Yesterday a 23-year-old, identified only as
Ugochukwu, was found hanging in his apartment in
Festac. It was gathered that on Sunday at about
12pm, Ugochukwu’s mother, identified only as Ngozi,
and his two siblings came back from church to find
him hanging in the sitting room, dead.

The family members were said to have raised the
alarm which brought neighbours to the scene, as
everyone was taken aback at the sight of
Ugochukwu’s dangling body.

The 23-year-old reportedly used a rope to hang
himself from a ceiling fan.

The matter was said to have been reported at the
FESTAC Police Division, and the officers reportedly
came to remove the corpse.

A police source said that Ugochukwu’s relations said
the deceased did not give any clue as to why he
committed suicide.

He said:

“Nobody can say why he committed suicide. But
two Sundays ago, they caught him mixing cement
to drink. The family members had actually gone
to church, and he had stayed behind. It was a
nieghbour who caught him and alerted the family
members.

“But all efforts made to find out from him, what
went wrong reportedly proved abortive, as he
refused to tell anyone anything, including his
mother.

“This morning, the family members went to
church again, and Ugochukwu decided to stay
back. Nobody suspected anything. It was when
the family members came back that they found
his corpse.”

Another resident in the area, who spoke on condition
of anonymity, said the corpse had been taken to the
mortuary by the police.

• She said:
  “Ugochukwu’s father’s whereabouts are
  unknown, but the boy has a younger brother and
  an elder sister.
  
  “The corpse has been taken to the mortuary.
  Since he finished secondary school, he had not
  been able to secure admission. He took the
  UTME again this year.
  
  “Everyone knows him as someone who did not
  talk too much. But no one knew exactly why he
  committed suicide. He was not working. He was
  usually at home. They were staying in a room
  and parlour. They are an average family.”
  One of Ugochukwu’s neighbours, Oluja, said:
  
  “I am shocked that Ugochukwu has passed on. I
  just returned from my church, only to learn that
  Ugochukwu was found hanging in his apartment.
  
  “It was the policemen from FESTAC that took his
  body away. Everyone in the area is still in shock.
  
  “I know that he had been worried about his
  admission to the university.
  
  “He had tried several schools, but never made it.
  Also, he was having a financial problem. Maybe,
  it is the sum of these worries that made him
  commit suicide. He was a member of the
  Jehovah’s Witnesses.”
  
  Punch