‏The Enugu State Police Command wishes to inform the public that following an intensive, diligent, and intelligence-led investigation, detectives have arrested the male suspect in the murder of one Deborah Sam-Praise Ememem (female, aged 22), who was recently found dead in a hotel room in Nsukka. Her iPhone, tablet, earbuds, and other personal belongings were also successfully recovered. The 22-year-old male suspect, Emmanuel Gambo, hails from Kogi State.

 

The case, initially reported to Nsukka Urban Police Division, was transferred to the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department (State CID) for thorough investigation. Findings revealed that on June 14, 2025, at about 9:00 p.m., the suspect, a second-year student of Material and Metallurgical Engineering at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), checked into a hotel in Obukpa, Nsukka, with the deceased. In the early hours of June 15, 2025, a dispute ensued after a second round of intercourse, during which the deceased allegedly demanded an additional ₦15,000 from the suspect, on top of the ₦5,000 earlier paid. The disagreement turned violent, and the suspect strangled her to death.

 

The suspect then wrapped the deceased’s body in a towel and a curtain torn from the hotel room and hid it under the bed. On June 16, 2025, at about 9:00 a.m., hotel staff noticed a foul odour coming from the room. Upon investigation, the decomposing body was discovered concealed beneath the bed. The suspect had provided a false name and unreachable phone number on the hotel’s registration form, which initially hindered efforts to trace and arrest him.

 

However, acting on credible and painstakingly gathered intelligence, the police detectives located and arrested the suspect at his lodge in Nsukka on July 2, 2025. During interrogation, he confessed to the crime. The deceased’s iPhone was immediately recovered from him. A bottle of Asconi Agor red wine, which the deceased had brought to the hotel, was also found in his possession. He later led detectives to recover the deceased’s Redmi tablet and earbuds, which he had thrown out through the hotel window in a bag after committing the crime.

 

The Commissioner of Police, Enugu State Command, CP Mamman Bitrus Giwa, psc, has commended the detectives for the successful arrest of the suspect. He reassures the public of the Command’s commitment to ensuring justice, security, and the rule of law. He also urged parents and guardians to closely monitor their children and wards, and cautioned young people against indulging in social vices and succumbing to negative peer pressure.

 

SP DANIEL NDUKWE, anipr, mnisma

Police Public Relations Officer

Enugu State Command

State Headquarters

GRA, Enugu

July 7, 2025