By Pamela Eboh
An abroad returnee and father of five, Emenike Okoye has cried out for justice against his elder brother, Mr George Okoye, who he accused of killing his wife over protracted tussle over ownership of land.
He said his elder brother had been at logger heads with the family, over the property for several years, saying that the issue led to the death of his mother.
Narrating the incident that led to the death of his 40-year-old wife’ on July 9, to journalists from his hospital bed, Okoye said his elder brother invaded his house with his wife, children and thugs and attacked him, his wife, Mrs Nkiru Okoye,
He said, “We did not do anything. I was preparing for work that day, and my wife was preparing the children for school and to also travel home for a meeting in Abba, Njikoka Local Government Area, where she is from, when George and his wife, Uzonna and their son, Somtochukwu and twin daughters invaded my house around 7am to 8am.
“They overpowered us, beat us to stupor, and left. Later when my children have gone to school, they returned with some persons and dangerous weapons, including axe.
“They dragged my wife outside the house, hit and killed her with axe and chair. She fell and died. When I resisted their move to drag me outside too, they broke my hand with an axe, dragged me outside; hitting me with the axe all over my body until I passed out.
“You can see the cut on my eyes. They left me, thinking that I was also dead. But God helped me to wake up later. I reported the incident to our local vigilante and they drove me to hospital.
“George right from when our mother (Mrs Adaoba Okoye) was alive, said he is our landlord. He is not our first born, yet he claims ownership of the entire compound and always fight with all of us.
“I lived and worked overseas, but when the company where I was working folded, I returned home. We had our first three children overseas, and our last two here (Ogbunike).
“My wife has nothing to do with this. Why killing her for nothing? After we returned home trouble started. The crisis led to the death of our mother and our eldest brother. He reported us to the kindred, and our property was shared, with him taken the larger part. I took mine without complaining. Later, he started laying claims to my house.
“He reported me to our kindred but it was settled to my favour. He disagreed and kept on troubling me. When I laid dwarf perimeter fence, he pulled it down, and even reported me to the kindred,” he lamented.
Speaking with tears, Okoye, an indigene of Ogbunike in Oyi Local Government Area of Anambra State, said he was only abandoned by his brother and the thugs that came with him when he passed out, thinking that he was dead.
Though he however survived, he sustained a broken hand, a fractured waist, and an injured eye from the beating, and was still recuperating in a hospital.
The suspect, Mr George Okoye has been arrested and currently in the police custody, but the whereabouts of his wife, Mrs Uzonna Okoye, twin daughters and son, Somtochukwu Okoye who participated in the beating were still unknown.
The Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, DSP Tochukwu Ikenga, said he was aware of the incident, saying that investigation on the matter had long commenced, and was still ongoing.
