A property dispute has ended in tragedy at Oro Ekpo Estate, off Ada George Road in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State, where a middle-aged man allegedly hacked his father, retired Marine Captain David Nwoke, to death with a machete.

Police sources and community residents say the killing followed a heated disagreement over the sharing of the former officer’s assets as he prepared to relocate permanently to his hometown in the South East.

Captain Nwoke, described by neighbors as a disciplined but fair man, had reportedly summoned his children to his Port Harcourt residence to inform them of his relocation plans and to outline how his properties would be distributed among them.

During the family meeting, the son from his second marriage allegedly demanded that one of his father’s cars be transferred to him immediately. The retired officer was said to have declined, insisting that the distribution would follow his own arrangements and timing.

Investigators believe that refusal became the trigger for a deadly plot. According to residents, the suspect allegedly lay in wait for his father inside the house on the morning of the incident, after the older man stepped out for his routine exercise.

On returning from his morning walk, Captain Nwoke reportedly entered the compound and was heading to his room to freshen up when the assailant emerged and attacked him repeatedly with a machete. The blows, witnesses say, were targeted at his head and upper body, leaving him in a pool of blood.

A housemaid who was inside the building raised the alarm, drawing neighbors to the scene. They quickly contacted the Rumuokpani Police Division, whose operatives arrived and arrested the suspect. The victim was confirmed dead shortly after.

Spokesperson for the Rivers State Police Command, SP Agabe Blessing, confirmed the incident and the arrest of the suspect. She said the case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for a detailed probe.

She added that the suspect remains in custody and will be charged to court upon conclusion of investigations, while detectives continue to take statements from family members, neighbors, and domestic staff to establish the full circumstances surrounding the killing.