54-year-old Christopher Akpan, has been arrested for allegedly killing of a 45-year-old National Security and Civil Defence Corps officer, identified as Josephine Cynthia.
Akpan on Wednesday was paraded along side 35 others, including a female, in connection with various crimes in different locations in the country.
The suspects were arrested for allegedly committing crimes ranging from armed robbery, homicide and kidnapping to rape, car theft and unlawful possession of arms among others.
According to spokesman of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), and Deputy Commissioner of Police, Frank Mba, “Akpan had promised to marry Josephine. In the course of the relationship, a lot of financial dealings took place and it is believed Josephine handed a large chunk of money to Akpan.
“Between December 19 and 20, 2019, she visited her lover who lured her to the house of a native doctor, Rafiu Afolabi, 67, in Benue, where she was murdered and her body buried in a shallow grave in the forest.
“Akpan promised to pay Afolabi N5m out of the N14m he had collected from Josephine. It took intense effort and massive follow-up by the Intelligence Response Squad before the crime was uncovered.”
However, Akpan denied killing Josephine, saying that he had planned to marry her between December 28 and 29.
He added that she came to visit her to see assess preparation on December 17 and left safely on December 19.