The Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) community is gripped with tension following the disappearance of a female student, Dorcas Oseghale, a Chemistry student with matriculation number CHM/2021/165. Dorcas was last seen on August 6, 2025, at around 8 p.m. after informing her roommate she was going to buy food at the Students’ Village along Ede Road. However, she never returned to her hostel at Adesanmi House, Ibadan Road, and her phone lines have remained unreachable.
The university’s management has confirmed that it has intensified efforts to locate the missing student and has reported the case to the Osun State Police Command. According to the university’s spokesperson, Abiodun Olarewaju, the Security Unit began monitoring conversations surrounding the incident after a report was posted on a students’ social media platform on August 7, 2025. A group of Chemistry students, alongside her roommate, Akinkuade Omobolanle Beatrice, formally reported the matter to the Security Unit, which then assigned three security personnel to work with students in the initial search.
Due to the complexity of the case and manpower constraints, the university has handed over preliminary findings to the Nigerian Police for a full-scale investigation. The police have enough manpower with sound professional and technical expertise to unravel the mystery surrounding Dorcas’s disappearance. Vice-Chancellor Professor Simeon Bamire praised the students for their quick action and urged the police and other security agencies to do everything possible to locate Dorcas.
Professor Bamire appealed to anyone with useful information about Dorcas’s whereabouts to contact the nearest police station or the OAU Security Unit immediately. The disappearance has sparked anxiety across the campus, with students and staff calling for heightened security measures to prevent a recurrence. The Great Ife Students’ Union has also issued a statement, urging anyone with information to come forward without delay and appealing to students to remain vigilant and support Dorcas with prayers.
The university’s management has assured that it will continue to work closely with the police and other security agencies until the matter is resolved. The Osun State Police Command is currently investigating the circumstances surrounding Dorcas’s disappearance, and the university community is anxiously awaiting news of her safe return.
