Eighteen days after Opeyemi Anifowose departed his residence in Abeokuta, Ogun State, to board a flight to Abuja at the local wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos State, the whereabouts of the nutritionist have remained unknown.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the father of two left his home for capturing under the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System in Abuja when he suddenly went missing.
Efforts by Opeyemi’s traumatised family members and friends to locate his whereabouts have since proved abortive.
His friend simply identified as Chuks said Opeyemi’s family had been thrown into mourning over the incident, adding that no one had contacted his family about his disappearance.
Chuks stated, “He (Opeyemi) left his home in Abeokuta around 5pm on Thursday, May 6, 2021, for Lagos State to lodge in a hotel so that he would not miss his flight to Abuja the following day.
“He was going to Abuja for his IPPIS capture, but around 7pm, he called his mother to inform her that he was at Mowe and that was his last communication with his family.
“He was supposed to board an Aero Contractor flight on Friday, but when we contacted the airline, we were told that he didn’t show up. Most of the time, when we discuss the incident with his wife, she ends up crying. We have not received any call for ransom or that he is dead.”
Another friend, who gave his name simply as Rasheed, said trackers were employed to track Opeyemi’s number, adding that until his number was switched off permanently, it was traced to the Iju area of Lagos State.
He said, “We reported at the Ogun State Police Command in Eleweeran, Abeokuta, but the police told us that they had not been able to do tracking for two weeks, because the service was down. We also reported at the DSS office in Shangisha, Lagos, but we were told that they could only intervene if calls for ransom had been made.
“It was when we employed independent trackers that we were able to track his phone number to the Iju area of Lagos. When we took the report to the DSS in Ogun State, they said it was not within their jurisdiction. But they recently called his wife to get some information from her so that they could commence investigation.”
Efforts to get a reaction from the state Police Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi, proved abortive as of the time of filing this report.
In another development, the whereabouts of an undergraduate of the University of Benin, Olive Ize-Iyamu, remain unknown to her friends and family members.
Olive’s friend, Adeola, explained on her Twitter handle, @dearolaa, that the undergraduate was last seen around Westwood Estate in the Badore area of Ajah, Lagos State.
Olive’s sister, Constance, said the 24-year-old was supposed to be in school, but came to Lagos without informing anyone, adding that she had been staying with her cousin, Nosa Mac-Oliver, in Ajah, where she was last seen.
Constance stated, “I spoke to her on May 17 and she told me that she was in school. I tried her number on Tuesday, but it didn’t connect; the same thing happened on Wednesday and the rest of the week. But on Friday, I asked my elder brother, Franklin, if he heard from her, but he said no.
“Suddenly, my cousin, Nosa Mac-Oliver, who stays in Ajah, chatted with me on WhatsApp and asked if I heard from Olive. I told him that I had not heard from her since Tuesday, but he told me he that heard from her nine days ago. I called her friends in school and they said they had not seen her for over two weeks.
“I called Nosa to ask if she told him that she was in Lagos and it was at that point that he told me that she had been with him for three weeks, while she was supposed to be in school. Nosa said on May 13, she told him that she was going to see someone, but didn’t give a name or an address.
“When he did not hear from her for nine days, he became worried and had to ask me. I informed my dad and he reported at the Surulere and Ajah police stations yesterday (Sunday).”
Reacting to Olive’s disappearance, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, said, “I am not aware; I will find out,” but he had yet to revert to our correspondent as of press time.
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