Tragedy has struck the media community in Abuja as Joel Waksi, a journalist with Atar Communication, the parent company of Liberty TV/Radio, was found dead on Wednesday. His body was discovered five days after he was declared missing.
Joel Waksi, an On-Air Personality (OAP) known for his dedication and creativity, left his office around 9 pm last Friday and was expected to return to duty by 2 pm the following day at the Mpape office of the station. When he failed to show up, concern grew among his colleagues and family.
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Balarabe Muhammad, the Group General Manager (GGM) of Atar Communication, confirmed the grim news to City & Crime. According to Muhammad, the police in the Mpape division reported that Waksi’s body was found near the Panteka area of the community. His corpse was subsequently taken to the Kubwa General Hospital morgue.
Muhammad revealed that Waksi had been stabbed around his neck, and his phone was missing, leading to suspicions that he was attacked by phone snatchers. This incident follows a previous attack on Waksi just two months ago, in which he survived after being stabbed below his abdomen.
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“It was suspected that he was attacked by phone snatchers,” Muhammad said. “He was supposed to be on break till Monday, having worked at night. However, due to internal arrangements among colleagues during such public holidays, he was billed to report back to duty the next afternoon, but he never did.”
Waksi was well-regarded among his colleagues, who described him as hardworking and very creative. His untimely death has sent shockwaves through the media community and raised concerns about the rising menace of phone snatchers in the area.
City & Crime reports that phone snatching has become increasingly prevalent around certain black spots in Mpape town and other Federal Capital Territory (FCT) suburbs, leading to several fatalities.
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Efforts to reach the spokesperson of the FCT police command, SP Josephine Adeh, for comments on the incident were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report.
The tragic death of Joel Waksi underscores the urgent need for enhanced security measures to protect residents from criminal activities, particularly in vulnerable areas. As the investigation continues, the media community and the public at large are calling for justice and more robust efforts to curb the growing threat of phone snatchers in Abuja.
