One of the suspects arrested in connection with the death of Thomson Adams, a Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) candidate in Lagos, has confessed that the victim was killed because he knew their identity and family. The suspect, Tony Oghenetega from Delta State, told investigators that he and an associate, Elijah Emmanuel, carried out the killing after concluding that Adams could expose them.
Details of the Incident
Investigations revealed that the incident occurred on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, as the victim was returning from the examination hall. Oghenetega explained: “We killed the guy because my associate, who is a friend of the victim, said that the guy knew him and his home, that they went to school together and we should not let him go. He said the victim went to Epe to write JAMB and my friend lured him to come to my house in disguise that he was coming to pick up a laptop from my apartment. We already had a chain, padlock and a Ghana-must-go bag. I have a cutlass in my house while my associate has a stick with nails. My associate welcomed him to my house while I was chatting with him on WhatsApp, planning how to bring out our weapons. I went inside and brought out the cutlass and his weapon. I gave him his own weapon while I held my cutlass.”
The Murder
Oghenetega continued: “My goal was to put fear in him and I was telling him, ‘there is a way you will behave that will make you come out alive and there is a way you will behave and won’t make it out successfully.’ Then my associate chained his legs. My associate called me inside his room and said we should not let the guy go or else he will come with his family members. We went back to the parlour where the victim was chained, then he turned the lights off and I strangled him. I got tired and asked him to continue, and he pressed on his neck. We panicked after he went quiet. We tied him and put his body in the bag. My associate took the body outside and told me to come with my microphone because I do music and pretend like we were going for a job. He told me to stand with the body outside while he went to get two bike men. We got to the destination, unzipped the bag and dropped his body.”
Police Commissioner's Remarks
Speaking on cultism in the state, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Tijani Fatai, stated that many youths involved in such activities are known within their communities. “Many of the boys engaging in cult activities are children of some of us, brothers and neighbours, so it behoves us as members of the community to reduce crime. We have started sensitisation. Everyone has a role to play and we must monitor our children to know what they are doing and bring out anyone found committing crime,” he said. Warning ahead of elections, he added: “No hooliganism will be tolerated during elections. Politicians are also warned to desist from enticing these boys to be used for electoral purposes.”
