The Nigerian Army has announced the capture of Adeleye Ayomide, identified as the suspect behind the murder of Idowu Christiana, a 300-level student at the Federal University of Agriculture (FUNAAB), Abeokuta, Ogun State.
The victim was reportedly kidnapped by suspected abductors on the Ikorodu-Yaba Road in Lagos State on Monday, August 19, 2024.
According to a family member, who spoke to PUNCH Metro anonymously, the kidnappers initially requested a ransom of N3 million for the student’s release.
Despite agreeing to accept N350,000 after several negotiations, the kidnappers failed to release the student after the payment was made.
When reached on Thursday, Lt-Col. Olabisi Ayeni, the spokesperson for the 81 Division of the Nigerian Army, confirmed Ayomide’s arrest in a phone interview with our correspondent.
Ayeni said the suspect was arrested by men of the 174 Battalion, saying, “Yes. I am aware about the issue. We arrested him and the 9 Brigade Nigerian Army will be handing him over to the Lagos State Police Command today, so you can liaise with them for further information.”
Also, on Thursday, the Student Union Government president of FUNAAB, Ibrahim Adeyemi, confirmed Christiana’s death to one of our correspondents in a telephone conversation, saying, “The union can confirm that she was reportedly killed by her abductor. We will be addressing the matter soon.”
An X user, Man of Letters, using the handle #Letter_to_Jack, posted on Wednesday night, confirming that the suspect was detained at the 174 Battalion of the Nigerian Army in Ikorodu, Lagos State.
He further mentioned that Ayomide admitted to both the victim’s father and military personnel that he had killed and buried the victim, based on “detailed reports from trusted sources.”
His tweets, among others, read, “Armed by this information, operatives began investigation into the suspect whom they observed to have a mutual relationship with Christiana Idowu, especially judging by Instagram posts as they both commented on each other’s pages. With all these information at hand, the operatives began to track down his cell phone activities and text messages.
“The cell phone tracking led them to his parent’s house, somewhere in Ikorodu. Operatives then got confirmation of his presence in the building through active tracking of his mobile device. Immediately, gallant personnel of the Nigerian Army 174bn swooped in on the suspect to conduct an arrest. After the arrest, damning evidence were seen with the suspect and this includes the victim blue ITEL A56 with IMEI:35230**.”
The PUNCH
