A Police Inspector attached to Ajah Police Station, Inspector Odunayo Oloye, has narrated before a Lagos State High Court sitting at Tafawa Balewa Square how the decomposing body of 21-year-old Augusta Onuwagbagbe was discovered inside the residence of her boyfriend, Benjamin Best Nnayereugo, popularly known as Killaboi.
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Oloye, with Force No. 380736, gave the account on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, while testifying before Justice Ibironke Harrison in the ongoing murder trial of Nnayereugo.
Led in evidence by the state prosecutor, Adebayo Araba, the witness said her involvement in the case began on July 15, 2023, after Augusta’s mother, Cecilia Onuwagbagbe, lodged a complaint at Ajah Police Station.
According to her, Cecilia reported that her daughter, a student of Lead City University, Ibadan, had a disagreement with Nnayereugo on July 11, 2023, but that she intervened and resolved the issue. She said Cecilia later became worried after losing contact with both Augusta and Nnayereugo.
Oloye told the court that all efforts by Augusta’s mother to reach them failed, prompting her to contact Augusta’s roommate, who directed her to Nnayereugo’s residence at Oral Estate in the Ajah area of Lagos.
The witness said Cecilia went to the residence and noticed her daughter’s vehicle parked there, after which she reported the matter to the police.
“She came with her brother and her daughter’s friend. The complaint was received and I was detailed as the Investigating Police Officer,” Oloye testified.
She said after Cecilia volunteered a statement, she proceeded to the estate with the complainant, her brother and Augusta’s friend, where estate security personnel joined them at the premises.
“On getting there, we saw that an upstairs window was wide open and the air conditioner was on.
“I requested a ladder, climbed it and peeped through the window. Through the corridor, I started perceiving a foul odour.
“I climbed further and entered the veranda. While perceiving the odour, I looked inside and saw the lifeless body of a lady whom I identified from the photograph earlier shown to me by the mother as Augusta,” she said.
Oloye said she immediately came down and persuaded Cecilia and Augusta’s friend to remain outside the premises. She added that she later asked Augusta’s uncle to climb the ladder to confirm what she had seen.
“I told him not to shout regardless of whatever he saw, and that he should simply come down and inform me.
“When he came down, he confirmed that Augusta was dead. I then advised him to take his sister and the friend home and manage the situation because he was the one driving, and to inform me when they got home,” she said.
The police inspector further testified that she returned to the station to brief her Divisional Police Officer, DPO, and later went back to the scene with the DPO and a patrol team to evacuate the body.
According to her, a handwritten note and a pen were recovered during the evacuation.
“I read the note and discovered it was related to the case, so I recovered it as evidence. I also recovered the deceased’s vehicle,” she told the court.
She said Augusta’s remains were later deposited at the Yaba Mortuary, while investigations continued until July 18, 2023, when the matter was transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, Panti.
Asked how many times she visited the scene, Oloye said she went there between three and four times. She stated that her first visit was at about 6:30 p.m., while she later returned with the DPO at about 10:30 p.m.
The witness also told the court that, from her observation, it appeared that a sharp object had been used on Augusta’s stomach.
She identified the handwritten note in court and confirmed that it was part of the exhibits transferred to the SCID.
When the prosecution sought to tender the document, defence counsel, Marcel Oru, objected, alleging that the note had been doctored.
Justice Harrison, however, admitted the handwritten note and its contents in evidence as Exhibits P5 and P5A.
Under cross-examination, Oru challenged portions of Oloye’s testimony. He suggested that Augusta’s mother had earlier testified that another woman, identified as Mrs Bankole, accompanied the group to the estate, making them four females.
Oloye disagreed, insisting that there were only three females. She also maintained that she was the only police officer who initially accompanied the family to the premises.
“On getting to the estate, the estate police joined us,” she said.
The defence lawyer also questioned whether the witness discovered Augusta’s decomposing body during her first or second visit to the residence.
“It was during the first visit,” Oloye replied.
Oru further suggested that it was a male police officer who climbed the ladder alongside Augusta’s uncle while the witness remained on the ground. Oloye denied the claim.
“No. I climbed first,” she said.
When counsel pointed out that Augusta’s uncle had testified that both of them climbed together, Oloye maintained: “I climbed first, came down, then the brother climbed.”
The witness also agreed that she used the light from her mobile phone to view the interior of the room, indicating that the room was dark.
When shown Exhibits P5 and P5A, Oloye was asked to identify any SCID registration number on the documents, which she acknowledged was absent. She nevertheless confirmed that she handed over the key to Augusta’s vehicle to officers at the SCID.
Asked about the autopsy conducted on the deceased, Oloye said she did not come to court with any autopsy-related document and was not aware whether an autopsy report had been issued.
Following her testimony, the prosecution closed its case.
Justice Harrison thereafter adjourned the matter until July 8 and 9, 2026, for continuation of trial.
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