A middle aged man, whose name was not immediately ascertained, Saturday night stabbed four of his children and his sister in-law to death in Awada Area of Onitsha, Anambra State.
The incident, which happened at No 18 Ntueke Street, Awada at about 8pm drew scores of sympathizers to the scene, just as the man was said to have also committed suicide by drinking a poisonous substance.
DAILY POST gathered that the man, who residents of the neighbourhood said returned recently from overseas has been having disagreement with his wife, a nurse at Chizoba Hospital in Awada, and who also operates a chemist shop few metres away from their residence.
Residents of the area told journalists on Sunday morning that the wife escaped death because she was on night duty at the hospital when the incident happened.
“I think it was a planned deal, the man sent out their house help with N50 to buy satchet, and when she left, he shut the door and used what we think was a kitchen knife to stab his four children and the younger sister of his wife who were in the house to death,” a resident of the area who identified himself as Okwudili told DAILY POST.
Another resident, Miss Amaka said, “He had already killed the children and faced his sister in-law who had ran to the bathroom, when she started screaming, attracting our attention, but before people could force their way into the flat, he had completed his mission and also drank poison and died.”
Eyewitness said the entire apartment was full of blood when neighbours forced open the door, while the children who aged between 4 and 12 years laid dead.
It was gathered that as at the time neighbours gained access to the apartment, the man was not completely dead as his hand and legs still moved, but later died before he could be moved to a hospital.
A source said he had left a suicide note atop a refrigerator in the house, but added that the note was quickly taken away by police officers from Awada police division who deposited the corpses in an undisclosed morgue.
DAILY POST gathered from residents of the the area that the man who was said to have returned from overseas over a year ago has been having disagreement with his wife, though it was not immediately ascertained the cause.
A source in the area said the man’s decision to send the house help away before embarking on his mission may not be unconnected to the good relationship that existed between him and the little girl.
“As for his sister in-law, I think she is always taking side with her sister each time there is an altercation between him and the wife, the reason he decided to kill her too,” the source said.
Though the man is also said to be mentally unstable as he was said to have indulged in drug intake, but our source said that the main reason for the action may be the wife’s infidelity, which saw her making and raising children even while he was overseas.
The public relations Officer of Anambra State Police command, Mrs Nkeiruka Nwode who confirmed the incident to journalists could not disclose the content of the suicide note dropped by the man.
She said that investigations had already commenced, and that the content of the note would not be disclosed until after investigation if there was need to do so.
“That is beyond me. I can not tell you what is on the note for now, but all I can say is that we have commenced investigation, and if there is need to let you people know, we will reach out to you after investigation,” Nwode said.
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