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By Christopher Oji, Lagos
The Lagos Lagos State Police Command has arrested two suspected killers. While one was arrested for allegedly setting his wife and brother-in-law ablaze,another was picked for allegedly smashing the head of his one-month-old child on the floor after a minor quarrel with his wife.
Mr Benjamin Nkemakolam Ogudoro, who is alleged to have set his wife, Chinyere, who just returned from Scotland and her younger brother, Ifeanyichukwu Edoziem, ablaze, denied the allegation saying that fate was only playing with him.
The police have accused him of killing his wife and her younger brother with the intention of selling the house at 5, Zone 7, Oteyi Garden Estate, Abule Ado , which belonged to his wife.
Ogudoro has however denied the allegation, saying: ‘I am happy that I have finally been given the opportunity to say the side of my story. I was told that the social media has been agog with the news of a man setting his Scotland returnee and her younger brother ablaze. That is not the truth. On the fateful day, on April 1,my wife arrived Lagos from Scotland without informing me. It was somewhere around 9 pm when she called with her Nigeria number that I should come and open the gate for her. I didn’t get angry that she paid a surprise visit. I was thinking maybe she wanted to see if I had girlfriend or I have married a new wife. I ran down home from where I was and welcome her. When she entered the house, she told me to excuse him and his younger brother to have some family discussion, I didn’t get angry, I left them alone as they went straight to our guest room and started discussing with her only brother and who had lived with me for five years.
‘When I waited for sometimes and their discussion was being too prolonged, I decided to go and take one bottle of beer in a nearby joint. After taking the beer , I returned home but they were still holding talks, so I decided to stay in our sitting room and I was watching TV. While I was watching TV, I saw flames coming out from the house and when I opened the door from where the flame was coming out, I was hit by a serious heat wave and some parts of my body were burnt, so I knew that there was a fire in the house, so, I ran away and started calling for help, but I didn’t know myself again and only found myself in the hospital.
‘Well, it was a mere coincidence that the fire happened the same day my wife returned to Nigeria. It is suspicious, though, but fate was dealing with me. My wife owned the house and the documents are on her name. She bought the house when she was a manager at Fidelity Bank. We were planning to sell the house when she wanted to renew her Visa and that of her children in Scotland, but when we got money, we decided not to sell the house again. I didn’t kill my wife and her younger brother, it was fire that consumed my wife and her brother. I love my wife and we were living in harmony.’
A police investigator has said that the suspect is lying, stating that ‘preliminary Investigation so far shows that the woman had heard that her husband wanted to sell her house and decided to take her documents away from the man, who got angry and decided to set the house, wife and her brother ablaze. He wanted to be smart, but this is a wicked act.’
Lagos State Commissioner of Police Mr Abiodun Alabi, who paraded the suspects and 32 others for various offences, said Investigations were ongoing and the suspects would be charged to Court.
The CP who was represented by Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Benjamin Hundeyin, said the other suspect , Benedict Ahieze , allegedly murdered his one-month-old daughter, Onyiyechi, at Idimu area of the state.
‘On April 6, the father of the child who was drunk was arguing with his when he allegedly took the child from her mother and smashed her head on the floor and she died instantly,’ he stated.
