Thursday, July 18, 2024 - The Edo State Police Command has arrested a teenage boy, Arthur Angel Jr. for allegedly k!lling his 70-year-old father, Arthur Judah Angel over money in Ugboha, in Esan South East Local Government Area of the state.
Arthur Judah Angel, an Anti-death penalty advocate and human
rights defender, was k!lled on Sunday, July 14, 2024, and buried in a shallow
grave behind his house.
According to punch, Angel,
who was sentenced to death in 1986 for a crime he said he did not commit, used
his foundation, Life Wire International Foundation, to fight for the use of the
death penalty in the country.
He travelled to over 15 countries to speak out against the death
penalty through his art exhibitions and drawings.
The Spokesman for the Command, Chidi Nwabuzor, who confirmed the
incident in a statement on Wednesday, July 17, said that a preliminary
investigation revealed that the deceased's son had threatened to k!ll his
father before he hit him with a sledgehammer
“On the 15th of July, 2024, at about 09.00 hours, the Divisional
Police Officer in charge of Ugboha division in Edo State received a complaint
that one Arthur Angel Jr. (17 years) brought a complaint of a shallow grave
discovery at the backyard of the compound where he lived with the
deceased," the statement read.
“Immediately, the DPO mobilized his men and they moved out to the
scene. On getting there, they saw a shallow grave and decided to exhume the
body
"When the body was exhumed, they discovered that it was the
lifeless body of Arthur Angel, 70, and at a close look, they saw a sharp injury
on the back of the deceased head, and the body was taken to Uromi Hospital
mortuary.”
"According to the DPO, preliminary investigation revealed
that Arthur Angel Jr. had severally threatened to kill his father on the ground
that his father was expecting some money from Amnesty International.
“The suspect had a feeling that the money had been paid to the
deceased and decided to use the sledgehammer to hit him behind the head while
he was asleep
“As we speak, the suspect has been successfully transferred from
Ugboha to the homicide section of the Edo State Criminal Investigation
Department for further investigation,” the PPRO added.
Angel’s cousin, Michael Ihaza on Tuesday, confirmed the
assassination of his uncle to the publication.
“I cannot really say if he had a problem with anyone. He won
several cases over family land but I really don’t know if that brought issues
between him and anyone,” Ihaza said.
“He never reported any threat to his life to me. However, his
15-year-old son who reported the case to the police in Ugboha has been taken
into custody for questioning but I don’t think he has a hand in his father’s
death
“His son was arrested the same day he was k!lled. The narrative
that is making the round within the police circle and in town is that the boy
is also a suspect
“My late uncle fought for humanity in his lifetime. How worked on prison
reform and he was a gentleman. I never heard that he had a problem with anyone
“The police say they are investigating the matter so we don’t want
to say anything that will jeopardize the investigation. Hopefully, the culprit
will be identified and brought to justice,” he added.
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