Eji Emmanuel
A
22-year-old man, Eji Emmanuel, has been arrested by the Lagos State
Police Command for the alleged murder of a 39-year-old trader, Sylvanus
Okoye.
According to the police, the suspect stabbed the deceased to death at his home on Ezemegbu Drive, Okota in August.
The suspect, however, explained that he killed the deceased in self-defence.
He alleged that on the day of the incident, Okoye had attempted to rape him.
Explaining the events that culminated in
Okoye’s death, the suspect said he was a dancer and was lured to Lagos
by a friend, Chukwudi, under the guise of doing music business only for
the friend to introduce him to homosexuality.
He said he had gone to report the matter
to his friend’s boss but his friend’s boss raped him twice and he
reported the matter at the FESTAC Police Division.
He said the matter was transferred to
the Zone 2 Police Command and the case was turned against him after
which he spent two weeks in detention.
He said he had approached Okoye, who he
considered an Igbo leader in the state, to help him with money to return
to Anambra State when Okoye also attempted to rape him.
He said, “I went along with a relative
to report the matter to Okoye and he gave my friend and I N5,000 and
shirts. He told us not to worry, so we slept over at his house. At
midnight, however, Okoye came to my room and attempted to have sex with
me but I refused him.
“My relative later told me that Okoye
had sex with him in the parlour that same night. We left in the morning
and returned to Anambra State. From there, I went to Abuja where I
remained for four months. However, one day, Okoye called me that he had a
business deal and invited me to come to Lagos.
“I told Okoye that I would not engage in any act of homosexuality and he agreed.”
The suspect said when he returned to
Lagos, the deceased said he wanted to open a bar in the area and wanted
him to manage the business.
He said he passed the night at the
deceased’s home, but at midnight, the deceased crept into his room and
attempted to make love to him.
He said, “In the evening, Okoye served
me with bread, butter and tea in my room. Around 3.30am, he crept into
my room and wanted to sleep with me, but I refused him.
“Okoye was a big man so he attempted to
overpower me, but I picked up the bread knife that was still left in the
room and stabbed him in the neck, but he did not die.
“I picked up a flexible iron and bound it round his neck and locked him inside the room.
“When it was 6am, I stepped out of the house and gave the key to one woman beside the gate and fled.”
PUNCH Metro had reported on August 16, 2013, that Okoye was found murdered in his home two weeks after he was last seen by neighbours.
It was learnt that following the
discovery, the security guard and the woman whom the suspect handed the
key to were arrested by detectives at the State Criminal Investigation
Department, Yaba.
PUNCH Metro learnt that after three months, detectives were able to locate the suspect in Anambra State.
A police detective said, “The security guard told us that he could identify the suspect if he saw him.
“In the course of investigation, we
obtained call logs from Okoye’s phone and we learnt that the suspect had
used Okoye’s phone to call his girlfriend in Anambra State shortly
after killing Okoye.
“We travelled to Anambra State and we were able to locate the suspect who was even wearing the deceased’s clothes.”
The suspect, however, insisted that he was not a killer but a victim of circumstance.
He said, “My father and my brother are dead. I am the only child of my mother. Who will take care of her if I am sent to prison?
“I am not a homosexual but I was used. I
tried for several months to impregnate my girlfriend but was not
successful. I feel they have stolen my virtues.”
Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, confirmed Emmanuel’s arrest to our correspondent on the telephone.
Braide added that the police were still
working to establish it the the victim was a homosexual or not as
alleged by the suspect.
PUNCH
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