A Niger Delta youth group, the National Youth Advocacy Against Injustice and Human Rights Abuse, has sent a protest letter to President Bola Tinubu and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) over the mysterious death of a graduate of Pharmacy from the University of Port Harcourt, River State, Omokhinyema Okubo in the custody of the Ketu-Ejirin Division Police in Lagos state.
According to the group, the deceased Omokhinyema Okubo, 35 years old and employed as a sales representative of a Phamacitical company known as Exus Pharmaceutical Nigeria and owned by a Chinese National, Mr. Zur-Yin, was arrested over alleged shortage in his sales account and died in the police custody.
The deceased is also an indigene of Okhaki community in Ahoada West Local Government area of Rivers State and son of a retired Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP Okubo Aboye.
The group, in the protest letter to President Bola Tinubu and the NHRC signes by its National Coordinator, Comrade Fidelis Jones, stated that despite the explanations offered by the deceased for the shortage, he was detained at the Ketu-Ejirin Police Division on the 18th of July, 2023 without contact with his family and was allegedly tortured and murdered on the 19th of July,2023.
The group also stated that the Chinese oened company, Exus Pharmaceutical Nigeria Limited and the DPO of the Ketu-Ejirin Divisional headquarters, CSP Awosinu Monday, in desperate bid to cover up the alleged murder of the deceased, unceremoniously dumped the corpse in the mortuary with evident bruises on his body.
“Investigations by the family and the group showed that instead of the policemen at the Ketu-Ejirin incidenting the death and depositing the corpse in the mortuary, it was one Pharmacist Osakwe, the Manager of the Chinese company, that deposited the corpse.”
“Six months after the arrest and brutal murder of the deceased, the management the Exus Pharmaceutical Nigeria Limited has refused to formally inform the family of the circumstances that led to the arrest, detention and murder of their son”
The group also called the attention of President Bola Tinubu, the Ijaw Youths Council (IYC), MHRC, the Rivers State Government and members of the National Assembly from the six states of the Niger Delta to help in investigating the murder of a promising son of the Niger Delta by the Nigerian Police Force.
” We are accusing the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, the Lagos Commissioner of Police and the DPO of the Ketu-Ejirin Divisional headquarters, CSP Awosinu Monday of conspiring with the the management of the Exus Pharmaceutical Nigeria Limited to keep mum and engaged in cover-up of the incident.”
“Series of petitions have been addressed to the Inspector-Generalbof Police and the Lagos State Commissioner without response. We are calling on President Bola Tinubu to order an investigation and bring police officers involved to book.”
” We are calling on the NHRC and the Umbrella body of Ijaw Youths Worldwide, the Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) led by Jonathan Lokpobiri to assist and secure justice for the brutalized soul of Omokhinyema Okubo.”
Meanwhile, the father of the deceased, ACP Okubo Aboye(rtd), has again sent a petition to the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, insisting that the personnel of the Exus Pharmaceutical Nigeria Limited and the policemen involved in the torture and murder of his son be arrested and brought to justice.”
ACP Okubo Aboye(rtd), in the letter written and signed by his counsel, Yakub Dauda Esq, ” when the sister of the deceased was called from the Ketu-Ejirin Police Post on his death, she noticed several bruises and deep cuts on his corpse.”
