Tension As Assailants Behead Man At UNIJOS, Escape With Head

There was tension at the Permanent Site of the University of Jos (UNIJOS), Plateau State, on Tuesday after the headless body of a man was discovered within the institution’s premises, Naija News understands.

The assailants were said to have fled the scene with the victim’s severed head, prompting the university authorities to reinforce security around the campus while the police commenced an investigation into the killing.

Students and members of staff who spoke with journalists said the incident, which reportedly occurred at a section of the university regularly used for farming.

The Chief Security Officer of the institution, Agama Tangni, also confirmed the discovery, explaining that the deceased was neither a student nor an employee of the university.

“I can confirm that somebody was beheaded here. He is neither a student nor a staff member of the university,” Tangni told the Punch.

Although the deceased had no official affiliation with the university, Tangni said he was familiar to members of the community because he frequently visited the area to cultivate his farmland.

According to the CSO, the victim usually arrived at the location in the early hours of the morning to attend to his farm.

“The identity of the deceased is known because that particular spot where he was beheaded is where he used to farm. He usually came there very early in the morning,” he said.

Tangni noted that preliminary observations indicated that the attackers might have deliberately targeted the victim.

He said the circumstances surrounding the killing suggested that the assailants may have been aware of the man’s routine and waited for an opportunity to attack him.

“I don’t know whether the assailants had been monitoring him, but from the look of things, they targeted him, beheaded him and went away with his severed head,” the security officer added.

The CSO disclosed that the victim’s relatives had been contacted and informed of the development.

He added that the headless body had been evacuated from the scene and deposited at the mortuary of the Bingham University Teaching Hospital.

Tangni said the university management had also been briefed about the incident and was expected to issue an official communication to students, workers and other members of the university community.

The killing heightened concerns among students and workers, particularly as the victim’s severed head had yet to be recovered.

As of the time of filing this report, the Plateau State Police Command had not issued an official statement on the incident.

It was, however, gathered that security personnel had been deployed to strategic locations around the university’s permanent site to prevent further incidents and reassure members of the campus community.

Investigations were also said to be ongoing to identify the perpetrators, establish the motive behind the killing and recover the victim’s missing head.