Hotel Room Murder

by C. M. Okonkwo

  Inspector Osbourne knew what was likely going to happen, but he didn’t say anything.

  “I will receive a call from the Deputy Inspector-General of Police and he would demand an update because he will be under pressure from as high up as the minister. I need something.”

  “I’ll update you as soon as anything changes, but what you need to know now is that the couple found dead were probably having an affair and their spouses have been called in to identify their bodies while we continue the investigation.”

  “So, no suspects for now?”

  “None for now. The hotel’s cameras were down, and they have no records of the victims being in the hotel.”

  “So basically, you have nothing.”

  “For now, that’s all I have.”

  “For now, you have nothing,” the commissioner repeated. He looked at his wristwatch. “I will need an update by 6:00 p.m. on the dot. Not later.”

  He walked away and Inspector Osbourne sighed. If there was something his boss was great at, it was putting pressure on him. He glanced at his wristwatch; it was almost 4:15 p.m. He had less than two hours to provide an update for his boss. He hurried out to meet Desola Ogunba, who had been waiting for him. When he got to the lobby, he saw Doctor Umanze there, and he was talking with Desola Ogunba.

  “Do you two know each other?” the inspector immediately asked, an eyebrow raised.

  The doctor shook his head, indicating ‘no’.

  Desola Ogunba, on the other hand, said, “No. He just came in right now and was asking me if there was a queue to be attended to. I said I didn’t know, and I was just about to tell him why I’m here before you came over.”

  “I see.” Inspector Osbourne nodded.

  He was glad that he had come in at the exact time he did. He then made sure not to mention that they had come for the same purpose, to identify their dead spouses and that their dead spouses were lovers.

  He looked at Desola Ogunba, and said, “Follow me.” Then to Doctor Umanze, he said, “I’ll be with you shortly.”

  Desola Ogunba followed while the doctor sat on the arm of a chair.

  ***

  Inspector Osbourne led Desola Ogunba to an empty room in the Forensics Department that had only one small square window covered with a curtain. He knocked on the window, and announced, “Desola Ogunba, here to identify the male victim.”

  Less than ten seconds later, the curtain opened, and the upper torso of a body lay covered with a white sheet. A hand in a blue surgical glove lifted open the white sheet and Desola Ogunba cried in response.

  “It’s him,” she confirmed, between sobs. “That’s my husband’s body.”

  Inspector Osbourne knocked on the window, and the curtain closed after the white sheet was replaced over the body.

  Desola Ogunba stopped crying and sniffled. “How did he die?”

  “By suffocation.”

  “Suffocation?” She looked perplexed. “I don’t understand.”

  “According to the report, someone had probably covered his face with a pillow, but there was a sign of an obstruction to the flow of oxygen.”

  “My goodness.” Desola Ogunba resumed crying and refused to stop. She held a hand over her mouth.

  Inspector Osbourne gave her some time, then said, “We will need a photo of your husband for our press release. Since we currently have no leads, it will help us find the killer if anyone might have seen or heard something.”

  Still crying, Desola Ogunba brought out a purse from her handbag and took out a passport picture from it. She gave the picture to Inspector Osbourne. It looked like it had been taken years ago, but he accepted it nonetheless. Then holding her by the shoulder, he led her out of the room.

  ***

  Moments later, Inspector Osbourne led Doctor Umanze into the same room. He was more relaxed than earlier when the inspector had met him and more composed than Desola Ogunba. The inspector figured it was because he must have already recovered from the initial shock, and also because he was a doctor, who had probably seen a lot of dead bodies himself and was unmoved by them.

  Like the first time with Desola Ogunba, Inspector Osbourne knocked on the window, then said, “Doctor Patrick Umanze, here to identify the female victim.”

  The curtain opened after some seconds, and the same hand in a blue surgical glove raised the white sheet to reveal a female face.

  “That’s my wife,” Doctor Umanze said. He swallowed with noticeable difficulty, then asked, “How did it happen?”

  “By suffocation.”

  Doctor Umanze didn’t say any other thing, he just turned around to leave.

  “Wait, Doctor,” Inspector Osbourne called. “We’ll need a photo of your wife for our press release. We currently have no leads, so it will help us find the killer if someone saw or heard anything.”

  Still, without saying anything, Doctor Umanze pulled out a passport photo from his wallet, which looked even older than the one Desola Ogunba had provided of her husband, and gave it to Inspector Osbourne, then walked away.

  Inspector Osbourne could understand that the doctor was grieving, so he let him go without further dialogue. The inspector then went to the other side of the empty room, knocked on one of the several doors there, and entered.

  Doctor Sunday Akachi, the medical examiner looked up at him, and said, “Inspector. I didn’t expect to see you here. I already dropped the report on your table. Did you read it?”

  “Briefly. I went through the collected evidence first, but I didn’t want to keep Desola Ogunba waiting, since she came in with me.”

  “Okay.” Doctor Akachi nodded. “Whoever did this really wanted them dead.”

  The inspector’s interest was instantly piqued. “Why do you say so?”

  “I mean, the killer had hit them on the head several times, knocking them out; the woman with an object that wasn’t identified and the man with a glass bowl. The killer went further to cover their noses, probably with a pillow, just to make sure they were dead.”

  “What if someone had hit them on the head, then a thief came by later and killed them?”

  “Yes, but why would the thief want to kill them first? If they were already knocked out, the thief would just steal from them and run off. Even if the thief bumped into them asleep, the first thing would be to sneak around, and not to commit murder,” the medical examiner pointed out.

  “What if they surprised the thief?”

  “Then we come back to my conclusion that they were knocked out first, then suffocated.”

  Inspector Osbourne nodded. The medical examiner had already answered his question even before he asked it. Just a quick think through and Inspector Osbourne concluded that it could not have been a crime of opportunity after all. It seemed more personal than that. It was murder. Whether it was premeditated or not was up for debate.

  “And the time of death?” Inspector Osbourne asked. “I don’t remember seeing it on the report.”

  “Between 11:30 a.m. and 12:00 p.m.”

  Just then, there was a knock at the door, and someone entered to see the medical examiner.

  The medical examiner looked at Inspector Osbourne. “Is there anything else I can help you with, Inspector?”

  “That would be all. Thank you, Doctor.” Inspector Osbourne smiled, nodded at the visitor, then left the room.

  The inspector went directly to the team responsible for the press release to drop off the photos and other relevant information so that the statement would go out with the 4:30 p.m. news. His mind wandered as he watched the team prepare the content for the press release. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he was missing something.

  Chapter Three: Message

  Same day

  Thursday, 22nd November 2018

  4:35 p.m.

  The man in the dark glasses hadn’t gone home yet. He sat in a fast-food restaurant eating a burger and fries and desperately looking at his phone. A few hungry mosquitoes flew here and there looking for whose skin to
attack for a few drops of blood but didn’t get any as everyone smacked their hands in all directions, not giving the parasite carriers a chance.

  The man waved a hand around each time he heard the annoying buzzing sound around his ears, without minding what spot the mosquito was, as long as it did not distract him from his grub. He was currently on his second plate, and his third bottle of soda sat beside the meal. He didn’t know when last he ate like a monster, but at that moment, he preferred to eat than sit down idly while he waited to be contacted. It had a calming effect on his nerves because more than two hours had gone by, and there was still no word from his client.

  He was caught between two voices in his head. The first told him that his client had gotten all the information she needed and didn’t want to move further with the private investigation, while the other voice told him that his client might have gone to confront Subjects A and B and was now distraught and probably didn’t want to communicate with him anymore as the bringer of bad but true news. Both options led to the conclusion that she wouldn’t likely meet her own end of the agreement.

  The man didn’t want to accept that conclusion, however, so he decided to give his client until the next day. If she didn’t reach out to him, he would meet Subjects A or B, or even both, and blackmail them for what his client owed. He didn’t know if they would be interested given that his client had already confronted them, but he believed it would be worth a shot.

  He hadn’t called his client since he left their meeting location some hours ago, so he picked up his phone to call her one more time but halted when the images on the muted TV in the restaurant caught his attention. He put his phone down and glued his eyes to the screen.

  Two images of a man and a woman, side by side, took the full screen and a message flashed underneath them: “...were both found dead this morning in Lagos Star Hotel. The police have now identified them as Mr. Kamar Ogunba and Mrs. Enitan Umanze and are urging anyone with information regarding their deaths to please report to the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department of the Victoria Island Divisional Police Station…”

  The man in the dark glasses abandoned his meal, got up, and hurried out of the restaurant.

  ***

  Same day

  Thursday, 22nd November 2018

  4:45 p.m.

  Inspector Osbourne had watched the press release with the team who had put it up before going back to his office, hoping that someone would come forward with information. He sat at his desk looking through his notes and revisiting everything that had been collected from the crime scene. There were a lot of details and things in the space of just a few hours, but he didn’t know what he could be looking for. Just then, a knock at his office door sliced through his already crashing train of thoughts.

  He put everything away before he looked up, and said, “Come in.”

  The man in the dark glasses walked in with a brown leather bag hung across his shoulder. He took off his glasses when he approached the inspector.

  Inspector Osbourne recognised the man. He stood up and extended his hand. “Princewill Jackson. How are you doing?”

  Princewill Jackson was a private investigator and an undercover police contractor with the Ikoyi Divisional Police Station. He shook Inspector Osbourne’s hand, then replied, “Good. A bit confused, but good.”

  “Confused? How is Samantha?” The inspector asked, referring to Princewill Jackson’s girlfriend, who the P.I. had come to meet while working on a big case that involved her and made the headlines.

  “Samantha is doing well, and this has nothing to do with her.”

  “Don’t tell me it’s Inspector Ike then? We all heard how he tried to jeopardize the case and put your life in danger because of Samantha.”

  “My confusion has nothing to do with Ike either.”

  Inspector Osbourne offered Princewill Jackson a seat with a gesture of the arm, then sat down as well. “So what brings you here?”

  “The case.”

  “The case?” the inspector repeated. “What case?”

  “The hotel room murder case. It’s confusing, so I wanted to be sure that those were the real victims. I was told by someone in the lobby that you’re handling the case. That’s why I’m here.”

  “Yes, I’m handling the case, and yes, those were the real victims.” Inspector Osbourne hesitated, as he didn’t want to divulge classified information to Princewill Jackson, but then again, the man was more or less one of them since he worked with the police. So the inspector continued, “Apparently, the victims were lovers. Their bodies have already been identified by their next-of-kin. In this case, their spouses. You know the process.”

  Princewill Jackson shook his head dramatically. Any more vigorously and his neck would snap.

  “What?” Inspector Osbourne asked. “You don’t know the process?”

  “No, not that.” Princewill Jackson calmed down with the head shaking. “But the fact that you think the victims were lovers is what’s confusing because I’m quite sure those victims didn’t know each other.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “The woman, Enitan Umanze, I met with her this morning at 9:00 a.m., and we agreed to meet again by 2:20 p.m., but she never showed up.”

  “Obviously because she died before the meeting time,” the inspector said. “What are you driving at?”

  “Enitan Umanze hired me to watch her husband because she suspected that he was cheating on her.”

  Inspector Osbourne looked confused.

  “I’ve been watching him for about a month now,” Princewill Jackson continued. “And I can confirm that he was indeed cheating.”

  “How are you so sure that someone else pretending to be Enitan Umanze didn’t call you to ask you to watch her husband? She could have already found the name of her husband’s lover and used it,” Inspector Osbourne suggested. “I say this because I spoke to the wife of the male victim and she said she suspected her husband of cheating. Could she be your client?”

  Princewill Jackson shook his head again. “No. Your theory could have been possible if I hadn’t met my client before. But I met Enitan Umanze, the same woman in the news, about a month ago, and also this morning.”

  If Inspector Osbourne said he wasn’t lost, then he would be lying. There was only one way for Princewill Jackson’s point to be valid. “Do you have any proof of what you are saying?”

  Princewill Jackson nodded. “The dead woman made an initial payment into my account with her name. That couldn’t have been someone else.”

  Inspector Osbourne said nothing.

  “You may find this hard to believe, but what I know is that the victims, Kamar Ogunba and Enitan Umanze did not know each other, and they were definitely not lovers.”

  “Okay. Can you at least provide evidence that they didn’t know each other?”

  “I have even better.” Princewill Jackson paused, then added, “I have evidence that the real lovers are Doctor Patrick Umanze and Mrs. Desola Ogunba.”

  Inspector Osbourne blinked twice, surprised. For Princewill Jackson to have mentioned the names of the spouses with accuracy, then he undeniably knew what he was talking about. At the same time, he was a private investigator, so it was easy for him to get the information if he was hired by Desola Ogunba to watch her husband, who she suspected was cheating on her.

  Desola Ogunba could have been the Enitan Umanze who had called Princewill Jackson or could have been someone else entirely. Inspector Osbourne was confused all over again. He didn’t want to believe that the doctor and Desola Ogunba, both of whom he had already met, were the real lovers. If it were the case, then they were good pretenders.

  “Are you sure about what you are saying?” Inspector Osbourne finally spoke. “Those are the spouses of the victims. Could they have known about the cheating separately and worked together to do something about it?”

  “Look, I sat in my car all morning waiting for the doctor and his lover to show up, and they did.”


  “So you have evidence of their meeting?”

  Princewill Jackson didn’t want to give up his photos and files, so he ignored the question and smiled.

  “I’ll take that as a yes,” Inspector Osbourne said. “And you know that at some point we would want to see what you have, right?”

  “Inspector, all I can say is that I sat in the parking lot of Lagos Star Hotel and saw—”

  “Lagos Star Hotel,” the inspector interrupted, then shook his head. He immediately took out the hotel’s vehicle list that he had brought back with him to the station, then stood up, as he said, “I need to go back to the hotel.”

  “Why?” Princewill Jackson asked. “What did you figure out?”

  “I asked for the list of cars that went into the hotel this morning and hadn’t left by the time I was there. If what you’re saying is true, then I should be looking for the list of cars that left before I got there, and preferably around the time of death of the victims.”

  “I doubt you would find what you’re looking for.”

  “And why is that?”

  “Because they didn’t drive,” Princewill Jackson pointed out. “Well, at least not the doctor. But think about it. They are having an affair, they can’t just take their cars to their meeting place, not to mention to a hotel. What if someone sees and recognises their cars?”

  “You have a point, but that’s a ‘what if’.” Inspector Osbourne still didn’t want to believe that Doctor Umanze and Desola Ogunba knew each other. If they truly did, then they would go beyond good pretenders to great actors. “They could be going there for a meeting or a conference or something, and in that case, they wouldn’t need to hide their cars from anyone.”

  “Not if they are going there every day for two weeks,” Princewill Jackson said. “I followed the doctor for some time, and I lost track of the number of cars he used. Sometimes, it was his car, and other times he hired some sort of taxi service. In the last two weeks, he hasn’t used the same car. But to satisfy your curiosity, you can get the list. I know what car he drives, so we can use that to cross it out.”