REVEALED: How We Killed Papa Nsukka – Suspects

The family of the slain Christopher Ejike Onah, (Popularly called Papa Nsukka) was further thrown into deeper mourning  when one of the suspects to the murder, Okwudili Agu, gave a chilling but detailed account of how the human rights activist, Chief Onah was killed.

Also in police custody over the killing of Papa Nsukka are two other suspects who allegedly confessed to being part of the planning and execution of the murder. They are; Chikodili Onah and Oluchi Asadu a.k.a Colombo.

Police sources revealed that Okwudili was arrested at  Nguru, Nsukka(popularly known as Port Harcourt)  where he was alleged to be taking refuge in the home of his aunt.  It was gathered that when he was arrested, the police took him to the family of Papa Nsukka where he gave further insight into the murder.

According to him, the slain Papa Nsukka was not the brain behind the destruction of Ndubisi Ugwu’s house as earlier alleged adding that himself and other men including Ndubisi, deliberately and carefully removed the louvers of the window of the  house and also removed some of the blocks used in building the house to make it look as the handiwork of an enemy.

Okwudili further stated that after they were done with the ‘destruction’ of Ndubisi’s house, “we all gathered at Papa Ndubisi’s house that night where we had a meeting on how to handle Papa Nsukka.

In the meeting, one of us whose name I have forgotten volunteered to draw the attention of Papa Nsukka by shouting thief, thief, while we waited for him at the gate. By the time we concluded the meeting, I was the one who switched off the generator at Papa Ndubisi’s house before we took off to Papa Nsukka’s residence.

“Our plan worked because the moment the man shouted thief, thief, Papa Nsukka came out to the gate and there was confusion. Ndubisi and all of us went into the compound and started abusing Papa Nsukka who did not know why we were there.

He was infuriated and slapped Ndubisi and we all started beating him. I did not use knife on him. I only used a piece of wood in my hand to hit him. One other person used car shock absorber to hit him at the back because he bagan to fight all of us. When the boy used the shock absorber to hit him, he fell down. It was Ndubisi and others who  used knives to cut  him and by the time they were doing this, I had gone some steps backward. But we did not know that the injuries would kill him.”

Okwudili stressed that after the encounter, the whole boys dispersed, and that was how he moved to Port Harcourt in Nguru Nsukka.

He further stated that others ran to one piggery farm owned by one Rev. Father and hid themselves adding that it was possible that Ndubisi may have run to either St. Teresa’s Cathedral or to the Parish house at St. John’s Catholic Church, Ihe/Owerre where they could narrate their own side of the story to the Justice and Peace Commission of the Diocese adding that when they explained what happened to the priest, he directed Ndubisi to go to Aku road and brief a lawyer who he said he did not know.

He also alleged that he was in contact with others who were part of the attack on Papa Nsukka until the news came that  police were on their trail.  “When the police were closing in, many of us switched off our phones to avoid being tracked.”

On why the group had been threatening to kill other members of Papa Nsukka’s family, he said they were saying those things to scare them from pursuing the matter further.

It was further gathered  that one of those who attacked Papa Nsukka that night, Chikodili Onah, refused to run away but continued to lurk around the family and unknown to Papa Nsukka’s family, he was always communicating with all the members of the gang, telling them the next step the family was going to take.

But when Colombo and Okwudili were arrested and brought to the family house, they named Chikodili as the one giving them up-date on the plans of the family. When Chikodili heard his name mentioned, he attempted to run away but the youths around gave him a hot chase and arrested him.

However, in their separate statements, they all referred to Ndubisi Ugwu as the ring leader of the gang but were lethargic in disclosing concrete reason why they attacked Papa Nsukka except that they were not happy that he was supporting the people of Umuakashi over a land dispute they had with Nguru people.

Although the police stopped the suspects from making further and deeper confessions ostensibly to avoid tampering with investigation, they have also not named any person (at least to the public) as their sponsors are widely believed to be within the family of the deceased.