The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has arrested one Joseph Mbounu Ifeanyi, 33, the principal suspect in connection with the death of his wife, Evelyn Omape Alifia Yakubu, in Lugbe Area of the FCT.
Ifeanyi was accused of strangling his wife of two months, Evelyn, to death in their home in Abuja.
The spokesperson of the command, DSP Josephine Adeh, confirmed the arrest in a statement on Friday, February 25. She refuted reports alleging that the police demanded the sum of N300,000 from the family.
“Following a report by one Aduojo Daniel Yakubu, ‘m’ at the Trademore Division Police headquarters, investigative assets of the Command attached to the Division immediately commenced action,” the PPRO stated.
“Upon visitation, the deceased was found dead in her residence on February 21, 2022. All efforts to take the corpse to the Morgue for the necessary actions proved abortive as the family of the deceased insisted on immediately burying the corps due to the state of the body at discovery point.
“Preliminary investigations have however revealed that the principal suspect, Joseph Mbounu Ifeanyi, an Electrical Technician, was last seen with the deceased before the discovery of her death, that Joseph actually called to inform the deceased family members of her demise and had since been out of reach until his arrest.
“The case has been absorbed by the State criminal investigations Department (SCID), where investigation is being intensified and further discoveries would be made public,” the statement reads.
The Commissioner of Police, FCT Police Command, CP Babaji Sunday, sent his condolences to the family of the deceased while appealing for calm.
He assured that no stone would be left unturned in unravelling the cause of death of Evelyn and ensuring that justice is served.
“The Command equally enjoined members of the public to disregard misleading reports in some sections of the media, alleging that the Police demanded the sum of three hundred thousand (300,000.00) from the family of the deceased which slowed down investigations into the matter. This report is untrue and unfounded.
“In Addition, the CP FCT Command wishes to categorically reiterate the zero tolerance of the Command under his watch, to any form of extortion and called on members of the public not to hesitate in availing the Police with useful and timely information to enable it to detect and prevent crimes in the FCT.
