Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have arrested the suspected killers of Professor of Neurology, Ekanem Philip Ephraim, nearly two years after her abduction and murder.
A credible source confirmed the development on Monday, identifying the alleged gang leader as 24-year-old Patrick Essien Etim, alongside his accomplice, 40-year-old Bassey Antiha Asuquo.
The suspects were reportedly arrested on December 27 at a medical facility in Cross River State while allegedly planning to kidnap another prominent medical practitioner.
According to the source, the DSS had been tracking the kidnapping syndicate since the killing of Professor Ephraim in July 2023. The professor was abducted after gunmen, who reportedly posed as patients, lured her from her private clinic.
Investigations revealed that the suspects confessed to the crime, admitting they killed the professor after collecting multiple ransom payments from her family.
“It has been two years of torment for her loved ones, not knowing what happened to the professor,” the source said. “With this arrest, her family and loved ones can finally have some peace and the much-needed closure they deserve.”
The source added that the breakthrough highlights the DSS’s renewed commitment to covert operations and the restoration of public safety across the country.
Further confessions reportedly linked the suspects to other kidnappings and the vandalisation of electricity cables. Another suspect, identified as Isaac Ekpeyong, was also arrested in connection with the crimes.
Professor Ekanem Ephraim was abducted on July 13, 2023, by gunmen who posed as patients at her private clinic along Atimbo Road in Calabar.
Her abduction triggered widespread protests across Cross River State, with the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) declaring an indefinite strike that paralysed the health sector for over a week, as doctors demanded urgent action from the government to secure her release.
