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Ghost of my husband disturbing
us
…Cries out widow whose hubby was shot dead over land deal
Stories from VAL OKARA, Owerri
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
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•Anyanwu
•Photo: Sun News Publishing |
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Christendom has always stressed the need for uprightness and sincerity
amongst the children of God as a way to redeem the world from iniquity
and corruption.
And to achieve this, Christians are always required to read and
recite the Bible for continued spiritual guidance, direction and
protection.
But for reportedly adhering to this injunction, Mr Richard Ndubueze
Anyanwu, 57, is now lying stone dead in an undisclosed morgue in
Mbaise, Imo State.
The father of nine, who hailed from Umulolo community in the Ahiazu
Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State was on June 16, 2009 shot
dead in his house at about 4:30a.m in the presence of his wife,
Roseline, 50, leaving her a widow.
Already, the heinous murder of Richard had shattered the once enviable
security network of the densely populated community with aggrieved
youths embarking on sporadic violent demonstrations in protest of
the senseless killing of one of their own acclaimed to be the defender
of the defenseless and the down-trodden.
Widow of the deceased who incessantly fought back tears cascading
down her cheeks while narrating the incident to Daily Sun alleged
that her husband was gruesomely assassinated for his blunt refusal
to betray his brothers over a land deal he was offered the sum of
N5 million in cheque by some community leaders who allegedly conspired
and sold a land belonging to the family.
The widow alleged that a first generation bank in the state had
some time in 2007 indicated interest to purchase a strategically
located portion of land collectively owned by three families, comprising
Ibenye, Madu and Ekwueme called Umuololo kindred in Umuoma autonomous
community.
To facilitate the deal, the first generation bank, according to
Mrs Anyanwu, approached the traditional ruler of the community who
in turn summoned his cabinet chiefs for accelerated action.
Attracted by the mouth-watering offer made by the bank, the traditional
ruler she alleged liaised with his lieutenants and sold the land
at the sum of N48 million without the knowledge of the rightful
owners.
The late Anyanwu , a Jos-based businessman on the receipt of information
on the sale of the land by the traditional ruler and his co-travelers
rushed home and urged them to return the said money to the bank
as the owners were not interested in the sale of the piece of land.
The monarch and his cabinet chiefs believed that the late Anyanwu
might have thrown a spanner in their deal and so decided to offer
him the sum of N5 million to enable him soft pedal which he allegedly
rejected.
According the sorrowful widow, who claimed that her late spouse
despite pressures and persuasions rejected the offer came back home
to narrate his experience to the members of his family, detailing
them about what transpired between him and the traditional ruler
and his chiefs.
Before now, according to Mrs Anyanwu, the traditional ruler and
his cohorts had repeatedly denied ever selling the land to the bank
in question.
Disturbed by the revelation that their land had eventually been
sold without their consent and approval as the rightful owners,
the late Anyanwu wrote letters and distributed the same to relevant
authorities, saying that the selling of the land was not only illegal,
but was also unacceptable to them and, therefore, of no effect.
But his alarm did not move the perpetrators.
The embattled widow further alleged that with the refusal of her
late husband to succumb to the antics of the monarch and his cohorts
to accept the offer, he (Anyanwu) became an object of attacks, death
threat letters by faceless persons . Out of fear of the unknown,
the deceased allegedly reported the death threats to the Divisional
Police Station at Afor Oru in Mbaise before returning to his base
in Jos.
On visiting home in June this year a certain man (names withheld)
allegedly began to clear all economic trees in front of the compound
of the deceased, claiming that the land where the trees were planted
belonged to his father, an action that was said to have met serious
opposition by the late Anyanwu.
The deceased, according to his wife, reported the action to the
police who responded quickly by arresting the said the man.
The man was said to have threatened to kill the deceased in the
presence of the police that detained him, but later released him
on bail with the intervention of the traditional ruler of the community.
The police haven granted bail to the man told the warring parties
to go and make peace and report back on June 16, 2009.
Sadly enough, it was on the very June 16 that the police asked them
to report back to their station that some unidentified persons shot
him(Anyanwu) to death while in his one-storey building in the early
morning.
“We were sleeping when we heard a knock on our door at about
4:30. A voice claimed to be Chinedu and while trying to find out
who the person was; my husband was shot at close range. I saw (name
withheld) and one other person running to join others,” she
said.
Narrating her ordeal, Mrs Anyanwu decried the lackadaisical attitude
of the Central
Investigation Department (CID) of the police command headquarters
over the heinous killing of her husband.
She expressed worry that the perpetrators might pervert the course
of justice, pleading that the police authorities toe the path of
justice and ensure that the culprits were brought to book.
“At the CID Owerri, my statement which I made earlier was
changed and my signature forged even the name of (name withheld)
I mentioned in the statement was dropped. We were shocked and protested
to the state Commissioner of Police who ordered that I should write
another one which I did.
“The ghost of my late husband has been disturbing us and continued
appearing to us that he needs a final rest,” she said.
The Police Public Relating Officer (PPRO) of the state command,
Mr Linus Nwaiwu confirmed the incident.
He told Daily Sun that the police are investigating the matter and
whoever is indicted would be charged to court and prosecuted.
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