Court Remands Three Residents For Beheading Motorcyclist In Kwara
According to a police report, the gruesome crime was uncovered around 2am, when the headless body of the victim was discovered in a pool of blood at the riverbank.
Amagistrates’ court in Ilorin, Kwara State, has remanded three men accused of beheading a commercial motorcyclist and stealing his motorcycle in Asunnara village.
The suspects — Peter Samuel, Jeremiah Tiozina, and Sunday Agbenke — are facing charges of criminal conspiracy, theft and unlawful possession or removal of human parts.
According to a police report, the gruesome crime was uncovered around 2am, when the headless body of the victim was discovered in a pool of blood at the riverbank.
Officers also recovered two android phones believed to belong to the victim and one of the suspects at the crime scene.
An investigation revealed that Samuel and Tiozina hired a motorcyclist, Raufu Akanno, agreeing to pay him N10,000 for a round trip to the Olooru area, with an initial deposit of N5000.
However, during the journey, Samuel reportedly asked Akanno to stop, claiming his cap had fallen off — a ploy to rob the motorcyclist of his bike.
The suspects then struck Akanno with a stick and beheaded him before making off with his motorcycle, according to court documents.
Meanwhile, Prosecutor, Nasir Yusuf, requested the court to remand the accused in custody.
Magistrate Saidu, who presided over the case, ordered their remand at the Oke Kura Federal Correctional Centre and adjourned the matter until December 23, 2024.
Earlier in November, SaharaReporters reported that operatives of the Kwara State Police Command had arrested three suspects for allegedly beheading a motorcyclist, also called ‘Okada rider’ in the Asunlere area of Oke Oyi, Ilorin.
It was gathered that the Okada man was beheaded and the suspects stole his motorcycle from him.
Parading the suspects on Wednesday, the Kwara State Commissioner of Police, CP Victor Olaiya, identified the suspects as Peter Samuel, Jeremiah Tiozinda and Sunday Agbenke.
Items recovered include an Itel Android phone and the motorcycle.
Olaiya explained that on November 4, 2024, a report was received from the residents of Asunlere community, Oke-Oyi, Ilorin, Kwara State.
Three men, namely Abdulrasheed Ola Sheu, Ismail Muhammed, and others, arrived at Oke-oyi Police Division to report the discovery of a headless body lying near a stream within the area.
He said upon receiving this report, detectives were swiftly dispatched to the scene.
“Photographic evidence was captured, revealing a significant mark of violence around the neck, indicating that the head was severed,” he said.
The Commissioner of Police said the body was subsequently evacuated and deposited at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital morgue, pending an autopsy.
“At the crime scene, detectives recovered an Itel Android phone, which was suspected to belong to one of the assailants, as well as a motorcycle believed to be the deceased’s property. Further search revealed that the deceased’s phone was also found on him,” he said.
He said detectives intensified efforts to identify and apprehend the perpetrators.
According to Olaiya, “These efforts yielded results in the early hours of November 6, 2024, based on reliable intelligence, three suspects were apprehended at separate locations. The suspects, identified as Peter Samuel (M), Jeremiah Tiozinda (M) and Sunday Agbenke (M).”
He said the suspects confessed to committing the crime.
“Additionally, the recovered Android phone was confirmed to belong to suspect Peter Samuel, who was planning to flee from the state. During interrogation, the suspects revealed that they disposed of the victim’s severed head in a nearby river,” he said.
He said efforts were currently underway to recover the evidence.
