The lifeless body of a female student of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State, was found in her off-campus apartment last Friday.

FIJ’s findings revealed that the deceased, a 300-level economics student identified as IfeOluwa Adekunle, was stabbed and locked inside her room.

Our reporter also learned that the victim’s friends were the ones who raised the alarm while checking on her after noticing her prolonged absence online.

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A source at the university (name withheld) told FIJ: “It was the victim’s friends who noticed she had not come online for some time, so they decided to check on her. Getting to her room, they discovered her door was locked, but the padlock was not fastened. So they entered and found her lying with her face down on the bed, covered with her bedsheet. And they saw that she had been stabbed.”

“The victim’s phone was not found, but her phone’s pouch was seen. She was then rushed to the school’s health centre and then to another hospital, where she was found dead.”

According to a statement by the AAUA Students’ Union dated February 3, 2024, and sighted by FIJ, the incident happened on the night of Thursday, February 1, and was reported to the union on February 2.

“The Students’ Union has briefed the University authority and the Police which of investigations has started. As at now, the identity and motive of the perpetrator are still unknown. We demand that the state government intervenes and expedite the process of finding and bringing the culprit to justice. We will not tolerate any delay or negligence in this matter, as it concerns the safety and dignity of our students’ community,” the statement partly reads.

The school, via a post shared on X on February 5, urged students to be vigilant and observant within and outside the campus:

“All suspicious moves and threats should be reported to the security quarters immediately. Safety of students is a priority to us and we hold it in high esteem.”

We enjoin all students to be vigilant and observant within the campus- and by extension, the community.

All suspicious moves and threats should be reported to the security quarters immediately.

Safety of students is a priority to us and we hold it in high esteem.#AAUA

— Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA) (@aauainfo) February 5, 2024

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FIJ’s source at the university mentioned that while Adekunle’s demise did not disrupt the activities on campus, some rumours were being circulated in the school.

“Students are only talking underneath. I guess they are trying not to make the matter escalate. There were rumours that the lady was raped, but this has been refuted,” he told FIJ.

The leadership of the university’s Social Science Students Association (SOSSA) issued a statement on February 4, advising students from the faculty of social science, where Adekunle was a member, to “refrain from sharing false allegations or spreading unverified news about the situation”.

There were also claims that some of the students living in the deceased’s off-campus hostel were arrested, with some of them subsequently granted bail. However, a source at the hostel, who does not want to be named, refuted the claim.

“We were not arrested. We were just called from the hostel to come and write down our names and phone numbers so they could contact us. We were told not to travel,” said the student.

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While speaking on how Adekunle was found, the second source said, “Her friends came because they said she had not been online since morning. Her padlock was just hooked, so they decided to open the door to wait for her [because they thought she was not around]. That’s how she was found. Then they started shouting and screaming.

“The incident was said to have happened around 11:00 pm to midnight on Thursday. The alarm was raised on Friday evening.”

THERE WAS NO FIGHT

Also, according to information obtained from the second source, there was no previous fight known to anyone that could have triggered the incident.

“There was no fight or suspicious activity before the incident. Although I wasn’t close to her, she seemed like a good person. She’d always greet. She attended church and always went for classes,” the source said.

NO SECURITY PERSONNEL, NO CCTV

FIJ learned that the off-campus hostel, which is a five-minute ride to the school, has no security officers. Neither does the hostel facility have CCTV cameras.

“Although students have been asking for security since 2022, there are no security officers. No CCTV. There’s no security; the hostel is supposed to be safe because of the way it was built with the doors and all. We don’t even know the owner, but it’s not a school hostel,” a source told FIJ.

“The police are looking for whoever did it. They have come to the hostel and checked the rooms.”

This tragic event has created a sense of unease and insecurity among the students, such that many are choosing to sleep in the company of friends.

“The students don’t actually feel safe in the hostel. Friends are sleeping in the same room. People don’t feel safe yet, and we can’t travel home or anywhere else,” the source revealed.

ANOTHER AAUA STUDENT STABBED TO DEATH IN HIS OFF-CAMPUS APARTMENT

In 2023, 10 months before the unfortunate death of this female student, a final-year student of physics and electronics at AAUA was stabbed to death in his off-campus residence.

A report by the Nation revealed that the student was stabbed by an indigene identified as Damilola Adejumo. As the death sent shock waves through the university community at the time, many students stressed the need to extend security measures beyond the campus to off-campus hostels.

‘INVESTIGATION IS ONGOING’ — ONDO POLICE

When FIJ called Odunlami Ibukun, the police public relations officer in Ondo State, on Thursday morning, she confirmed that the investigation into the incident was still ongoing.

“Investigation is ongoing. We don’t want to say anything that will jeopardise the investigation, but once we are done with it, we will make everything known to the public,” she told FIJ.

Abimbola Abatta is a reporter with FIJ writing reports in partnership with Report for the World which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe.