George Onyejiuwa, Owerri
The people of Umuike kindred in Lowa Okata community in Ihitte Uboma council area of Imo State are still wringing their hands in shock and disbelief over the gruesome murder of Mrs Evelyn Duru ,a mother of three and a widow while at her farm located at the neighbouring Uzunomi Umuodoma community by assailants recently. It was learnt that her assailants had attacked while she was cultivating the land and had dealt her a blow on the head and her left hand with sharp cutlass and thereafter slit her throat.
The assailants who abandoned her in pool of her blood had also proceeded to cover her dead body with palm fronds and fled.
Sunday Sun reliably gathered that before going to the farm land which she had taken on lease for the farming season, 64-years old Mrs Duru, had earlier sent her second daughter Chidera aged 22 to Orieagu market to buy foodstuffs that would be used to prepare their evening meal.
Narrating the ugly incident, Nze Amaechi, the community leader disclosed to Sunday Sun that it was the deceased’s daughter Chidera who had raised the alarm that her mother who had gone to the farm was yet to return home.
According to him, “ At about 4:00pm the daughter of the deceased had raised the alarm that her mother was yet to return from the farm. I had to beat the traditional drum thrice to attract the attention of villagers who came running to know what was the problem. It was after the villagers had gathered at about 8:00pm that we embarked upon a frantic search.”
He further revealed that mid way into the search in the bush that the daughter of the deceased woman, Chidera identifed the mother’s head tie which was found with blood stained.
“When the search party went a little further in the bush they were shocked to find the lifeless body of the widow covered with palm fronds and we could not bear it as everybody broke down in tears. We had immediately reported the incident at the Divisional Police Station at Ihitte Uboma who came and evacuated the corpse to the Ihitte Uboma General Hospital Morgue.” Meanwhile, angry kinsmen of the deceased widow who are native of Okpeterie, Onicha Uboma had stormed the Umuike Lowa , Okata community with cudgels and machetes demanding for an explanation from the community over the gruesome murder of their sister.
However, Umuike, Lowa Okata community leaders had passionately appealed to the angry kinsmen of the widow not to vent their anger on the community as the people are already collaborating with the police to expose those responsible for the killing.