Oyo police arrest three suspects over killing of six family members

The Oyo State Police Command has arrested three suspects over the alleged killing of a family of six including four children in Oloba Village, Lagelu Local Government Area of the state.

In a statement on Monday, the police identified the suspects as Hammed Akinbami, Ojo Akinbami and Padonu Edward. According to the police, the three allegedly invaded the home of Ifeanyi Chukwu, his wife and their four children on 22 September.

The command said the suspects killed the family members and dumped their bodies in a nearby river after allegedly robbing them of cash and other property.

It added that the suspects were arrested following credible intelligence received on 2 October about the incident.

“During the invasion, the suspects robbed the family of N200,000 cash, a Boxer motorcycle, a Doma machine with chainsaw and a spraying machine. In the course of the attack, Hammed Akinbami shot the husband, while Akinbami Ojo and Padonu Edward inflicted injuries on the wife by hitting her on the head.

“The attack subsequently took a fatal turn as the suspects tied two of the children by their hands and legs and threw them into a nearby river, while the remaining members of the family were killed and their bodies disposed of in the same river,” the statement read.

‘We killed them all’

During an interview with journalists after their arrest, one of the suspects, Hammed, claimed the attack was triggered by a dispute over his phone between him and Mr Chukwu.

“It is true I mobilised people to kill all the family members because they (Mr Chukwu) spoilt my phone,” he said.

Hammed, 35, alleged that the phone had been damaged about four months earlier and that elders in the community had intervened to settle the dispute.

He claimed that he later approached Mr Edward, who suggested that he take revenge. Hammed said
Padonu and Ojo joined him in the attack, adding that the group went to the family’s home armed with cutlasses, sticks and a locally made gun.

“His wife gave me N50,000 and I collected it, but my fellows have destroyed their home. Edward hit the wife with a stick, and I first killed one child. Later, I also went and carried a gun and killed the husband. Ojo picked one child and tied him and killed him, Edward also picked the remaining children, he tied them and killed them and we went to throw their bodies into a big river.

“They are six, and we killed them all,” he said.

However, Padonu gave a different account of the motive.

He told journalists that Hammed had sent his younger brother, Ojo, to summon him and later told him that they wanted to collect money from the family.

According to Padonu, he was asked to bring a stick and cutlass before they went to the house.

He admitted hitting the woman on the head and said he and Ojo killed her.

“When we got there, I hit the wife with stick in the head. It was me and Ojo that killed her,” Padonu said.

However, Ojo, in his account, said he initially did not know why his brother wanted Padonu to meet him. He said he followed the others because he was told they were going to collect money the family owed his brother.

Ojo claimed that the others later told him they intended to kill the family members and threatened to kill him if he did not participate.

He admitted throwing one of the children, whom he estimated to be about five years old, into the river.

Police recover motorcycle, weapons

Following the arrests, the police command said detectives visited the scene, took photographs and recovered several exhibits.

The recovered items included the family’s Boxer motorcycle, a locally made Dane gun, two cutlasses and the club allegedly used during the attack.

The police said the three suspects were detained after their arrest and that they confessed during interrogation to their alleged involvement in the crime.

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In a follow-up phone call, the spokesperson for the Oyo State Police Command, Ayanlade Olushola, told PREMIUM TIMES that the remains of the wife have been recovered, while efforts are ongoing to recover the bodies of the other victims.

“Efforts are still ongoing to retrieve the bodies of the deceased for autopsy and proper burial,” he said.

He stated that the suspects and the case file will be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation and legal action.