Pregnant woman, 3 children burnt to death in Ebonyi

Posted by admin Ebonyi, Headlines, State News Tuesday, June 14th, 2011

Tragedy struck in the early hours of Monday, in Achara Unuhu village, Abakaliki Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, when a pregnant nursing mother and her three children were reportedly burnt to death, as a strange fire razed their residence while they were all asleep.

Investigations by the Nigerian Tribune revealed that the victims, Mrs Chinyere Ogbonna Nwaokpuru and her three children were, on the eve of the incident, very healthy having gone to bed after taking their dinner.

According to a source, an unknown person suspected to be the first wife of the husband of the deceased, sneaked into the victim’s residence at about 4:00a.m. on the fateful day and set the victims’ abode on fire .

The source said the ugly incident could be as a result of an alleged long term bitterness harboured by the first wife, identified as Mrs Ijeoma Ogbonna, who didn’t bear her husband a child and, therefore, decided to kill the second wife who had three children.

Findings revealed that, the first wife had warned her husband not to take a second wife, but the man chose to do otherwise due to the advice he received from his friends and relatives .

The man and his first wife are indigenes of Izzi community while the deceased hailed from Ezza.

Commenting on the incident, the mother of the deceased, Mrs Nwankwoagu Nwaokporo, recounted, “I was in my room when I heard someone shouting Jesus. I quickly rushed out to see what was happening.I saw that smoke had engulfed the whole place but I could see someone running out of the room where my daughter and her children died”.

In her reaction, the Coordinator of Abakaliki Development Centre, Mrs Franca Okpo, said she was sleeping when her special adviser called to inform her that a woman and her children were being burnt adding that she immediately arrived the scene and alerted the Police Divisional Officer of Izzi Local Government Area who later sent his men to the scene of the incident.

Also reacting, Ebonyi State Police Public Relations officer(PPRO), ASP John Elu, confirmed the incident, stating that investigations were on to ascertain the cause of the fire.wp_posts