Nigerian student Uche Okirie stabbed to death by neighbour in UK

Uche Okirie, a UK-based Nigerian student, was stabbed to death in the early hours of Saturday by a Congolese suspect, a report by the Norfolk police has confirmed.

Colleagues of Mr Okirie told Peoples Gazette they had identified him but were struggling to reach his family in Nigeria. The Norfolk police also appealed to UK residents with useful information to contact them on 101, citing incident number 51 of Saturday, November 22, 2025.

Mr Okirie, a student of the University of East Anglia in Norwich, England, was stabbed in the chest around 5:22 a.m. in Somerlayton, off Unthank Road in the UK.

His death came as a shock to other house occupants who were roused from sleep by the ruckus of Mr Okirie’s demise, particularly fearful screams of “someone’s dead” from neighbours who discovered his body.

The Norwich Evening News first reported the incident, stressing that the majority of Sommerlayton House occupants were still in their “pyjamas” and “flip flops” when they evacuated the building after a fire alarm blared.

The police in Norfolk deemed the incident a murder and swiftly arrested Congolese suspect Benjamin Katheba, who was charged to court on Monday, November 24.

Mr Katheba, 27, was remanded in custody prior to his appearance before Norwich Magistrates’ Court after autopsy results carried out by the Home Office revealed Mr Okirie died from a stab wound to his chest.

Police officers have cordoned off the house while forensic experts extract blood, DNA and other crucial evidence from the scene for investigation. The deceased was in his 30s, the police said.

Mr Okirie attended the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, between 2011 and 2015. He studied economics and graduated with a Second Class Upper.

He became the head office auditor at UBA Group in April 2021, before he moved to the UK for his postgraduate programme in September 2021.

Until his demise on Saturday, he was the International Student Ambassador to Nigeria at the University of East Anglia.

Faith Luke Chidiebere, a project management professional, described Uche Okirie as a dedicated and hard-working fellow, who is passionate about his job and achieves results on any assigned tasks within turnaround time.”

In a similar LinkedIn recommendation, UBA’s former audit team lead, Polycarp Ebirim, wrote, “Uchenna is a diligent and resourceful fellow, committed and dedicated to the achievement of timely and tight deadlines.”