The Ondo State Police Command has begun an investigation into the mysterious death of Inspector Yusuf Suleiman Blessing, who was serving in the State.
Blessing, a native of Ikoro-Ekiti, Ekiti State, was serving at Akotogbo, Irele local government area of Ondo State, reportedly died under questionable circumstances on Monday, the January 27, 2025.
The Police Inspector was allegedly burnt to death, according to his wife, who resides in Osi community, Akure North Local Government area of the state.
According to his wife, after 24 hours of efforts to reach her husband failed, she received a call from the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) informing her that her husband had drowned.
She further alleged that the remains of her husband were brought to the community the following day, after which the three policemen who brought the coffin took to their heels upon the pressure that the coffin must be opened.
LEADERSHIP gathered that upon opening the coffin, the body was found burnt with a cracked skull, contradicting the initial claim that the Policeman drowned, a scenario that further suggested foul play.
However, the Ondo State Police Command has disclosed that despite a “preliminary investigation carried out by the State Criminal Investigation Department establishing a case of Sudden and Unnatural Death with no foul play suspected, the Commissioner of Police has ordered that a full Autopsy be carried out to determine the cause of death in response to the allegation made by the family and for the public interest.”
The Command, through the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Funmilayo Odunlami-Omisanya, in Akure on Friday, further disclosed that, “Considering the outcry and allegation of foul play by the family of late Inspector Yusuf Suleiman Blessing and public concern over his death, the Commissioner of Police, CP Wilfred Olutokunbo Afolabi ordered that Autopsy be carried out on the allegation.”
The PPRO said, “Preliminary investigation revealed that on the 27th of January 2025, towards evening time, no one could give an account of the presence of the late inspector in the station, immediately the DPO directed that search party should trace his whereabouts, as he was last seen wearing a blue vest and green tracksuit trousers.
“Two days later the officer in charge of the Police Marine informed the DPO of the discovery of a corpse lying face down in a river, on close observation it was discovered that the body was that of Inspector Yusuf Suleiman with his cloth intact on his body with no trace of any injury or mark of violence except a swollen observed in the centre of his head.
“Thereafter, the remains of the late inspector were evacuated and deposited at Irele General Hospital morgue. The family of the deceased was informed of the incident and in a bid to unravel the circumstances that led to the death of the deceased, the CP directed the state CID to take over the case.
“In the course of the investigation, there was a demand for an autopsy to be conducted on the body, but the family vehemently opposed and rejected the idea, insisting the corpse of the deceased be released for burial, a request granted by the Police.
“As a result of the demand by the family, the body was recovered from the morgue with the police bearing the financial cost, conveyed the remains of the deceased to his home in Akure.
“It is worthy of note that the cloth last seen on the deceased was found intact on his body when his corpse was discovered ruling out any suspicion of arson, as there was no mark of burnt or physical violence on his body.”