The Cross River State Police Command has launched a manhunt for a male guest who allegedly lodged in a hotel in Calabar South Local Government Area with a female companion who was later found dead in the room.
The hotel receptionist has also been taken into custody to assist police with investigations into the incident, which occurred at a hotel on Clifford Street, Calabar South.
Confirming the development in a statement issued on Tuesday, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Superintendent Sunday Eitokpah, said the hotel’s director, manager and receptionist reported the matter to the police at about 8am on Monday.
According to the statement, an unidentified man checked into Room 2 of the hotel on Sunday night with a female companion whose identity remains unknown.
Eitokpah said the man was allegedly not properly documented when he checked into the hotel.
The police spokesperson explained that the receptionist discovered the woman’s body in the early hours of Monday after noticing that the door to the room was open.
He reportedly assumed that the occupants had checked out and entered the room to switch off the ceiling fan.
“Upon switching on the light, he reportedly discovered the female guest lying unresponsive on the bed,” the statement said.
Police investigators who visited the scene reportedly observed marks of violence on the woman’s face and neck.
Eitokpah said the deceased’s body had been deposited at the General Hospital, Calabar mortuary, pending an autopsy to determine the cause of death.
He added that tablets recovered from the victim’s handbag had been secured as exhibits, although investigators had not established any connection between the drugs and her death.
The police said the receptionist was being detained to assist with the investigation, stressing that his detention should not be interpreted as a finding of guilt.
The Commissioner of Police, Geoffrey Ordue, has directed a full-scale and transparent investigation into the incident.
Meanwhile, efforts are ongoing to locate the male guest who reportedly lodged with the deceased and to establish the identity of the victim.
