A 24-year-old man has strangled his 44-year-old male friend to death in Enugu State, south-east Nigeria.
The suspect, Onuabuchi Agbo, also allegedly buried the victim, Peter Ukekwe, in a shallow grave on 1 April in Amori, a community in Nkanu West Local Government Area of the state.
The police spokesperson in Enugu State, Daniel Ndukwe, disclosed this in a statement on Monday.
Mr Ndukwe, a deputy superintendent of police, said the suspect has been arrested and arraigned in court.
The police spokesperson said Mr Agbo, the suspect, hails from Ebonyi State. But he and the victim resided in Ogidi, a community in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State.
Mr Ndukwe said both the suspect and the victim had travelled on 1 April from the Ogidi Community in Anambra State to the Amori Community in Nkanu West Local Government Area of Enugu State to visit a native doctor, identified as Onyeka Edeh.
The police spokesperson said, during the night, the suspect and the victim left the native doctor’s house to an unknown destination.
“A search was conducted, but they were not found until the following morning when the suspect was arrested at Obe Community in the same (Nkanu West) Local Government Area by police operatives serving in Nkanu West Division of the Enugu State Command, with the assistance of indigenes, while he was attempting to escape back to Ogidi, Anambra State,” he said.
The suspect has confessed that he strangled the victim to death and buried him in a shallow grave in a bush, according to the police.
Mr Ndukwe also said the body of the victim has since been exhumed and deposited in the mortuary for preservation and autopsy.
“The case was transferred to the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department Enugu, where investigation into the case was consolidated, concluded and the suspect arraigned and remanded accordingly for further hearing,” he said.
He, however, did not mention the court where the suspect was arraigned.
If convicted, the suspect could get a death sentence, according to Nigerian law.