Police arrest six over death of missing OAU master’s student

A master’s student at Obafemii Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Timothy Adegoke, who was declared missing on November 7, has been found dead.

Spokesperson for the Osun State Police Command, Opalola Olawoyin, made this known in a statement on Monday.

The police said six persons have been arrested without stating when, where and how Adegoke’s body was found.

It was learnt that Adegoke, an Abuja-based student, who travelled to Ife on November 5 to take an examination at the school’s distance learning centre in Moro, Osun State, was declared missing when friends and family members could not reach him.

He was not also found at the exam venue.

The statement said, “It would be recalled that, a case of a missing person was reported on 7th November, 2021 at about 1630hrs, at Edun Abon police station and later transferred to State Criminal Investigation Department for discreet investigation on 9th November, 2021. Immediately the case was received, detectives from SCID of the command swung into action and have arrested six suspects in connection with the case while investigation is ongoing.

“Consequently, the Commissioner of Police is using this medium to appeal to the family, the sympathizers, students and management of the university to remain calm and be rest assured that, the police will do all within its constitutional responsibility to unravel the mystery behind his death.

“Police command is working assiduously to unravel the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr Timothy Adegoke, a master’s degree student of OAU who came from Abuja to sit for his examination at the OAU distance learning centre, Moro, Osun State.”

Meanwhile, the management of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, has described as unfortunate the death of the student.

A release by the Public Relations Officer of the University, Abiodun Olarewaju, stated that the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Prof Eyitope Ogunbodede, expressed sadness over the incident.

The VC was also quoted as appreciating the prompt action and painstaking investigation of the Osun State Command of the Nigerian Police, which eventually led to the discovery of Adegoke’s corpse.

Ogunbodede while sympathising with the family recognised the tenacity and doggedness of the late Adegoke’s wife which assisted, in no small measures, in unravelling the circumstances of her husband’s movement in Ile-Ife.

He charged the widow, children, family, friends, colleagues, and associates to take solace in the fact Adegoke left positive footprints and impacted numerous lives, and that “death is a necessary end that will come when it will come”.

The Vice-Chancellor pledged the commitment of the University administration to work with the law enforcement agents to unravel the circumstances leading to the death of Adegoke.

Copyright PUNCH.