Ogun State Police Command has apprehended 29-year-old Ogunnaike Philip, suspected of killing at least three young women, including an 18-year-old, across various locations in the state. The police reported that Philip employed a disturbing tactic to lure his victims into remote forests, where he would bind and strangle them before abandoning their bodies and stealing their mobile phones.

Philip’s criminal history is troubling; he allegedly escaped from the Ibara Correctional Centre two years ago while being transported to court for an armed robbery case. His victims include Akinsanya Habibat, 18, Abigail Dina, 22, and Mary Ogunyemi, 23.

In a statement released by the police on Friday, spokesperson Omolola Odutola revealed that Philip confessed to murdering the three women and led law enforcement to several locations where he disposed of their bodies.

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According to police reports, the tragic case began on May 6, 2024, when nurse Abigail Dina left her home in Iyana Egbado to start her shift at Sodipo Medical Centre. Philip abducted her, taking her to a secluded area in Itori. He reportedly stole her iPhone XR before strangling her to death and contacting her family to demand a ransom of N50,000. After the murder, he abandoned her body in the forest and fled to Saki town in Oyo State, where he exchanged the stolen phone for an Infinix Hot 10 and cash.

Further investigations revealed that Philip, alongside an accomplice who remains at large, was involved in the abduction and murder of Mary Ogunyemi. On July 3, 2024, he lured the 23-year-old victim to a nearby bush in Asero Estate, where she was tied up, strangled, and robbed of her iPhone. After demanding a ransom of N17,000 from her mother, her body was also left in the bush.

The suspect’s latest victim, Akinsanya Habibat, was reportedly kidnapped and murdered on August 30, 2024, while working on her father’s farm in Mile 6, Abeokuta. After strangling her with a rope, Philip called her father to demand a ransom of one million naira, though he only received N30,000. Habibat’s body was later discovered on her father’s farmland, along with a PoS machine found beside her.

As the investigation continues, authorities are focusing on Philip’s network and seeking additional information regarding his accomplices in this horrifying string of crimes.