealment of evidence will be investigated and prosecuted in accordance with the law,” the statement said.
