Father of five allegedly kills wife for money ritual

A bizarre incident
occurred yesterday at Araromi Street in the densely populated Oshodi
area of Lagos, following the killing of a mother of five by her husband.

The suspect, Sogei Jafairu, who hails from Etsako Central Local 
Government Area of Edo state, was suspected to have committed the act
for ritual purpose.
Late Rose and husband
Late Rose and husband

He was said to have returned home Thursday evening, after spending one
week outside. His unsuspecting wife, Roselyn , who was a trader at Ijora
 market, prepared food for members of the family .

But the food was alleged to have been poisoned by her husband, who also
ate with her.

At about 1am, Jafaru was said to have been seen pacing around his one
room and parlour apartment. He was said to have also been sighted
licking some black substance suspected to be concoction to neutralise
the poisoned food he ate with his wife.

Thereafter, he allegedly slit his wife’s throat with a knife, while she
was sleeping.

Saturday Vanguard gathered that he attempted to stuff the lifeless body
inside a container when he suddenly started vomiting. One of their
children, Richmond Sogei (16) narrated the incident when Vanguard
visited.

He said “My daddy and mummy never ate together since I grew up knowing
them as my parents. We only saw them eating together for the very first
time yesterday (Thursday) .Mummy came back from the market with some
drinks she said we would use to celebrate Children’s Day today
(yesterday)

“We were surprised when we saw them eating beans and garri from same
plate but concluded that it could be as a result of my kid sister’s
birthday that was celebrated same day.We all went to bed without any
thought of the unexpected. But at 3am my daddy woke me up and instructed
 me to go and meet my mum in the bedroom. I left the sitting room where I
 slept with my aunt and three siblings. As I was going to urinate, I saw
 daddy vomiting in the bathroom. I went outside to urinate and when I
came back, I saw him lying down in the bathroom. When I flashed the
torchlight, I noticed that he was vomiting some black substance. He also
 excreted on himself.
Out of fear, I rushed to wake my aunt up to assist daddy. I also told
her to wake mummy up to come and help daddy but she said that mummy was
not responding. When I went inside and flashed my torchlight at her, I
saw that the bed she laid on was socked with blood. On closer
observation, I discovered a deep cut on her throat and passed out.

“Daddy initially said somebody broke into the room and killed mummy but
we discovered that the gate was locked. Later he said I was the one that
 killed my mummy.
How can I kill a mother that has been playing the role of a father to
us?. She was even sponsoring my elder brother, Collins who just gained
admission into the University. She was the bread winner.
Twice, we have been sent packing by our landlords at Michael and Banjoko
 streets because daddy could not pay the rent. Why would anyone think of
 killing such person? “, he asked, crying.

Vanguard also gathered that the suspect had been beating the deceased
before the incident occurred. On one of the occasions, she had
threatened to quit the marriage.

A relative of the deceased, Feronica Imomoh, revealed that the suspect
accused his wife of infidelity.

She said: “Our family had warned him to stop beating my sister . He does
 not have any job, she was the one feeding him and paying the rent. 
Anytime she collected gifts from her relatives, he would quarrel with
her, accusing her of sleeping with men. There was a time he took him to
our village in Edo State to swear before a shrine that she was not
cheating on him.

Just yesterday (Thursday) he demanded N10, 000 from her. She promised to
 raise the money by borrowing from her friends”.

Jafaru who attempted to escape was apprehended by sympathisers until the
 arrival of policemen from Akinpelu who whisked him away and removed the
 corpse.

Meanwhile, all apartments and shops at the two storey building located
were under lock and key, as their occupants have fled, for fear of being
 arrested by the police.

When contacted, Deputy Spokesperson for the Lagos State Police Command,
Mr. Chukwuma Ozoani, a Deputy Superintendent of Police said that the
suspect had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and
Intelligence Department for further investigation.

He said:”It was a murder case and the husband was suspected to be under
the influence of drug. The case has been transferred to the SCID and
investigation has commenced.”