Olusegun Ariyo
Delta State Commissioner of Police, CP Olufemi Abaniwonda, has ordered a thorough investigation into the death of a 24-year-old upcoming artist, Paul Obukohwo.
The directive was disclosed in a statement by Police Public Relations Officer SP Bright Edafe.
“The Command, therefore, calls on members of his family to come to the headquarters for commencement of the investigation,” the statement said.
It would be recalled that operatives of the Rapid Response Squad, RRS, allegedly tortured the artist, who is a suspect in a case, to death.
CP Abaniwonda, while condoling with the family of the deceased, assured them that if the operatives were found culpable, they would be made to face the full wrath of the law.
Narrating what happened, the statement said, “On the 26th of March 2025, at about 1545 hours, operatives of the command’s Rapid Response Squad raided a black spot along Okpanam Road and arrested one Prosper Odili ‘m’ aged 24 years, with military camouflage while others took to their heels.
“The deceased, Paul Obukohwo, who obstructed the police from arresting his brother and damaged the patrol vehicle in the process, was later arrested.
“While Paul Obukohwo was in custody, he fell sick and was taken to Police Hospital Asaba where he was diagnosed with hypoglycaemia (low sugar).
“Due to the severity of his condition, he was referred to Asaba Specialist Hospital and later referred to Federal Medical Centre Asaba, where he died while receiving treatment.”
The statement added, “The command is not oblivious to the fact that there are complaints emanating from social media and the brother of the deceased alleging that the police tortured him while he was in custody.”
