Police to charge house-help with murder of 89-year-old mother

The Police will on Thursday prefer a double murder charge against a househelp, Joseph Ogbu, suspected of killing his employer Oreoluwa John, 38, and her 89-year-old mother, Adejoke John at their Lagos home last Thursday.

It was learnt that the State Criminal Investigation Department, Yaba, which is overseeing the case, has concluded its investigation.

A close relative of the deceased told The Nation that the family was notified by the police that Ogbu, 22, will be brought before an Ebute-Meta Chief Magistrates’ Court, Lagos today.

But the Lagos State Police Command spokesperson, Bala Elkana, a Deputy Superintendent (DSP), could not confirm the information.

“I’m out of town now, I’m attending a conference in Abuja, but it can’t be far from the truth because I know we are done with his investigation,” Elkana said.

The relative also said that Ogbu was believed to have compelled either of the deceased to transfer money from their accounts to an account provided by him.

“That has also been confirmed. He (Ogbu) forced, we don’t know whether it was his employer or her mum, it’s more likely to be the employer, (to make the transfer). Some monies were moved from mama’s account to another account,” the source, who pleaded for anonymity, said.

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The source added that an autopsy was performed on the deceased yesterday and the result was being awaited.

There were several online reports (not The Nation’s) claiming that Oreoluwa was expecting a baby, but the relative did not confirm the claim.

“That is what the autopsy will reveal. I know that she had fibroid or something like that. She always had it when she was alive. If you saw her, it would look like she was pregnant. People are now saying she was pregnant. I cannot confirm that because I like to have evidence. The autopsy will confirm whether there was a pregnancy or it was the fibroid – I think it was fibroid – that she has always had,” the source said.

The relative also debunked another claim that Oreoluwa was set to wed before the incident occurred.

“That’s not true. I can confirm to you that it is not true.”

Addressing another rumour making the rounds that Ogbu had been informed in three similar crimes before, the relative said: “In one of them he torched the house, the relations thought that he was involved in the fire, it was when they saw his picture in this case that they came out and said they thought he was already dead.

“In the last incident, before this one, he was arrested by the police but we heard he escaped. We heard that they are also trying to make a case against the suspect.”

But the police did not confirm any of the new allegations.

Elkana told The Nation that he was not directly involved in the investigation of the case, so he could neither confirm nor deny the claims.

Benue State born Ogbu allegedly killed the mother and daughter between 1am and 2am at the deceased’s No. 4, Ogunlana Drive, Surulere, Lagos, home.

He was said to have stabbed Oreoluwa to death.

There is, however, conflicting information as to how Adejoke, who would have been 90 next April, died.

According to the police, she slumped and died of shock after seeing her daughter’s corpse.

But the relative told The Nation in confidence that there were nail marks and blood around her neck, suggesting that she was strangled.

Ogbu was apprehended as he tried to flee in the elderly woman’s Toyota Camry car, filled with her Plasma TV set, among other valuables.