The Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has been petitioned to unravel the cause of death and those responsible for the suspected of murder of one Fidelis Osaghae, who reportedly died under suspicious circumstances.
The incident reportedly happened on July 29, 2024 and, according to the person that tweeted the letter, Osaghae was “a vibrant 33-year-old manager who had just got married and had a baby, but was found dead with unexplained injuries.”
His widow, Esther, petitioned the Police IG to help unravel the issues leading to her husband’s suspected murder.
This was made known in a letter addressed to the IG and tweeted by an X handle user @__Ummukhursum, with hashtag #JusticeForFidelis.
Dated August 8, 2024, the letter was signed by the Executive Director of Akin Fadeyi Foundation and it reads:
Dear Inspector General of Police,
REQUEST FOR INVESTIGATION ON THE DEATH OF MR. FIDELIS OSAGHAE ON JULY 29th 2024 IN EDO STATE
The Akin Fadeyi Foundation writes on behalf of Esther Fidelis-Osaghae who we represent. Having gotten her consent to write this petition over the death of her husband who died under a questionable circumstance.
The Akin Fadeyi Foundation (AFF) is a nonprofit civil society organization that leverages communication and technology to tackle corruption in Nigeria, social injustice, including cyberbullying, internet fraud, and other related areas while promoting integrity, transparency, and accountability in Nigeria.
We were briefed by Mrs. Esther Fidelis Osaghae, who is the widow of Mr. Fidelis Osaghoe. Our petition is as follows:
1. that the deceased, Mr. Fidels Osaghoe, is an employee of Mr. Oyemike Valentine who runs a hotel, restaurant, and recreational center.
2. That on the 28 of July 2024, the deceased left for work at about 1pm to Valchi Fast Food and Bar. Opposite M Mechanic Site Angle 90, Auchi, Edo State.
3. That Mr. Fidelis, the deceased, while at work in the early hours of Monday, the 29 of July 2024, called his wife Mrs. Esther Fidelis on a video call at about 1:30am, that it is the usual practice of the deceased to always video call his wife whenever he delays in returning home.
4. That the deceased ran into the house at 2:30am on the 29 of July 2024 and informed our client that Mr. Valentine, his boss, told him to bring “something” back to work. The deceased then ran back to work around the same 2:30am telling our client “I will be back soon”.
5. That as soon as he made the statement in paragraph 4 above, he immediately dashed out of the house to meet with Mr. Oyemike Valentine.
7. That when it was about 5am on the 29th day of July 2024, our client began to call the deceased as he was yet to return home, but she was unable to reach him.
8. That Mrs. Esther our client became apprehensive and decided to reach out to one Tracey, who is also a supervisor at the same facility where the deceased works. This facility is owned by Mr. Valentine.
9. That when our client reached Tracey, the supervisor, she assured our client that “everything is under control” and ended the call on our client.
10. That this further prompted our client to call again to find out what was going on at the deceased’s work place. Unfortunately, despite several attempts to reach Tracey, our client was unable to get through to her or her husband.
11. That later that morning at about 6am, our client finally received a call from Mr. Oyemike Valentine, the deceased’s boss, who told her to come to Favour Hospital, Afasho, Edo State.
12. That our client had asked Mr. Valentine if there was a problem but he went ahead to assure our client that all was alright with her husband.
13. That because our client is a nursing mother who got wedded a year ago, her elder sister opted to go to the hospital while our client stayed home with her baby.
14. That on reaching the hospital, our client’s sister met the dead body of Mr. Fidelis in the car of Mr. Oyemike Valentine, the deceased’s boss.
15. That afterward, our client went to the hospital and also confirmed the corpse of her husband.
16. That the hospital had rejected the body of Mr. Fidelis because, according to them, he was brought in dead.
17. That upon observation, our client and her sister noticed strange marks and injuries on the body of the deceased, which may have been as a result of the torture and pain inflicted on the deceased before he passed on.
18. That we have picture and video evidence to back our claims in Paragraph 17 above.
19. That based on the above information stated, we strongly believe Mr. Fidelis was in the custody of Mr. Oyemike Valentine until his death.
20. That since this incident occurred, Mr. Valentine has been walking freely, and the DPO of the Auchi division, Edo State, has not demonstrated any willingness to take necessary actions toward addressing the matter of this suspicious homicide.
21. That based on this trajectory, it is clear to us that the events surrounding the death of Mr. Fidelis are suspicious.
22. That since the occurrence of this tragedy on the 29 of July 2024, the Police division at Auchi merely invited the parties involved and are yet to make any arrests in this regard. Additionally, the Police were also quick to jump to conclusions by exonerating Mr. Valentine from being a part of the death of Mr. Fidelis.
23. That Mr. Valentine is an influential person within Auchi, Edo State, and therefore we are not able to risk our vote of confidence in investigation of the death of Mr. Fidelis within such jurisdiction for fear of interference and compromise.
24. That we understand that there is a presumption of innocence until proven guilty before the eyes of the law in Nigeria.
25. That by paragraph 24 above, we urge the Inspector General of Police to take over this matter and bring it to a just conclusion.
26. That we believe in the capacity of the Nigerian police to get justice for Mrs. Esther and we are willing to provide the necessary support in this regard.
We look forward to a speedy investigation and appropriate action to address this injustice. On behalf of the Board of Directors and the management of the Akin Fadeyi Foundation, please accept the warm assurances of our highest regards.
