14th November, 2023
By Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
A Magistrate Court sitting in Port Harcourt on Monday ordered the remand of Demian Okoligwe, a student of the University of Port Harcourt, UNIPORT, for allegedly killing and harvesting some vital organs of his girlfriend, Justina Otuene.
The presiding Magistrate N.O. Anugbum also ordered that the case file of Okoligwe should be transferred to the office of Rivers State Director of Public Prosecution, DPP, for legal advice.
Counsel to Okoligwe, Orji Nweke did not raise any objection to the order to remand his client.
The case was adjourned to December 15, 2023, for further hearing, pending the DPP’s advice.
Former Rivers police commissioner, CP Nwonyi Polycarp Emeka, had last month paraded Okoligwe, a 400-level student of Petrochemical Engineering for allegedly killing Justina, his girlfriend.
According to the Police boss, the arrest of the student followed a report by his neighbour on October 25 to police operatives of Ozuoba Division that he was perceiving a very bad odour in a room occupied by Okoligwe in the house where they are both tenants.
Following the report, the DPO of the state led detectives to the house where the room where the odour was coming from was forced open and a Ghana must-go bag containing the lifeless body of Justina, with some of the vital organs missing, was recovered.
The Police later arrested Okoligwe who was also the last person seen with Justina as the prime suspect for the murder investigation.
“The lifeless body and butchered body of Justina Otuene, 20 years old, a Bio-Chemistry 300-level student at Uniport, was recovered and deposited at the mortuary.
Preliminary investigation is in progress, the case has been transferred to SCID for discreet investigation.
“Meanwhile, the Command has condoled with the family of the deceased victim while urging young ladies to be cautious about the person they are involved with in any form of relationship.
It was gathered that the late Justina Otuene, who was doing her Industrial Training, (I.T) at a private Hospital in Rukpokwu, near Port Harcourt, had told some people that she was going to her boyfriend’s house, but she later became unreachable.
It was later claimed that Okoligwe seized and switched off her phones to make her unreachable before allegedly killing her.
She was later declared missing and her photos were published on various social media platforms four days after her disappearance.
Okoligwe, who is alleged to be an internet fraudster killed her and kept the butchered corpse in his apartment for three days after removing some of her vital organs.