After Odimayo returned from London, he got some plank sellers to assist him to buy planks and finish his building.
These workers ended up being those that organized his abduction, leading to his subsequent death.
One of the suspected kidnappers, Mr David Seimiyengha, has confessed to policemen that he never meant to kill Odimayo.
He explained that while trying to escape with other kidnappers as they were being chased by community members who were determined to rescue Odimayo, he dropped the politician into the river and fled.
The suspect said: “Odimayo must have died because he couldn’t swim. I didn’t kill him and never meant to hurt him.”
The Ondo State Commissioner of Police, Hilda Ibifuro Harrison, said the suspects and others at large, stormed the residence of Odimayo and took him to unknown destination.
She said: “It was in the process of the victim being rescued by the community, that the hoodlums killed him and dropped his corpse into the river. One AK49 rifle and 21 rounds of lives ammunition were recovered from them. The body of the victim was found lifeless in a creek at Ajagba. The corpse has been deposited at hospital for autopsy.”
Aside from Seimiyengha, other suspects arrested in connection with the abduction and subsequent death of the victim is Fikesei Inuesokan, Bekewei Francis, Ekan Roman, Gbamila Success, Bodidi Idowo, Saturday Amos and Ijanboh Kehinde.
One of the suspects, Amos, said he and Ijanboh were not part of the kidnappers.
Odimayo was found dead in a riverine community in Ese-Odo Local Government Area of the state, four days after he was abducted from his house in Igbotu in Ese-Odo Local Government area of the state.
The deceased, a United Kingdom based businessman and politician, was kidnapped on June 15 by gunmen shortly after he returned from London. Until his death, Odimayo is a prominent leader of the APC in his Ese-Odo Local Government Area. The body of Odimayo was found near Ogolo River, between Sabomi and Igbotu communities in Ese-Odo Local Government Area of the state.
Seimiyengha said: “This man, Fikesei Inuesokan, met me and told me that he had a job he wanted to do, but didn’t know how to get rifle to carry it out. My friend KK said he could arrange a gun. He also arranged with others to kidnap the man. I didn’t know when they carried out the abduction. They took the victim to the creek and invited me to cook for them. According to them, they didn’t know how to cook. I was cooking for six people, including the victim. I agreed to cook for them because I needed money.”
Seimiyengha said; “We were in the creek when the community people came after us; I took the man away from the place. The community and my friends engaged one another in a fight. The man that supplied the gun was killed. After the death of our friend, we ran away, but the community people still continued to chase after us. When we got to the river, I crossed the river with the man. The community people started shooting sporadically, I had to drop him. He was alive when I dropped him and ran away. I guess he died because he didn’t know how to swim.”
Inuesokan, who also admitted complicity in the crime, disclosed that one of the victim’s workers, Ekan Roman, brought the deal of abducting him.
Roman was hired by Odimayo to help him purchased planks for the roofing of his house at Igbotu that brought the idea of kidnapping him.
Inuesokan said: “Roman said that if Odimayo could afford planks, he should have enough to pay for ransom. Odimayo gave the contract to Roman, and it was him who led us to abduct Odimayo. Odimayo was building a house and needed to roof it. I gave Roman part of the planks for the house. Roman said we should kidnap Odimayo, so that we could get more money from him. Three of us took the decision to kidnap the man.”
