Police exhume body of man beaten to death, arrest four in Akwa Ibom

Authorities in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria, have exhumed the body of Nsikak Joshua, a 26-year-old man, following allegations that he was beaten to death by four men. The incident, which occurred in Nsit Ibom Local Government Area, has led to the arrest of four suspects.

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Upon receipt of the report, detectives commenced immediate investigation. Acting on credible intelligence, operatives arrested Otobong Nelson and Utibe Clement on July 17, 2026. During interrogation, the first suspect, Otobong Nelson, made a confessional statement in which he admitted that the deceased had been summoned to answer an allegation of threatening a neighbour with a machete.

The victim's father reported the incident to the police on July 14, 2026. He alleged that four men, Otobong Nelson (known as 'Efok Ikid'), Inemesit Robert, Utibe Clement, and Victor Robert, assaulted his son, leading to his death. The father further claimed that after Joshua died, the suspects brought his body home, forced him to help dig a shallow grave in his compound, and buried the victim before threatening him against reporting the matter to the police.

Detectives launched an investigation, leading to the arrest of Otobong Nelson and Utibe Clement on July 17. During interrogation, Nelson reportedly confessed that Joshua had been summoned to address allegations of threatening a neighbor with a machete. Nelson admitted to ordering his accomplices to assault Joshua with sticks, which resulted in fatal injuries.

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He further confessed that he ordered his accomplices, identified as Utibe Clement, Victor Robert and Inemesit Robert, to assault the deceased with sticks, which resulted in his death.

Nelson also confessed that after Joshua died, they transported the body to his father's residence. They falsely told the father that his son had been killed in a hit-and-run accident and persuaded him not to take the body to a mortuary. The body was then buried in a shallow grave within the family compound. The police have since exhumed the remains for a proper autopsy and deposited them at the morgue. Efforts are underway to apprehend the remaining suspects, Victor Robert and Inemesit Robert.

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The suspect also confessed that after the victim died, he and others conveyed the corpse to the deceased’s father’s compound and falsely informed him that his son had been knocked down by a hit-and-run vehicle. They allegedly advised the father not to take the body to the mortuary, after which the corpse was buried in a shallow grave within the compound.