Joshua Osaigbovo, a 31-year-old man from Iyanomon Community in Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area of Edo State, has been arrested by the Edo State Police Command for the killing of 21-year-old Osato Festus Edogiaweria and taken into custody on June 18, 2025.
The search for Osato began on April 25, 2025, when her mother, Ms Ojo, reported her missing at the Aduwawa Division. She told officers that her daughter had left home on April 20, 2025, in the company of a friend and had not been heard from since.
Following the missing person report, the case was transferred to the Family Unit of the State CID. After a thorough investigation, police operatives arrested Joshua Osaigbovo on June 18, 2025.
During interrogation, Osaigbovo confessed that he had invited Osato to his house on April 27, 2025. He claimed that during an argument, a fight broke out and she fell, hitting her head on the ground.
He further confessed that he took her dead body in a wheelbarrow to a bush nearby, dug and buried her in a shallow grave a few metres away from his residence.
After his confession, Osaigbovo led police officers to the exact location of the grave where Osato’s decomposing remains were exhumed.
According to a statement released by the Police Public Relations Officer, Moses Yamu, on X.com, the suspect will be charged in court once the investigation is concluded.
Gender-based violence continues to be prevalent in Nigeria, with one in three women becoming victims of male violence before the age of 15. NFM has reported many of these incidents here, here and here.
