The Cross River State Police Command has arrested a patent medicine dealer and another suspect in connection with a murder incident in Afokang Community, Calabar South Local Council. The arrest was confirmed in a statement by the command's spokesperson, ASP Sunday Eitokpah, who said that officers from Efut Division responded to information received at about 7:00 a.m. on Tuesday from a correctional officer. The officer disclosed that community members had apprehended persons linked to a murder incident.
Eitokpah said police officers took custody of a male and female suspect afterwards and immediately commenced preliminary investigations. During interrogation, both suspects denied any knowledge of or involvement in any murder. Though the police spokesperson disclosed that no corpse was found at the reported location, he stated that officers observed traces of blood around a soakaway pit. One of the suspects claimed that the bloodstains originated from an old injury sustained on his leg.
Eitokpah noted that the circumstances surrounding the report required further investigation to establish the facts of the case. Therefore, the suspects and the case file have been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for discreet investigation.
The incident had earlier generated tension in Afokang, where residents alleged that a young woman was killed under suspicious circumstances in the community. Some residents claimed that the principal suspect, who is popular in the area, was apprehended after local vigilante members allegedly discovered traces of blood around his residence. Also, an eyewitness, pleading anonymity, claimed that the victim had visited the suspect's apartment before the incident.
In the meantime, the police have urged the public to remain calm and allow investigations to determine the true circumstances surrounding the alleged murder.
