The Anambra State Police Command on Sunday confirmed that a middle-aged man, Stephen Nnadiogo, has committed suicide by drinking poison after stabbing his four children and sister-in-law to death at Awada area of Onitsha in Anambra.
The Divisional Police Officer of Awada, Martin Chijioke, while confirming the incident said the command had begun an investigation to unravel the circumstances that led to the murder.
“Preliminary investigation reveals that the suspect, after committing the murder, took poison and died,” Mr. Chijioke said.
Eyewitnesses, however, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the incident occurred at about 8.00 p.m. at the residence of the suspect at 21B Ntueke street, Awada Obosi in Idemili North Local Government Area.
A source said the suspect’s wife was not at home when the incident occurred while another maid reportedly ran away when the incident occurred.
“It was the cry of the housemaid that alerted residents of the area. We have never seen this type of incident before,” the witness said.
Other 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 sachet, 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 said.
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.”
According to the residents, the entire apartment was full of blood when neighbours forced open the door, while the children who aged between 4 and 12 years lay 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.
Unconfirmed reports said the suspect just returned from the psychiatric hospital at Arochukwu, Abia State and had shown signs of recovery before the unfortunate incident.
The police later took the bodies of the victims and the suspected murderer to a mortuary.
With agency report
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