Certain events appear as though they belong to the realm of make believe, akin to what is common in movies and related sectors.
Only recently, there was a weird occurrence which can only be imagined as fiction but turned out to be real. It was reported that five farm workers were arrested by the police in Edo State for killing their employer and burying him in a shallow grave in Igueze village of Ovia North East Local Government Area of the state. The victim, 56-year-old Henry Oyagbomwan, had only provided employment opportunity to these daredevils, thinking he was doing the utmost good to the few he could but the beneficiaries thought differently.
Reports, stated further that Oyagbomwan was murdered after selling pineapples worth N900,000 (Nine hundred thousand Naira) from his farm. As police investigations revealed, the suspects, after collecting the proceeds from the sale, abducted and killed their employer before fleeing to various locations.
As if the horrific crime was not enough, the killers then hatched a plot to collect a huge ransom from his family, claiming that they were kidnappers and would execute him if his family did not act fast.
They demanded the sum of N60 million from the family, but after they insisted on speaking with their loved one before making any payment, the suspects reduced the ransom to N300,000.
Later, they collected some other sums of money with a firm promise to release their victim unbeknown to them that he had already been killed after the initial ransom was paid.
The Edo State Police Command was said to have arrested five suspects in connection with the incident. A 33-year-old individual named Samuel from Akwa Ibom State reportedly confessed to his role in the crime, even as the police command assured the public that all suspects would face justice once investigations were concluded.
It is worrisome that increasingly, young people who should be forward looking, hardworking and the nation’s hope are losing guard and seeking short cuts to wealth by all means.
To such individuals, the point is to make money, not to worry about who gets hurt in the process. When a certain Awaji Moses, a 26-year-old man from Benue State, killed his 38-year-old employer, Victor Ochei, on June 22 this year, he had the weird reason of allegedly unpaid salaries amounting to ₦300,000. He had hit his boss twice on the neck with a pestle used for pounding palm fruits while they were on their way to buy palm fruits, and then followed this evil act up with a demand for ₦10 million from the victim’s family, receiving ₦300,000 before he was arrested by the police. Similarly, earlier this month, one Ayomide Oluwadamilare, a 25-year-old driver, allegedly arrested by the police in Ogun State for allegedly murdering his former employer, Kola Adun. He had been trying to sell the victim’s Toyota Camry, it was learnt.
We urge the police to ensure that justice is done in all instances including the one at hand. We abhor the rising cases of killings of employers by the beneficiaries. It is not a do-or-mar affair. Where employees are not satisfied with the terms of their employment, they should honourably disengage rather than make the benefactor pay the supreme price.
These suspects are heartless in the extreme and should not be given another opportunity to cheat, rob and kill innocent citizens.
Our hearts go the families involved in these various incidents and the only way their pains would be mitigated is for the law to take its course with the perpetrators paying adequately for their crimes.
Should these evils go unpunished, we would be further reinforcing others to also engage in similar acts believing they could also go unpunished.
