Body of student found in Ilorin river

• Police nab three over death of UNICAL student
• Inspector dies in Ogun lone accident
• FRSC blames construction firms for road crashes

The Kwara State police command yesterday confirmed the death of one Ibrahim Shuaib, whose body was found at a stream around Kuntu – Oja-tuntun, in Ilorin West Local Government Area of the state. Shuaib was a student of Qur’anic ‎and Arabic Legal Studies in Ilorin. The deceased body was discovered by some traders who were on their way to the market. The river is not a good sight for swimming as it is littered with refuse prompting more quests into the cause of his death.

His Qur’anic teacher, Ustaz Yunus Apo, who spoke to journalists, expressed shock about the sudden death of Shuaib, saying he was in good health previous night when they parted.“It was a misery that Shuaib is dead. I couldn’t believe it if I did not see his body. He was having fun with his friends last night, it was one of his friends who came to break the sad news to me,” he said.

Also, one of his friends who craved anonymity, said Shuaib was very sound and healthy as at the time they went to bed the previous night. He wondered why, saying when he woke up and went to the stream, he was shocked to find the dead body of his friend. “I was surprised to hear the news of Ibrahim’s death, until I saw his body in the stream with my eyes.”

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, Ajayi Okasanmi, confirmed the incident. “It is true. We heard that he jumped into the river to swim and died. His body has been taken to the mortuary of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH),” he said.In Cross River State, police authorities have arrested three persons in connection with the death of a 21-year old final year student of the University of Calabar (UNICAL), Joseph Ita Archibong, during a robbery attack.

The armed robbery incident took place last week at 22 Duncan Street in Calabar–South Local Government Area at about 2:00a.m. when a three-man gang broke into the compound of the victim to rob.The state’s PPRO, ASP Irene Ugbo, confirmed the incident, saying “three persons were arrested by Efut police division and they are currently in custody and investigation is still ongoing to get to the root of the matter after which they will be charged to court.

“We have given them grace to bring out all arms and ammunitions in their possession but this time we are going really hard on criminals because the period of grace is over and we are leaving no stone unturned as all criminals will be flushed out no matter their hide out or modus operandi.”An eyewitness report said: “The three-man gang entered the compound at about 2:00a.m. that fateful day and carried out the havoc, which has left us in grief till today.”

Joseph was said to have been shot from behind by one of the armed robbers as the deceased tried to grab one of them in their attempt to escape. The eyewitness said he died four days after in a public hospital after he was shot with a locally made gun and will be buried on Friday, May 4 at Etak Ukana, Akwa Ikot Effanga in Akpabuyo Local Government Area.

Meanwhile, a police inspector, Azeez Ajasa, on Tuesday, died in a lone accident at Adedero village on the Kobape-Abeokuta Expressway in Ogun. Mr. Babatunde Akinbiyi, the Public Relations Officer of Ogun Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency (TRACE), confirmed the incident to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abeokuta.Akinbiyi said the officer, who was driving a white Golf 4 car with registration number EKY 631 BB, lost control of the vehicle and veered into the bush, somersaulting in the process.

“The accident happened around 11:30a.m. The victim was a serving police inspector attached to Mopol 16, Oke Ilewo, Abeokuta,” he said.The TRACE spokesman said the body of the deceased has been deposited at the State Hospital, Ijaye, Abeokuta.

The Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi, has expressed worry over the high rate of accidents at road construction sites in the country. Speaking with newsmen in Abuja on Monday, Oyeyemi said most of the accidents were caused by lack of traffic signs at diversion points in construction areas.

“We have been having problems with the construction companies, and we have taken this up with the Minister of Power, Works and Housing. The major problem is at diversions; we lost 22 people on the Lagos-Ibadan road just in two days and 25 people recently. The crash that happened between Bauchi and Kano on Feb. 13, in which school children died, was also at a diversion point in a construction area.

“I will step up my meeting with the minister to ensure that these construction companies comply with the statutory mandate of ensuring appropriate signage in construction areas,’’ he said.

However, Oyeyemi said the corps had recorded about 70 per cent compliance by commercial vehicle owners with installation of speed limiting device, whose enforcement started on Feb. 1, 2017.According to him, most of the local assembly plants had comp lied with the policy by installing the device in vehicles being produced at the factory.