- Hotel confirms a party took place where the deceased was singled out and attacked by party organizers
- Hotel expresses readiness for a comprehensive investigation, offering its condolences to the family
- CCTV footage of the incident is available
The family of 27-year-old Miss Chinyere Awuda, whose lifeless body was discovered inside an abandoned swimming pool at a hotel in Awka on July 16, has formally lodged a petition with the Anambra Commissioner of Police, asserting that their daughter fell victim to a deliberate and premeditated act of murder.
According to the family’s account, Chinyere had gone out clubbing on the fateful night of July 16 but tragically ended up lifeless in the abandoned swimming pool on the hotel premises the following morning.
In their petition, addressed to the Commissioner of Police and presented through their legal representative, Eziafa Enwedo, the Awuda family alleges that their daughter was brutally murdered, and they highlight the apparent lack of resistance from the hotel management during the heinous act.
The family contends that the suspects responsible for the crime viciously beat Chinyere to death while the nightclub and hotel bouncers and security stood idly by, allowing the tragic incident to unfold.
Despite facing pressure to close the case, the Awuda family is steadfast in their demand for a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding their daughter’s death. They are resolute that the truth be brought to light and that the perpetrators be brought to justice.
The petition was titled “Call for Thorough Investigation of Conspiracy, Murder With Intent to Commit Rituals; Accessory After the Fact to Murder Miss Chinyere Awuda, Attempt to Compound Felony by Coaxing the Deceased Family into Accepting Settlement Before Conclusion of Investigation.”
The petition was against Chinemere Hope Gabriel (aka Bullion Van), Steven Junior (aka Exclusive), Management Of the Hotel, and others at large”.
It said: “The deceased was said to have joined other girls to pick money in the club that was sprayed as music and dancing were going on, the tradition in the club and there was a rush during the process.
“The prime suspect singled out the deceased (not being one of his invitees) and began to beat her, which instigated the rest of his gang to join him in the beating.
“While the fracas was going on inside the clubhouse, the Manager of the club allegedly instructed the bouncers to stand down and not interfere, thereby stopping the security from rescuing the deceased.
“The deceased managed to escape from their grip inside the club but Gabriel allegedly assembled his gang, pursued the deceased to the abandoned swimming pool corner wherein they waylaid and trapped her.
“At some point, while the deceased was screaming as they were maiming and mutilating her, the prime suspect, Gabriel, knocked her off with what seemed like a metal that broke her forehead and silenced her.
“We further gathered that the manager instructed that the power generating set be put off, and the power supply to the entire hotel was suddenly put out, throwing the entire hotel into darkness,” it said.
The petitioners have requested the hotel management to furnish a comprehensive CCTV video capturing the entire sequence of events, both within the club where the beating initially took place and outside where the fatal murder occurred.
According to the family, the currently circulating footage is characterized as blurred and disjointed, failing to provide clear answers to the many questions surrounding the incident.
“We refer to the authentic video clip from the CCTV (already collected by the police), showing details of the murder and the subsequent dumping of the deceased lifeless body into the abandoned swimming pool.
“We were reliably informed by an insider that there has been moves to change the initial confessional statements of the prime suspect, and others,” it said.
The family said it was insensitive to the plight of the bereaved and a mark of disrespect for the deceased that the Hotel was sealed and reopened to the public within 24 hours.
“We call on the Police to seal the crime scene, pending the outcome of investigation for the sake of public conscience and also arrest, detain and prosecute all other suspects, as shown by the CCTV clip already in the police custody,” it said.
In response to the tragic incident at Cosmila Hotel, the establishment expressed deep regret, yet denied any involvement in the unfortunate event.
In a statement signed by Mr. Stanley Akuneziri, the Awka Branch Manager, the hotel refuted the claims made by the family and certain media outlets, asserting that the deceased was neither beaten to death nor dumped in the swimming pool. Instead, the hotel acknowledged that a party had been held on the premises, during which money was sprayed, and unfortunately, the deceased was singled out and attacked by the party organizers.
While offering their heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased, the hotel emphasized its commitment to acting in the best interest of the public and expressed willingness to cooperate fully with a thorough investigation into the matter.
Moreover, the hotel confirmed the presence of CCTV footage capturing the incident.
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