The Ondo State Police Command has ruled out foul play and the possibility of arson in the circumstances of the mysterious death of one its officers, the late Inspector Yusuf Suleiman Blessing.
Contrary to the allegation of foul play, as claimed by the family of the late police inspector, the Police declared that there was no mark of burnt or physical violence on his body.
The state Commissioner of Police, Wilfred Olutokunbo Afolabi, stated this in a press release by the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), CSP Funmilayo Odunlami, dated 7 February, 2025.
Inspector Blessing, also known as BS Omo Alahaja, served at Akotogbo Division, Irele Local Government Area, Ondo State until his mysterious death.
As widely reported on Thursday, the family of the deceased cried foul, alleging that the burnt body, with broken skull of the late police inspector was brought back to them in a sealed coffin, contradicting an initial claim by the police that he died by drowning.
As reported on Thursday, the family also alleged that the three police officers that escorted the corpse refused all entreaties to open the coffin but, rather fled the scene.
“His wife said 24 hours after efforts to reach her husband failed, she received a call from the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) informing her that her husband had drowned.
“She was told that his body would be brought home to Osi, Akure, the next day. However, when the body arrived, it was sealed in a coffin.
“This prompted family and well-wishers to demand to see the remains, but the three officers refused and fled.
“Upon opening the coffin, the body was found burnt with a cracked skull, contradicting the initial claim that he drowned. This has raised suspicions of foul play.”
However, the Ondo Police stated in the release, “Re: Death Of Yusuf Suleiman Blessing- Preliminary Report“, that there was no trace of any injury or mark of violence, except a swollen that was observed in the centre of the head of the late Inspector Blessing.
The state Police image-maker further stated that the public outcry and concern made CP Afolabi to order an autopsy to be conducted on the body of the late police inspector as regards the allegation of foul play.
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.
“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 a green track suit 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 was 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 investigation, there was a demand for 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,” the Ondo PPRO stated in the release.
The state Commissioner of Police has, however, ordered that a full autopsy be carried out to determine the cause of death of Inspector Blessing, in response to the allegation made by the family and for public interest.
CP Afolabi said a full autopsy became necessary despite the fact that a preliminary investigation carried out by the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) had established “a case of sudden and unnatural death with no foul play suspected.”
