The father of three siblings who were found dead near a stream inside the 32 Artillery Brigade Army Barracks in Akure, Ondo State, has questioned the circumstances surrounding their deaths, saying he does not believe the children drowned.

Samuel Jonah, father of 11-year-old twins Joshua and Jacob Jonah and their five-year-old sister, Blessing, recounted the heartbreaking moments leading to the discovery of their bodies.

The three children had reportedly gone missing after accompanying their parents to their farm within the barracks on Friday. Their bodies were later found near a stream after an extensive search.

‘I told them to come home by 6pm’

Jonah, a Benue State indigene who has lived in Akure since 2003, said he had been farming inside the barracks for some time and had often taken his children there without any incident.

He said the children accompanied him and their mother to the farm on Friday.

According to him, he left around noon to collect his salary as a security worker before returning to the farm.

“When I returned, I told them that their mother and I would be going home, and that they could continue playing around but should return home by 6 p.m.”

Jonah said he and his wife later returned home, only to discover that the children were nowhere to be found.

‘By 8pm, I knew something was wrong’

As the hours passed without any sign of the children, the father said fear began to set in.

“By 8 p.m. on Friday, they had still not returned home. I began to think that something was wrong. I took my motorcycle and rushed to the farm,” he recalled.

He said he reported the children’s disappearance to Military Police officers within the barracks and later tried to report the matter at a nearby police station.

The search continued into Saturday morning.

Jonah said he and his wife also checked their church and contacted their pastor, hoping the children might have gone there or been taken in by someone they knew.

Soldier’s phone call led to devastating discovery

The grieving father said he was praying when he received a phone call from a soldier asking him to return to the barracks immediately.

“I ran from the prayer ground to the barracks and met the soldiers,” he said.

Jonah said the soldiers took him towards a small stream close to his farm and initially held him back while officers questioned him.

“They asked whether I had any problem with anybody. I told them I did not have any problem with anyone.”

He said an officer eventually broke the devastating news to him, his three children were dead.

‘I removed the leaves with my own hands’

Jonah said he was overwhelmed with grief when he eventually saw his children’s bodies.

“When I got there, they had covered their bodies with leaves. I removed the leaves with my own hands. I was deeply pained because those were my only children,” he said.

But beyond the pain of losing all three children at once, Jonah said what he saw at the scene raised questions in his mind.

Father questions drowning explanation

Jonah claimed he noticed blood coming from the children’s ears and from the body of his youngest daughter.

“When I uncovered them, I saw blood coming out from their ears. I also saw blood coming from the body of my youngest daughter,” he said.

He added that he did not notice water in their stomachs and said the children were not completely wet.

“I have never seen someone die in water and bleed like that. There was no water in their stomachs and they were not very wet. I do not think they died through drowning. Something must have happened to them.”

The father said he suspected that other people could have been involved, but stressed that he had no evidence identifying anyone.

“I suspect bandits or some other people may have been involved,” he said.

Jonah, however, acknowledged that his suspicion was based on what he observed and that he did not personally see anyone at the scene.

‘I have no proof against anyone’

The bereaved father said there were several people living or working around the farm, including soldiers, but he could not point to anyone as responsible for his children’s deaths.

“This is my suspicion, but I did not see anybody. I do not know anybody in particular to suspect,” he said.

“There are neighbours around the farm, and some of them are soldiers, but we do not have any proof against anyone yet.”

Father appeals for government intervention

Jonah said he lacked the financial means to independently pursue an investigation, particularly because the deaths occurred within a military environment.

“I do not have money to pursue any case against the military. My children died inside a military environment, and I cannot just walk up to the commander or the Army authorities by myself,” he said.

Although he said he had left the matter in God’s hands, he appealed to the government to investigate the deaths and establish exactly what happened.

“If the government can investigate this incident and uncover whoever is behind it, I will be grateful,” he said.

The children’s uncle, Mazi Hassan, also described the incident as shocking and called for a thorough investigation.

Hassan said he travelled to the barracks after hearing that twins had died there because he wanted to establish what had happened.

“This is not the first time something like this has happened in the barracks,” he claimed, without providing further details.

He questioned how three children from the same family could die under such circumstances.

“They were twins. Three children from one family cannot just die like that. The government should investigate this matter thoroughly and bring those responsible to justice,” he said.

Hassan also urged the military to immediately investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths.

“It is very surprising that something like this happened inside a military zone. They should carry out a thorough investigation into what happened and determine exactly how this incident occurred,” he added.

Police authorities have commenced an investigation into the deaths.

The circumstances surrounding the children’s deaths remain unclear, and the allegations raised by the family have not been independently established.

The family is now calling for a transparent investigation that will determine how Joshua, Jacob and Blessing died and provide answers to their grieving parents.