Delta Commissioner in Police Custody Over Deputy Director’s Death

A death inside a government office

The police investigation into the death of Unity Ekpevbughe Adeda, a Deputy Director in Delta State’s Ministry of Secondary Education, has widened with the arrest of Commissioner Kingsley Ashibogwu and other suspects.

ValidViewNetwork gathered that the Delta State Police Command had initially arrested Lucky Adoh, an aide to the commissioner, after complaints concerning an incident at the commissioner’s office in Asaba.

Police later expanded the investigation. On September 28, the command said it had taken Commissioner Ashibogwu and three other suspects into custody, bringing the number of people in police custody in connection with the case to five.

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The police also intensified efforts to apprehend two other persons described as key suspects.

What happened at the ministry?

The police said Adeda died following an incident at the office of the Commissioner for Secondary Education.

Earlier in the investigation, Police Public Relations Officer Bright Edafe said the command had received allegations suggesting that Adeda was physically assaulted by three aides to the commissioner.

The aides were identified as Enos Attah, Oputa Okestine and Lucky Adoh. At the time, Lucky Adoh had been arrested while police were searching for the other two.

The circumstances surrounding the incident have generated conflicting accounts.

ValidViewNetwork reports that the police investigation is intended to establish what happened before Adeda’s death, who was present during the incident and whether any criminal offence was committed.

Labour protests after death

The death also triggered protests among civil servants. The Nigeria Labour Congress shut the state secretariat in Asaba during the initial protest, demanding investigation and accountability.

Workers demanded that those responsible be identified and brought before the law. The government subsequently constituted an administrative panel of inquiry.

The administrative inquiry is separate from the police investigation. ValidViewNetwork gathered that the state government later engaged organised labour and workers returned to their duty posts after discussions with Governor Sheriff Oborevwori.

Commissioner now among suspects

The arrest of the commissioner represents a significant development in the investigation, but an arrest is not a conviction. ValidViewNetwork can confirm from the police statements that the investigation remains ongoing and that the police have not announced a final finding of criminal responsibility against the suspects.

The police have also declared two persons wanted in connection with the investigation. They were identified in reports as Director of Basic and Secondary Education Clementine Ufuoma and Clement Apia, a driver attached to the commissioner.

The central questions remain what happened inside the ministry, what caused Adeda’s death and whether anyone should face criminal prosecution.

Those questions now rest with the ongoing investigation.