Police Arrest Suspect Over Murder Of Benue Professor, Teenage Brother

• Police arrest 23-year-old Nasarawa indigene over the killing of university don and his younger brother.

• Victims were found dead at their Makurdi residence after a distress call to security operatives.

• Command says investigation continues as efforts intensify to track down other suspects.

The Benue State Police Command has arrested a 23-year-old suspect in connection with the killing of a senior university lecturer and his younger brother in Makurdi, as investigators intensify efforts to apprehend other members of the suspected gang behind the attack.

The suspect, identified as Abdullahi Usman, an indigene of Awe Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, was taken into custody following preliminary investigations into the murder of Professor Gabriel Saawua Nyityo, a lecturer in the Department of History at Rev. Fr. Moses Orshio Adasu University, Makurdi (formerly Benue State University), and his 19-year-old brother, John Nyityo.

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Confirming the arrest on Friday, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Udeme Edet, said officers attached to the ‘D’ Division in Makurdi responded to a distress call from the Adaka area, where they discovered the lifeless bodies of the two victims.

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According to the police, the brothers were allegedly attacked and killed by armed assailants who fled the scene before security operatives arrived.

Edet disclosed that intelligence gathered during the investigation led to the arrest of Usman, while detectives have launched a manhunt for other suspects believed to have participated in the attack.

“The suspect, Abdullahi Usman, aged 23, from Awe Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, has been arrested in connection with the crime, while investigation is ongoing to apprehend the remaining suspects,” the police spokesperson stated.

The command assured residents that every effort is being made to unravel the circumstances surrounding the killings and ensure that all those involved are brought to justice.

The murder of Prof. Nyityo has generated widespread concern within academic circles and the Benue community, coming amid renewed concerns over violent attacks and insecurity in parts of the state.

The late academic was reportedly killed at his residence in the Adaka area, near the Makurdi Industrial Layout, during the early hours of Wednesday alongside his younger brother. Security agencies are yet to establish the motive behind the attack.