The
desire of every young undergraduate in Nigeria is to put on the uniform
of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and be addressed as a
‘corper’.
But fate was very cruel to 24-year-old Augusta Chizoba Ndukwu of Umufu-Amaimo, Ikeduru Local Government area of Imo State.
She was gruesomely murdered by unknown persons at Upper Iweka area of the commercial city of Onitsha, Anambra State.
It
was quite sad that Augusta, who had survived a series of hostilities
and bombings by the dreaded Islamic sect, Boko Haram, in Adamawa State,
where she observed her one-year mandatory national youth service, would
painfully meet her untimely death in a place she felt was her home. Her
voice was filled with joy when she spoke to her relatives in Owerri on
phone, telling them that she had finally come home.
She
told them that she was at the luxurious park in Upper Iweka, informing
them also that she would join them in Owerri the next morning but she
never lived to see the faces of her loved ones, as she was gruesomely
murdered by unknown persons that fateful night.
A
source gathered that the deceased, a graduate of Banking and Finance
from the Federal Polytechnic, Nekede, Imo State, was found lying in the
pool of her own blood at the notorious fly-over at Upper Iweka on
September 12.
According
to a family member and the Vice Chairman of Nigeria Union of
Journalists, (NUJ) Imo State Council, Chief Chris Akaraonye, Chizoba
left Yola, the capital of Adamawa State on September 11 where she was
having her NYSC primary assignment. She was travelling to Onitsha en
route Owerri but could not get to her finaldestination that time because
it was alreadylate.
Chief
Akaraonye further said the deceased, who had boarded a luxurious bus
belonging to a popular transport company (names withheld), called her
relatives to inform them that she could not make it again to Owerri. She
also informed them that she haddecided to pass the night at the
company’s motor park together with other passengers.
However,
according to him, the following day, the family of the deceased,
including her fiancé, waited in anxiety for the arrival of Chizoba in
Owerri but to no avail. They then started trying her mobile line, but it
had been switched off. “At first, we thought she had a low battery. But
after waiting for almost the whole day, we realized it was not usual
and we decidedto make moves to know why somebody thatspoke to us at 10
pm last night could not be reached on phone or could not get to Owerri.
In
the course of our doubts and fears, we started going through different
police stations and Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) formations
along the Onitsha-Owerri Road to ascertain if she was involved in a
motor accident.
It
was when we came to Onitsha that we found her corpse at the Onitsha
General Mortuary with gunshot wounds to her chest.” In the next morning,
early passersby were shocked to their marrow when they beheld the gory
sight of a lady lying in the pool of her own blood at the Upper Iweka
axis with two travelling bags filled with children clothing and popcorn.
One of the eyewitnesses who pleaded anonymity said that the deceased was a victim of ritual killers.
She
confirmed that she was found lying at the Upper Iweka flyover with
gunshot wounds on her chest and two travelling bags containing children
clothes and popcorn beside her corpse.
Though the police swiftly said the deceased could be the victim of an armed robbery attack, they also revealed that the bags were planted by the assailants to divert police investigations, stressing that the police had commenced investigations into the circumstances surrounding the murder.
Though the police swiftly said the deceased could be the victim of an armed robbery attack, they also revealed that the bags were planted by the assailants to divert police investigations, stressing that the police had commenced investigations into the circumstances surrounding the murder.
However,
policemen attached to the Central Police Station, CPS, Onitsha led by
the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, Mr. Abdul Yusuf said they have
arrested three persons in connection with the death of the corps member,
adding that they were still working to unravel the circumstances
surrounding the murder of the deceased.
The
police said, though, that it could be possible that the girl was
murdered at the park by some criminals who then took her body to the
Upper Iweka where they kept two bags containing clothes belonging to a
boy of six years just to divert police investigations.
According
to the police, the deceased was not a victim of ritual killing. It was
further gathered that the driver of the luxury bus that brought the
deceased from Yola to Onitsha on that fateful night, the manager of the
transport company and one other person whose identities were not yet
known as at press time have been arrested by the police.
They
were picked up to allegedly help give insight to the death of the corps
member as well as explain how and why the management of the company
swiftly returned the bags of the deceased to Yola without informing the
police.
When
contacted, the Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ralph
Uzoigwe confirmed that three persons have been arrested by the police
to help them in the course of investigations. He appealed to the general
public to help the police with more information that could lead to the
arrest of the real killers of the corps member.
dailysun.
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