The man suspected of gruesomely murdering a photojournalist in Kogi State earlier this week has been found dead, in what the authorities believe to be a suicide.
Ayo Pelumi, the alleged killer of Ayo Aiyepeku, was found dead in a hotel room in Lokoja on Thursday.
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The police were called to a lodge on Thursday afternoon where Mr Pelumi’s body was recovered. A bottle of Coca-Cola and a bottle of what is suspected to be a pesticide were reportedly found in the room, indicating he took his own life.
A staff member at the hotel, who wished to remain anonymous, said Mr Pelumi checked into the establishment on Wednesday afternoon.
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His body was found around 1 p.m. on Thursday when a steward went to clean the room at checkout time.
The hotel management then alerted the police, who identified him as the prime suspect in Mr Aiyepeku’s murder.
Mr Pelumi’s body has since been deposited at the mortuary of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lokoja.
Mr Aiyepeku, a photojournalist with Inside Story in Lokoja, was reportedly murdered on Tuesday evening.
A witness accounts suggest that Mr Pelumi, who was Mr Aiyepeku’s neighbour, lured him to his poultry farm within the same compound around 8:30 p.m.
According to a colleague of Mr Aiyepeku, who was in the office with the victim shortly before the incident, Mr Pelumi called Mr Aiyepeku for assistance at the farm.
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The colleague narrated seeing Mr Pelumi repeatedly strike Mr Aiyepeku on the head with an iron object, rendering him unconscious. The suspect then allegedly dismembered the body and attempted to transport parts of it in his Hilux van.
The witness raised an alarm, attracting security operatives, including vigilantes and sympathisers, to the scene. Although shots were fired at the tyres of Mr Pelumi’s vehicle in an attempt to stop him, he reportedly managed to escape from the premises.
The family of the late Mr Aiyepeku had appealed to both the Kogi State Government and the police to ensure justice for their son.
However, the spokesperson of the Kogi State Police Command, Williams Ovye, was yet to issue an official statement regarding the incidents as of the time of this report.
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