A 21-year-old man, Augustine Akor, has been arrested by the Police Command in Enugu State for allegedly raping and strangling his 16-year-old female relative, Faith Akuji, to death.
After the incident took place on June 8 in a bush at Mpole-Ubere in the Ette community within Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area of the state, the police made the arrest on June 12 at about 9:30 am. The suspect was tracked down and apprehended through the joint effort of police operatives serving in Igbo-Eze North Division of the Command with assistance from the Neighborhood Watch Group.
The Command’s Spokesman, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, said in a statement issued on Friday that the victim, Faith Akuji, had gone missing in the evening hours of June 8 after her grandfather sent her to grind cassava in the community centre. All efforts to trace her whereabouts proved abortive. Ndukwe further revealed that “the victim’s decomposing body was found in the bush following the arrest of the suspect.”
Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect dragged the victim into the bush and forcefully had sex with her until she fainted and died in the process. The victim’s remains were found without any lower-body cloth, and evacuated to the hospital where doctors on duty confirmed her dead.
The Enugu State Police Command said the case is currently undergoing further discreet investigation at the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department (State CID) of the Command. The suspect would be arraigned in court upon the conclusion of the investigation.
Reacting to the incident, Commissioner of Police, Mr Ahmed Ammani, consoled the family and friends of the deceased victim, describing the act as “atrocious and unthinkable.” The commissioner directed that the case be meticulously handled, concluded within a recorded time, and charged to court for justice to be dispensed accordingly.
“The command is determined to protect the vulnerable in our society and will not tolerate such barbaric acts against a human being, especially by those expected to guide and protect them,” Ammani added.
