Posted by by JAYNE UCHE UKONNE on
Horror. Abomination. Unbelieveable. These were the words on the lips of spectators who rushed to No. 6, Akuobi Street, off 31 Port Harcourt Road, Aba, Abia State, to have a glimpse of the charred and mutilated body of a house wife allegedly killed by her husband, one Mr. Nelson Ezike. The lady was said to be pregnant when she was killed.
•Cuts off private part for suspected money charm
Horror. Abomination. Unbelieveable. These were the words on the lips of spectators who rushed to No. 6, Akuobi Street, off 31 Port Harcourt Road, Aba, Abia State, to have a glimpse of the charred and mutilated body of a house wife allegedly killed by her husband, one Mr. Nelson Ezike. The lady was said to be pregnant when she was killed.
Mr. Ezike, who is on the run now, was said to have killed his wife, Ogechi, cut off her left hand, both legs from the knees, her breast and private parts, allegedly for money making rituals. He then poured petrol on her remaining parts and also round the house and set everywhere ablaze.
Unfortunately, luck ran out of him as the fire could not burn the body of his wife completely when neighbours and police found out the charred body inside his one-room apartment.
Although Nelson Ezike is on the run, his younger brother who was living with him, 15-year old Nzube, is now in the police net and helping police in their investigation.
What baffles a lot of people who came to the scene since December 31, 2004, when the incident occurred, is how come remains of Ogechi was found inside a room and a building that were burnt to ashes even as walls and pillars of the house all fell down as a result of the fire.
Speaking to Saturday Champion, one of the landlords of the house, Mr. Eugene Ugochukwu, who said the house was a family property and that his eldest brother was not at home, confirmed that Nelson Ezike was one of their tenants.
He said Nelson about 28 years got married to Ogechi about 24 years in October, 2004 and that the lady was pregnant as at the time she was killed.
He also said that Nelson, who had lived in their house for about three years, had no known means of livelihood.
He narrated to Saturday Champion that he had gone to bed with members of his family on that fateful night when at about 3 a.m. another tenant, Onyebuchi, who lived next door to Nelson came to wake him up that Nelson's room was burning.
Mr. Ugochukwu said he ran out and also noticed that there was fire in Nelson's room and there was no call for help coming from Nelson's room.
According to him, "we tried to stop the fire by pouring water at Nelson's room and other areas the fire had spread to.
"On our third attempt fire engulfed the whole building. We started shouting and Aba people rushed to our rescue.
"It was at this point that we saw Nzube, Nelson's younger brother who was living with him. "We asked him about his brother, he said his brother had ran out from their room with a bag. We then asked about his brother's wife Ogechi and he said she had died.
"Suddenly, we saw Nelson's eldest brother Papa Nonso who lived at Jaja Street, Aba. We asked him how he knew about the fire and he told us Nelson came to his house to inform him that his room (Nelson) was burning.
"The brother said when he inquired from Nelson the whereabouts of his wife that Nelson said the wife was inside the room. He told us he was coming with Nelson, but on their way Nelson took permission from him to go and inform another of their brothers.
"Twenty minutes later Nelson's immediate younger brother came in. He also told us Nelson came to his house to inform him."
Mr. Ugochukwu continued that, "when his brothers came they were busy searching Nelson's room, looking for the wife's body.
"It was at that point that Onyebuchi and I went to invite the police. The police came back to the house with us. Then asked Papa Nonso to go back with them to Central Police State, Aba for his statement.
"It was while we were there that Onyebuchi came to inform us that the remains of Nelson's wife had been found. We then rushed back to see the mutilated body of Nelson's wife.
"At that point, police in addition took Nzube to their station as an eye-witness."
In his statement to the police Nzube said he woke up that night and found is brother's wife on the floor with blood everywhere.
He said he noticed that the lady was no longer alive and that most parts of her body were missing.
He added that, "my brother then carried the wife's body to the bed. Brought out our generating set. From there collected petrol which he poured on the body of his wife and round the house then lighted them."
Nzube is being detained at Divisional Police Headquarters, Ndiegoro.
A police source there told Saturday Champion that apart from the detention of Nzube and preliminary investigation that nothing much had been done.
She said police had been expecting relatives of the murdered lady for police to go on with their investigation.
The source said, "her relations came here once and went with us to see her remains which has been deposited at the mortuary of Abia State University Teaching Hospital, Aba.
"They said they would come back within few days, unfortunately we have not seen them. "There are things we will like to do, but we cannot do them in their absence.
Meanwhile, tenants of the burnt building are counting their loss.
Mr. Ngozi Amahiri, a generating set mechanic, who rented one of the rooms for his workshop told Saturday Champion that all the sets he left in his shop and travelled home for Christmas got burnt. He said household properties and things in the shops and other rooms were not saved as the owners, apart from few, had travelled home.
Mr. Ugochukwu, who was seen trying to erect one room in the compound, said the house was built before the war and was not insured.
He said the 9-room apartment was razed to foundation, adding that they were lucky to have escaped unhurt.
Asked if Nelson Ezike exhibited any abnormal sign before the incident, Mr. Ugochukwu said he did not observe any such thing even though he pointed out that he was not in the habit of monitoring activities of their tenants.
He however noted that Nelson had sometime last year, before his marriage to Ogechi, had a case with his girlfriend who lived with him.
He said the girl had alleged that Nelson wanted to use her for money making ritual, but that Nelson denied the allegation.
Mr. Ugochukwu said the matter eventually led them to the Central Police Station, Aba, where the girl's parents made Nelson to sign an undertaking that he would not come to their house again to disturb the girl.
As police go on with their investigation, No. 6 Akuobi, Aba still attracts people who go to see the building and also to confirm if what they hear is true.