NB247
The mysterious death of Blessing Suleiman, a police Inspector attached to Akotogbo police division in Irele Local Government Area has stirred controversy within the Ondo State Police Command.
Although the family of the deceased has raised allegations of foul play and complicity by the police authorities, the Command in Akure has denied the allegations, saying the death of the officer may be “sudden and unnatural.”
Mr Suleiman’s lifeless body was reportedly retrieved from a nearby river two days after he was declared missing, indicating that he might have drowned.
But his family members say he was burnt with fire and could have been murdered.
When the corpse was brought to his Akure home for burial, the police team who brought his remains reportedly dumped the coffin and fled when the youth and family members attacked them.
The corpse was in a coffin, but the youths demanded to view the body, after which they claimed the body had marks of burns on his head.
They rejected the police narrative that the officer drowned in the river.
Mr Suleiman’s wife was reported to have complained that 24 hours after efforts to reach her husband failed, she received a call from the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) informing her that her husband had drowned.
The wife said her husband’s colleagues had told her that his remains would be brought to the Osi community the next day.
An eyewitness said that, when the body arrived, it was however sealed in a coffin
However, a detailed reaction from the police state headquarters on Friday insisted that the officer’s body was picked from the river with his clothes intact and no traces of burns.
A statement by police Spokesperson, Funmilayo Odunlami, noted that considering the outcry and allegation of foul play by the family of the late Inspector and public concern over his death, the Commissioner of Police, Wilfred Afolabi, has ordered that an autopsy be carried out on the deceased.
She however said they an autopsy was earlier planned, but the deceased family had opposed it, demanding that they wanted the body for immediate burial.
The statement reads: “Preliminary investigation revealed that on the 27th of January 2025, towards evening time, no one could give an account of the presence of the late inspector in the station, immediately the DPO directed that search party should trace his whereabouts, as he was last seen wearing a blue vest and a green track suit trousers.
“Two days later the officer in charge of the Police Marine informed the DPO of the discovery of a corpse lying face down in a river, on close observation it was discovered that the body was that of Inspector Yusuf Suleiman with his cloth intact on his body with no trace of any injury or mark of violence except a swollen observed in the centre of his head.
“Thereafter, the remains of the late inspector was evacuated and deposited at Irele General Hospital morgue.
“The family of the deceased was informed of the incident and in a bid to unravel the circumstances that led to the death of the deceased, the CP directed the state CID to take over the case.
“In the course of investigation, there was a demand for autopsy to be conducted on the body but the family vehemently opposed and rejected the idea , insisting the corpse of the deceased be released for burial, a request granted by the Police.
“As a result of the demand by the family, the body was recovered from the morgue with the police bearing the financial cost , conveyed the remains of the deceased to his home in Akure.
“It is worthy of note that the cloth last seen on the deceased was found intact on his body when his corpse was discovered ruling out any suspicion of arson, as there was no mark of burnt or physical violence on his body.
“Despite Preliminary investigation carried out by the State Criminal Investigation Department establishing a case of Sudden and Unnatural Death with no foul play suspected ,the Commissioner of Police has ordered that a full Autopsy be carried out to determine the cause of death in response to the allegation made by the family and for public interest.”