The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has confirmed the killing of a young university graduate whose body was discovered in a canal in the Jikwoyi area of Abuja.

Blessing Moshood, a 29-year-old Sociology graduate of Kogi State University, was allegedly murdered on Thursday night, and her body dumped in a canal in the Jikwoyi area of Abuja.

According to her sister, Abigail Moshood, Blessing left their home around 8pm that evening after speaking with someone on the phone. The deceased later called about an hour afterwards, saying she would return home briefly to pick up her phone charger, which she had forgotten. She never returned.

The family became alarmed after Blessing failed to return home and all efforts to reach her proved unsuccessful. The matter was later reported to the police.

The family’s fears were confirmed through a distressing chain of events. “We later heard people talking about the body of a woman discovered inside a canal, and someone described the type of hairstyle the deceased had on, which matched my sister’s,” Abigail said. “My mother started crying, and we also learnt that policemen from the Jikwoyi Police Station had evacuated the corpse.” Officers had taken the half-naked body to a mortuary in Mararaba, Nasarawa State, where photographs shown by police confirmed the deceased’s identity.

Neighbours described Blessing as warm and intelligent. One of them, Margaret, said she was well-educated and easy to talk to. “I learnt she graduated with a Second Class Upper in Sociology, and whenever she spoke, you could hardly fault her English,” she said. “She was also very friendly in this neighbourhood and will be greatly missed by all of us, especially the children who have been crying since they learnt of her death.”

Another resident, Abdullahi Musa, appealed to the police to deploy detectives to areas around Jikwoyi Medical Centre to apprehend criminals involved in phone snatching and other crimes he said had become common in the area.

The spokesperson for the Federal Capital Territory Police Command, SP Josephine Adeh, confirmed the incident and said investigation into the circumstances surrounding the woman’s death was ongoing.

No arrests have been publicly announced. The case has drawn widespread attention on social media, with many Nigerians calling for swift justice and greater security in the Jikwoyi community.