THE death of Unenurhie community youth leader at police custody has continued to generate reactions from leaders and family members in Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State.
It was learned that the deceased, Mr. Oyibo Diamond, a father of five whose last child is about two months old, who was arrested and detained on December 20, 2023, allegedly died on Christmas eve in detention.
Reacting to the incident, the president general of Unenurhie, Mr. Peter Maison said, “Mr Oyibo Diamond was invited by the police from the Ughelli A’ Division because of an incident that happened recently where an armed robber was killed at Evwreni community.
“Probably the police saw the phone number of my community youth leader in the phone of the deceased who the police said is a robber or kidnapper and when they came for raiding, the youth leader was among the six persons arrested at his elder Brother’s hotel in Unenurhie community.
“When we heard about the incident we went to the station to effect their release, the police refused, they insisted that they had a particular case against the youth leader, that they had traces of call between him and the suspected deceased robber/kidnapper.
The police used that as a way of indicting him in other to detain him, and we gave them enough room to investigate him in other not for them not to feel that we as community leaders are obstructing the investigations.
“As you know, Evwreni and Unenurhie communities are one and me being the president general of a community, people are bound to have my number, just like that of the youth leader which is very normal.
“The most painful thing was that the DPO in question knew that I came to him on several occasions seeking the release of the youth leader such that any time he wants him, I will provide but he he refused and over reacted on the issues for reasons best known to him.
“And he kept him more than the number days to be charged if found wanting. And the result of that is his death while under detention
A day before he died, I went to the police station but the DPO was not around and I called his line several times, he did not pick my call and he never returned and I felt probably he is at a ceremony.
“I called him (DPO), again later in the night that same day and he told me that i saw my miss call, that I should see him the next day, being Sunday December 24.
“He gave me a call on Sunday at about 10:07am, and I told him that i am at church service and would call him back after closing, because I knew his call was in respect of the youth leader in his custody.
“After the close of service, I called the youth leader’s elder brother and we went but from what the DPO told me, it looks as if the boy died on Saturday, being December 23 and he just kept it to himself.
“I suspect fowl play because, he did not call me between 8 and but precisely 10:07am, and when I told him I am in the church, he immediately hang the call.
“When he broke the news to me he was panicking and regretting that if he had knwn, he would have released him to me on Saturday but the damage has been done.
“As a community, we are going to have legal issues with him, because the circumstances that to his death is not too clear to us, they did not come up with the result of their investigation that made them to keep him their for the number of days.
“As a family and we want to know the outcome of their investigations and as time progresses, we will talk about other things but for now they should tell us the finding of their investigations.
“It is surprising that the police has carried out an autopsy on him without the knowledge of the community or family members just to absolve themselves from his death.
“The Pathologist is somebody the same police brought on their own and I as a person will not believe any result that would be presented, my understanding of autopsy is not just by merely observing the body whether there is wound on the body.
“Autopsy ought to be a thing where of Specialists would collect vital organs of the body and are taken for test before coming with a result but they never did that, but when the chips are down we will know the steps to be taken.
“We are seeing that they want to come for settlement but for now they should put that aside and tell us what they have done to him, they arrested the guy on December 20 and they told us that he died.”
Effort to speak with the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Edafe Bright was not successful as calls and text message sent to his mobile line were not connected nor replied as at the time of this report.
