The Kogi State Police Command has arrested three suspects linked to the murder of a fresh graduate of the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Aminu Abubakar, whose tricycle was also stolen.
The command’s spokesperson, ASP Saliu Oyiza Afusat, disclosed in a statement on Wednesday that the arrests followed a coordinated intelligence-led operation that uncovered a criminal network behind the killing.
According to the police, Abubakar left his home in the Otokiti area of Lokoja with his tricycle in search of daily earnings but never returned. His body was later discovered around the CBN area in Zone 8, prompting detectives from the Homicide Unit of the State Criminal Investigation Department to open an investigation. Two suspects, Garba Godwin Ibrahim and Ashema Usman Samson, were subsequently arrested after allegedly luring the victim to a secluded location under the guise of construction work.
Afusat stated that the suspects attacked the victim with a shovel, inflicting fatal blows to the back of his head. They allegedly sold the stolen tricycle to one Kabiru Idris in Ayingba. Police operatives tracked and arrested Idris, and a search of his residence reportedly led to the recovery of the victim’s tricycle alongside four motorcycles suspected to have been stolen. Investigators also found that the two principal suspects are ex-convicts previously linked to robbery and homicide.
The police spokesperson confirmed that the investigation has been concluded and the suspects have been arraigned before Magistrate Court 5 in Lokoja, where they were remanded. The Commissioner of Police, CP Naziru Bello Kankarofi, commended the operatives for their efforts and urged residents to remain vigilant while providing credible information to security agencies.
