By Owen Eresoyen, Benin
A senior lecturer at Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Edo State, Dr Matthew Uwuigbe, has died in a hotel room following a reported encounter with a 21-year-old commercial sex worker.
Uwuigbe, a lecturer in the Faculty of Medical Laboratory Science, was said to have died on Monday, October 5, 2026, at a hotel in the Mosco area of Ekpoma, Esan West Local Government Area of the state.
Confirming the incident, spokesperson for the Edo State Police Command, Eno Ikoedem, said the hotel owner, manager and the woman involved had been arrested and detained for questioning.
Ikoedem disclosed that the command received a report at about 8pm on Monday that the lecturer had lodged at the hotel and engaged the services of a 21-year-old woman identified as Angela Defa Jacob.
According to the police spokesperson, the lecturer later asked the woman to leave the room to purchase water for him. However, upon her return, she reportedly found him lying lifeless and alerted the authorities.
“The woman returned to the room and discovered Uwuigbe lying lifeless, prompting the report to the police,” the PPRO stated.
Ikoedem said investigations had commenced to determine the circumstances surrounding the lecturer’s death, adding that the arrests were part of efforts to establish what transpired before his death.
She further disclosed that Uwuigbe’s remains had been deposited at the Oriaifo Memorial Hospital Mortuary for preservation pending the outcome of the investigation.
Reacting to the incident, the university management distanced the institution from the circumstances surrounding the lecturer’s death, stressing that the incident occurred outside the university environment.
The spokesperson for AAU, Otunba Aladenika, confirmed that Uwuigbe was a staff member of the university but stressed that the incident was unrelated to the institution’s official activities.
