The Enugu State Police Command, through its Anti-Kidnapping Tactical Squad, has successfully apprehended two suspects, Ikechukwu Okoye (male, aged 33) and Juliet Ogbodo (female, aged 39), both from Onuorie-Obuno in Akpugo Community, Nkanu West Local Government Area.
They are accused of kidnapping, murder, and attempted murder of Mrs. Mary Nwatu, a 70-year-old woman, who was found in a shallow grave sometime in September 2024.
Preliminary investigations by the police revealed that the victim was reported missing on September 15, 2024, after all efforts to locate her proved unsuccessful.
On October 5, 2024, Ikechukwu Okoye, identified as the primary suspect and a relative of the victim, began contacting her children, demanding a ransom of six million Naira (N6,000,000.00).
Following credible intelligence reports, Okoye was arrested, during which he confessed to kidnapping Mrs. Nwatu on September 14, 2024, around 8:00 a.m. He admitted to abducting her, murdering her, and burying her in a shallow grave on the premises of an uncompleted building.
Okoye also admitted to demanding a ransom from the victim’s children, initially asking for six million Naira (N6,000,000.00), which was later reduced to three million Naira (N3,000,000.00). He eventually received a payment of twenty thousand Naira (N20,000.00) to allow the children to hear their mother’s voice through the phone before further payments.
Juliet Ogbodo, who is Ikechukwu Okoye’s close partner, confessed to being aware of the crime but failed to report it to the police or any other relevant authorities.
In response to inquiries, the spokesperson for the command, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, confirmed that the victim’s remains have been exhumed and are currently being preserved at a mortuary for an autopsy. He also stated that the suspects, along with any other individuals involved in this atrocious crime, will be brought to court once the investigations are concluded.
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