Stephen Afolabi Opaso, a 19-year-old Nigerian student, was reportedly experiencing a mental crisis when a Winnipeg police officer shot him in his Canadian apartment on December 31, 2023.
In a statement disclosing his death, the Winnipeg police described him as an armed male. They claimed that his erratic behaviour had led an officer to shoot him. An eyewitness also told the Businessday newspaper that he was shot three times by the police in his apartment.
On Thursday, Abike Dabiri, the chairperson of the Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), promised that Opaso would get justice. According to her, the commission would collaborate with the Nigerian embassy in the Canadian capital to ensure thorough investigations.
Aside from Opaso, FIJ found that state and non-state actors murdered at least 24 Nigerians in the diaspora between January and December 2023. FIJ also found that 20 out of the 24 Nigerians were killed in other African countries. State actors – the police and soldiers – were responsible for the death of 18 out of the 24 victims. Out of the victims of these state actors, only one person was identified as a criminal.
Here is a timeline of these murders and how they played out.
JANUARY 2023: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Marinus Iwuchukwu was an associate professor of theology at the University of Dusquenue before his demise in January 2023.
According to the Allegheny County Police, Iwuchkuwu and his wife were found dead at their apartment after sending a notification for ‘domestic disturbance’.
On-scene evidence suggested that Iwuchukwu was stabbed to death, according to the county police. The police also reported that his wife, Charles Dunn, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
JANUARY 2023: SOUTH AFRICA
Dashu and one other Nigerian were shot dead in South Africa in what was reported as a xenophobic attack in the last week of January 2023. Both victims were said to have been murdered in Johannesburg.
The International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR) reported that Dashu was murdered at Midrand Hyper in Johannesburg. He was a parent of two and a well-known trader at a major mall in the city.
FEBRUARY 2023: BURKINA FASO
At least 16 Nigerians were murdered in Burkina Faso in what was the biggest incident of diasporan murder in 2023. The 16 were pilgrims and members of the Islamic Tijaniyat sect. They were reportedly on their way to the home of the sect’s leader when Burkinabe soldiers stopped and shot them to death.
In March, it was reported that the federal government summoned the Burkina Faso envoy on the killings. However, there were no reports of sanctions against the Burkinabe government. There were also no reports that the soldiers involved were identified and punished.
MARCH 2023: ETHIOPIA
In an exclusive report, Sahara Reporters documented how Favour Chizoba Eze was brutalised and murdered by the Ethiopian police in March 2023.
Eze was incarcerated at the Katili Maximum Security Prison in Addis Ababa. She reportedly died from the multiple injuries she suffered from police brutality in the security facility.
The police also reportedly kept her remains at the facility for 36 hours and prevented other Nigerian inmates from reaching out to the Nigerian Embassy in Addis Ababa. The inmates had accused the police of hitting her on the chest and causing her the injury that led to her death in a letter written to Buhari in 2023.
In the same month, NIDCOM released a statement promising to demand an investigation into her death. The federal government also promised to collaborate in the investigation.
However, FIJ found no follow-up reports about the incident or the investigation.
JULY 2023: SOUTH AFRICA
Emmanuel Ezeuko was reportedly shot dead on July 25 in the Durban axis of South Africa. There were no reports identifying the assailants or the basis for the murder.
Ezeuko was said to have hailed from Aguata Local Government Area in Anambra State. Facebook posts from some of his acquaintances suggest that he was murdered five days after his birthday.
JULY 2023: INDONESIA
George Onyekachi was beaten to death in Indonesia on July 29, 2023. None of the reports specified the reason for the murder. However, he was reportedly murdered by suspected members of the Indonesian Ambon gang. FIJ did not find a report of NIDCOM’s involvement in investigating or getting justice for Onyekachi.
OCTOBER 2023: PHILIPINES
In October 2023, Ikem Chukwubuikem was murdered by six Chinese men in the Philippines for demanding compensation for his girlfriend. FIJ reported how Ikem was framed for sexual assault and brutally beaten to death. Before he was murdered, Ikem was a medical student in the Philippines.
FIJ also reported that the Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) filed cases of murder against the six Chinese nationals who fatally injured Ikem. In November, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission disclosed that Ikem’s employer and the five other Chinese responsible for his murder had been charged.
A December 2023 PUNCH report estimated that 300 Nigerians have been murdered abroad in the last seven years. Abdur-Rahman Balogun, the NIDCOM spokesperson, claimed that the commission was constrained in getting justice for Nigerians killed abroad. According to him, the commission can only influence the process; it cannot enforce the law in another country.
Credit: FIJ Nigeria
