Crime
By Izunna Okafor
IT was a heart-rending scene at the Nnewi Diocesan Hospital (Akwudo) in Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State, as the members of Mr. Nathaniel Uzuegbunam’s family of Obiuno Community in Otolo Nnewi gathered to behold the corpse of their beloved daughter who was reportedly strangled to death.
The deceased, Mrs Ebere Obiora (Nee Uzuegbunam), was said to have been strangled to death by her husband, Mr. Ikechukwu Obiora of Ezi-Ogwugwu Community in Otolo Nnewi, barely six months after they got married.
According to source close to the family, the couple got married in August 2022, and were expecting their first child before the incident happened. The source further opined that the couple had been having periodic domestic violence and family problems, unknown to the family of the wife.
This reporter, Izunna Okafor, gathered that the family members of the deceased, on Thursday, March 2, 2023, received a call from their in-law (the mother of her daughter’s husband) at about 7.pm, informing them that their daughter had just slumped and appeared to be dead. The shocking news made them rush to their in-law’s residence at Ezi-Ogwugwu, Otolo Nnewi.
Upon reaching there, they were informed that their daughter had been rushed to the Nnewi Diocesan Hospital at Akwudo, where they also drove to immediately. The family members received the most shocking news when they got to the hospital, as the doctor on duty, declared their daughter dead after examining her body.
The doctor’s report, however, seemed unbelievable to them, which made them rush her to another hospital, St. Felix Okolo Hospital, Nnewi, where it was also confirmed to them by the doctor on duty, that their daughter had passed on. And they returned to the Diocesan Hospital, Akwudo, to deposit her corpse.
Be it as it, the bereaved family found it difficult to believe that their daughter just slumped and died instantly for no just reason. Their doubt was further strengthen by the by texture of their daughter’s corpse and the appearance of her tongue which was half-out of her mouth. They therefore demanded further explanation as to what actually happened to her. They also wondered why her husband was not seen anywhere around the hospital throughout the entire incident, and further wondered why it was his mother that called them to inform them of what was happening, instead of he as the husband.
Consequent upon these, the husband of the deceased, Mr. Obiora, was immediately summoned to give detailed explanation.
This reporter, Izunna Okafor, further gathered that, upon interrogation, the suspect initially insisted on the claim that his wife just slumped and died, but could not give any reasonable and convincing explanation to substantiate his claims.
When asked why he did not call his in-laws to inform them when the incident happened, and why he did not show up throughout the entire rush and efforts to save her life after the said slump, the suspect could not give any cogent excuse, which prompted his immediate arrest by the operatives of the Otolo Nnewi Divisional Headquarters.
However, when further interrogated by the police and the bereaved family who threatened to carry out an autopsy on their daughter’s corpse to unravel the circumstances surrounding her obviously suspicious death; Mr. Obiora finally confessed to the crime and revealed that it was he who actually strangled the wife to death.
Asked why, the suspect, who narrated how he committed the homicide, said it was as a result of domestic violence between him and the wife.
He narrated that he came back in the morning of March 2, 2023, and was knocking at the gate, but his wife (who was actually bathing at the time) did not open the gate immediately, which made him to start scolding at her out of anger. He said it was scolding at her that he also started slapping and hitting her, right from the gate into the house, till he angrily grabbed her on the neck and strangled her to death.
Mr. Obiora said he was so shocked when he saw what happened, as he never expected the wife to die. He said he confided in few persons and sought advice on what to do, after which he eventually abandoned the corpse and left out of fear and confusion, as he did not know what next to do, until evening when his mother reached out to his wife’s family members.
As at the time of filing this report, the suspect is still retained in the police custody, while the police authority had assured that he would be charged to court upon the conclusion of investigation into the matter. (Text excluding headline from 247Ureports) A.I
Tags: Izunna Okafor Mr. Ikechukwu Obiora Mr. Nathaniel Uzuegbunam Mrs Ebere Obiora
