Tensions are rising in Cross River State following the alleged death in custody of Godswill Otu, a young man from Ugep, Yakurr LGA, who was reportedly arrested under controversial circumstances in April 2025.
Sources claim Godswill, alongside another suspect identified as Otu Owanbe, had been arrested for allegedly assaulting Mr. Ugbongbong, the Special Assistant on Security to Governor Bassey Otu. The victim was said to have sustained a severe machete wound to the head, surviving the incident narrowly.
What has sparked further outrage is a statement made by Iyeke Solomon, a concerned citizen, who alleged that Major General Okoi Obono (Rtd.), the State Security Adviser to the Governor and a fellow indigene of Ugep, was directly responsible for the young man’s disappearance and alleged death.
One so-called Major General Okoi Obono (Rtd.), the State Security Adviser to the Governor of Cross River State, a kinsman from the same Ugep, is responsible for the alleged death of the young man, Solomon wrote.
He was said to have arrested the young man Gestapo-style at 3 a.m. in his home on Easter Sunday, April 2025, with two others, but later released the other two and continued to detain Godswill. He was allegedly tortured to death in his cell.
Solomon’s comment has since fueled anger across Ugep and the wider Cross River community, with many now demanding a full investigation into the actions of the State Security Adviser and the conditions of detention that may have led to the young man’s death.
No official statement has yet been made by the State Government, the Police Command, or the Office of the State Security Adviser in response to these serious allegations.
As the calls for justice grow louder, the public awaits transparency and accountability in a case that has quickly evolved from an assault charge to an alleged abuse of power and possible extrajudicial killing.
