Following a series of allegations of criminal activity on the hotel premises, the Abia State Government has sealed off Merry-home Hotels Limited in Aba, the state capital. Merry-home Hotels Limited is located around the 7UP axis of Ogbor Hill.
Dr Eze Chikamnayo, the state Commissioner for Information, told reporters in Aba after the exercise that the seal off was prompted by "repeated reports to security agencies about a series of deaths under questionable circumstances within the premises of the hotel."
The most recent, according to Chikamnayo, is the death of a young lady who arrived with two young boys and a baby in the afternoon, and as confirmed by CCTV, the boys left with the baby in the evening without the baby.
The hotel management broke into the room around midnight and discovered the lady dead and dismembered.
According to reports available to the state government, other deaths occurred in the hotel, particularly near the swimming pool.
Chikamnayo emphasized the Governor Okezie Ikpeazu-led administration's determination to eliminate all development that threatens the lives of Abians and their residents, emphasizing that no responsible government would stand by and watch such a crime hotspot emerge.
He went on to say that everyone suspected of being involved in the incident had been arrested and that the case had been turned over to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation.
The Commissioner warned that the state is a no-go zone for ritual murders and dismemberment of people's bodies for any reason, and that it has zero tolerance for any form of criminal incubation and growth, stating that any hotel in the state that offers itself for such practices will be sealed and the perpetrators brought to justice.
He expressed displeasure with the presence of over 80 teenagers in compromising conditions in the hotel, engaging in anti-social and criminal activities, and advised parents to keep a close eye on their children's movements, while emphasizing that the state's priority remained the welfare of its citizens.