BY RITA OYIBOKA
Weeks after the shocking revelation that the Diokpa of Umuidigbe village in Okpanam, Oshimili North Local Government Area, Delta State, had been dead for nearly two years without the community’s knowledge, fresh details have emerged on how the secret was uncovered and the subsequent arrest of one of his sons.
Speaking with The Pointer, the Chairman of Obodogwugwu Youths, Mr. John Ogonenwe, narrated how the mystery surrounding the late Diokpa, John Sawyer, came to light following police investigations that exposed a web of deceit and intimidation within the community.
According to Ogonenwe, trouble began shortly after the Diokpa’s installation on December 2, 2023. “After the coronation, we saw him only once again, about a week later. We heard he was ill, but from then on, no one saw him again,” he said.
He explained that by January 2024, community meetings were already being held to ascertain the Diokpa’s whereabouts. “Some of his own children, including his first son, Ngozi Sawyer, and others like Uche and John Junior, had no idea where their father was. They kept asking questions like everyone else,” Ogonenwe said.
Matters took a disturbing turn in May 2024 when some community members, including Ogonenwe himself, Ogbueshi Patrick Adeh and Mr. Ike Osordi, were arrested by men claiming to be from the Abuja SWAT team.
“They accused us of disturbing the peace and claimed the Diokpa ordered our arrest. But that was a lie. It was later discovered that those behind the petition were his sons, Awele Sawyer, Jude Sawyer, Barr. Tony Sawyer and others who were using his name to sell communal lands,” he revealed.
He added that the police, after detaining them in Abuja, opened an investigation into the Diokpa’s supposed absence. “When they came down to Delta, the same people told police that the Diokpa was in an intensive care unit and even produced a forged medical report,” Ogonenwe said.
Their deceit, however, began to crumble after police tracked and arrested Awele Sawyer, who eventually confessed that his father had died on January 9, 2024, and that his remains had been deposited in a mortuary. Further investigations allegedly linked Barrister Tony Sawyer, another son of the deceased, to the mortuary deposit. “When Awele was arrested, Tony fled.
The community later confirmed that he had been the one who deposited the Diokpa’s body all along,” Ogonenwe stated.
He emphasized that while some members of the Sawyer family were complicit, others, including the Diokpa’s eldest son and daughters, were unaware and had even joined efforts to uncover the truth. “ They were not part of the fraud. They, too, wanted answers,” he said.
Mr. Ogonenwe accused the suspects of using the Diokpa’s name to grab land and forge documents. “They were selling lands belonging to others in the name of the Diokpa, intimidating people, and using police petitions to silence opposition,” he alleged.
Meanwhile, the second-in-command in Umuidigbe, Mr. Polite Chidebe, confirmed that the principal suspect, Awele Sawyer, remained in police custody in Abuja. “The matter has brought some relief.
For almost two years, the community had no head, yet by God’s grace, we avoided total breakdown of order,” he said.
Chidebe added that, although peace is gradually returning, normal village meetings have yet to resume fully.
“The village has proved the doubters wrong, those who claimed the Diokpa was alive or was giving orders. Now everyone knows the truth,” he said.
He expressed faith in the police and the government to ensure justice. “We’re not teaching the police their work.
They’ve seen the truth, and truth has prevailed. We hope they’ll act on it accordingly,” he said.
