The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the incident in a statement.
Oyeyemi explained that the victim, identified as Evelyn Ebere, was a trader and resident of the Sagamu Local Government Area of the state.
The PPRO stated that the suspects were arrested following a report about Ebere’s disappearance.
He added that the anti-kidnapping unit of the command embarked on intelligence and technical-based investigation, which led to the arrest of the suspects in different locations.
Oyeyemi said:
“On interrogation, Gbenga informed the detectives that he is the driver of a Toyota Carina car with number plate AGD 107 GU, with which he was hired to convey the victim to Ire-Ekiti on a charter arrangement, where she intended to buy 26 kegs of palm oil.
“He stated further that he was accompanied by his friend, Tosin Olobayomo, on the journey. While on the road, they both decided to dispossess the woman of the money she wanted to use to purchase the palm oil, consequent upon which they drove her into a bush along the Sagamu-Benin Expressway, where they dispossessed her of N400,000.”
The suspects, according to Oyeyemi, decided to kill the victim after they had dispossessed her of the money because she knew them. The PPRO added that investigation led to the recovery of the businesswoman’s corpse in the bush.
He said, “Since the deceased knew them very well, being Gbenga’s regular customer, they decided to kill her and dump her corpse in the bush.
“The remains of the victim have been recovered in the bush along the Sagamu-Benin Expressway and have been deposited in the General Hospital morgue for autopsy.”
Oyeyemi said the Commissioner of Police in the state, Kenneth Ebrimson, praised the anti-kidnapping team for the painstaking and intelligence-based investigation.
He added that the CP had directed that the suspects be arraigned before a court of competent jurisdiction as soon as investigation was concluded.