Police in Osun State have commenced an investigation into the death of a 20-year-old farmhand from Benue State who was found hanging from a tree in Orile-Owu, Ayedaade Local Government Area of the state.
The deceased, identified simply as Saviour, was reportedly found dead in the Alagbede Area of the agrarian community on Thursday, sparking tension among residents.
Sources in Orile-Owu said Saviour had worked as a farm labourer in the community and had recently gone missing before resurfacing a few days ago.
A resident, identified simply as Kareem, said the deceased was an easy-going person and was not known to be troublesome.
According to him, Saviour had come to Orile-Owu from Benue State to work as a labourer and was reportedly expected to return home before the end of the year.
“The development is very shocking to us. I know him very well. He was an easy-going person. He was from Benue State,” Kareem said.
He added that residents were shocked when Saviour’s body was discovered dangling from a tree on Thursday morning.
“We already reported the matter to the police. Operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps also came here to see the corpse and talk to people about it,” he said.
Confirming the incident, the Osun State Police Command spokesperson, Abiodun Ojelabi, said the Commissioner of Police, Ibrahim Zungura, had ordered a thorough investigation to establish the circumstances surrounding the young man’s death.
Ojelabi said police operatives had visited the scene, while the Divisional Police Officer responsible for the area had been directed to investigate the matter.
“The incident was reported. The deceased was 20 years old. He was from Benue State. Operatives have visited the scene.
“The CP has directed the DPO in charge of the area to work on the matter. The case has been transferred to the SCID for probe too,” he said.
Circumstances surrounding Saviour’s death remain unclear as of the time of filing this report.
Police have not publicly stated whether they suspect suicide, foul play or any other cause.
His death comes weeks after another incident in Osun involving a man who died while in police custody in Agbeye, Odo-Otin Local Government Area.
The man, identified as Taofeek Azeez, was arrested by community volunteers over an allegation of cocoa theft and subsequently handed over to the police.
He was later found hanging inside the police detention cell.
Police initially described Taofeek’s death as suicide and said the officer in charge of the detention facility had been interrogated as part of an investigation.
His family subsequently demanded justice, questioning the circumstances of his death.
Unlike the Agbeye case, police have yet to disclose a preliminary finding on what led to Saviour’s death in Orile-Owu.
The transfer of the case to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) is expected to enable investigators to establish what happened before the farmhand was found hanging.
