Ondopress
The Ondo State Police Command has arrested a landlord and other suspects in connection with the gruesome murder of two students of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), who were declared missing recently.
The victims, Andrel Eloho Okah of the Department of History and International Studies and John Friday Abba of the Department of Economics, had been missing for over three weeks before their bodies were found last weekend near the Ondo-Ekiti State border.
According to the Commissioner of Police, Adebowale Lawal, the landlord, identified as Abah John Friday, allegedly ordered some suspected cultists to “deal with” the male student for being rude to him. This order ultimately led to the abduction and murder of both students.
Addressing journalists on the development, the Police Commissioner revealed that the investigation began following a petition filed on behalf of one Mr. Emmanuel Peter from Shagari Village, Akure, who reported the disappearance of his younger brother, John Friday Abba, 25, and his friend, Andrel Eloho Okah, 19. The students went missing on June 20, 2025.
Lawal said the Anti-Kidnapping Squad launched an intensive investigation, with forensic tracking leading operatives to Computer Village in Ikeja, Lagos, where an iPhone 14 Pro Max belonging to one of the victims was recovered from a man identified as Abdul Mohammed Mubarak, 38.
Mubarak reportedly confessed to buying the phone from one Ojo Michael, who was later arrested in Aramoko-Ekiti. A Lexus RX 350, which belonged to the victims, was also recovered during the arrest.
Under interrogation, Michael confessed to being involved in the robbery, abduction, and subsequent murder of the students. He claimed that the operation was masterminded by Oladele Femi, the landlord of one of the victims, who recruited him and an accomplice, known simply as “Kola” (still at large), to carry out the crime.
The police commissioner further disclosed that ₦800,000 was transferred from one of the victims’ accounts during their captivity. Michael also admitted to raping the female student before killing her. He reportedly told investigators that she was murdered because she recognised him and could expose his identity. Both victims were then killed to prevent them from revealing their attackers.
Their bodies were disposed of at different locations between Agbado and Ode-Ekiti.
Lawal said further investigations led to the arrest of Oladele Femi, who confessed to orchestrating the crime and helping to conceal the killings. Acting on his confession, police recovered the body of the female student in a bush near Ode-Ekiti. Her remains have been deposited at the General Hospital mortuary for autopsy, while efforts continue to recover the male victim’s body, believed to have been dumped in a river.
“This case stands as a tragic reminder of the brutality of premeditated crimes and the devastating consequences of betrayal and greed,” Lawal stated. “The victims, young and promising undergraduates, were senselessly raped and murdered in cold blood. The command will ensure all those involved are brought to justice.”
In a separate development, the Commissioner announced the arrest of a notorious cultist and long-wanted fugitive linked to several violent cult-related attacks, including murder, in Ondo town and surrounding areas.
Acting on credible intelligence, police operatives arrested 28-year-old Muhammed Taofeeq, a known member of the proscribed Alora Confraternity. He was apprehended at his hideout in Ile-Oluji, where he had been in hiding since evading earlier arrest attempts.