Aloysius Attah, Onitsha
Tragedy struck at 19, Ntueke Street, Awada, Obosi, near Onitsha, Anambra State, on Saturday night when a businessman, Stephen Edwin Nnadiogu, stabbed his four biological children and his sister-in-law to death. The man also died hours later after drinking a lethal substance suspected to be acid.
Speaking to Daily Sun yesterday when the reporter visited the scene, chairman of the tenants in the four-storey apartment where the deceased lived, Abuchi James, said that he was taking his bath around 8pm after returning from the day’s business when he heard noise coming from the building. On coming out, he saw a girl, a relation to Nnadiogu’s wife, shouting from the third floor.
Abuchi said the late Nnadiogu packed into the apartment barely one year ago and was a blood relation to the landlord, who hailed from Isu Njaba, Imo State.
He said: “She told us that she was chased away by the man, who told her to run for her life because something terrible would happen right away. She said the man used a sharp knife to stab the four children, aged between 4 and 12, after locking the door firmly to prevent any intruder from distracting him in accomplishing his plans. When we forced the door open, we were confronted by the gory sight of the dead bodies with blood splashed everywhere and we had to call the police immediately. The man, who committed the act, was also lying down in a corner of the room in a semi-conscious state.”
Daily Sun gathered that the man’s wife, a nurse, was not at home when the incident happened, while her sister, who raised the alarm after the act, would have been a victim too.
Onlookers and sympathizers have been thronging the compound, while tongues have been wagging on what could have prompted the man’s killing spree.
A police source from Awada Division who did not want to be quoted said they visited the scene immediately and evacuated the corpses, while the man died on their way to the hospital. The source said the man had mental challenges prior to the incident and was discharged from a psychiatric hospital in Arochukwu, Abia State, two months ago. He said the man’s wife has been quizzed on what she might know about that could have prompted the man’s action.
Another source told the reporter that, prior to this incident, the man had been in a running battle with his wife over allegations of infidelity.
Confirming the incident, the Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer, Nkiru Nwode, said the man left a suicide note claiming responsibility for the act though he didn’t give further reasons for the killings, while the remains of the dead have been deposited in the mortuary. She said the police were investigating and cautioned people against spreading rumours and speculations over the incident.