Three siblings, including 11-year-old twin brothers, have been found dead near a small river on a farm in the Owena Army Barracks area of Akure, Ondo State, after they went missing while returning home from the farm.
The victims were identified as Joshua Jonah and his twin brother, Jacob Jonah, both 11, and their five-year-old sister, Blessing Jonah.
According to the Ondo State Police Command, the children had accompanied their father, Samuel Jonah, to the farm on Friday, September 4, 2026. They later left the farm ahead of their father to return home but did not arrive.
Their disappearance triggered a search involving family members and other residents. The search ended the following day when the children’s bodies were found close to the bank of a small river within the farm.
Police have opened an investigation, but authorities have not disclosed the cause of death.
The Ondo State Police Command confirmed the incident on Sunday through its spokesperson, DSP Abayomi Jimoh.
Jimoh said investigators were working to establish the circumstances surrounding the deaths. He also confirmed that the children’s remains had been released to their family for burial while police documentation and investigations continued.
The police have not attributed the deaths to drowning, an accident, criminal activity or any other specific cause. That distinction remains important because the discovery site was near a river, but the circumstances that led to the children’s deaths have yet to be established.
The key facts confirmed by authorities are:
- The victims were three siblings.
- Joshua and Jacob Jonah were 11-year-old twins.
- Their younger sister, Blessing, was five.
- They had accompanied their father to a farm near Owena Army Barracks.
- They went missing after leaving the farm.
- Their bodies were found on September 5 near a small river.
- Police are investigating the circumstances of their deaths.
The children reportedly left the farm while their father remained behind. Concern arose when Samuel returned home and discovered that they were not there.
Family members and other residents subsequently searched for the siblings. Their bodies were eventually located on the farm the next day, near the riverbank.
The incident has plunged the family’s community in Oke Ogba, Akure, into mourning, with sympathisers visiting the bereaved family.
The short period between the children’s disappearance and the discovery of their bodies has heightened concern in the community, although investigators have yet to establish precisely what happened during that period.
The investigation is expected to focus on reconstructing the children’s movements after they left their father at the farm and determining how they ended up near the river.
Police authorities have said they are documenting the available facts as investigators work to establish the circumstances leading to the deaths. Commissioner of Police Felix Ohagwu has also directed that the case be investigated.
At this stage, there is no publicly established evidence confirming the cause of death. Reports suggesting a specific explanation should therefore be treated cautiously until investigators release further findings.
The police have also urged parents and guardians to maintain close supervision of children around rivers, ponds and other potentially dangerous water bodies.
The immediate focus now rests on the police investigation and any evidence that could explain how the three children died.
Authorities may need to establish the children’s movements, examine the location where their bodies were found and determine whether any external factors contributed to the tragedy.
For now, the confirmed development is that three siblings have died, their bodies have been recovered and the circumstances surrounding their deaths remain under investigation.
Further findings from the Ondo State Police Command will be critical in determining what happened to Joshua, Jacob and Blessing before their deaths.
