The Nigeria Police Force has declared a 24-year-old man, Arinze Igbonakwu, wanted for allegedly setting his ex-girlfriend, Esther, her new-born baby, and three others ablaze.
The incident reportedly took place in Okun Owa, Odogbolu Local Government Area of Ogun State on Tuesday morning.
An eyewitness who spoke exclusively to Instablog9ja narrated the incident, saying, “Esther and Arinze were in a relationship when she became pregnant. Throughout the course of the pregnancy, Arinze took care of her, and when she gave birth to a baby last month, he also covered the hospital bills.
“However, a few days after Esther returned from the hospital, another man named Seun appeared, claiming to be the biological father of the child. This dispute led to tension between the parties involved. Esther ultimately decided to leave Arinze and move in with Seun, confirming that Seun was, indeed, the father of her child.
“The situation escalated to the point where the police became involved. Arinze demanded compensation of N300,000 from Seun, who offered to pay only N150,000 by monthly installments of N20,000.
“The matter was eventually resolved at the police station, but it seemed that Arinze was dissatisfied with the outcome and began making threats against Esther.”
The eyewitness further stated that, “On the day before the incident, Seun was away. So, Esther spent the night at her neighbor’s place, taking her newborn baby with her. She was afraid that her ex-lover might break in and harm her.
“Arinze discovered where she was hiding and forcibly entered the neighbor’s apartment. He doused Esther, the newborn baby, the neighbor, and her two children with approximately 10 liters of petrol before setting them on fire.”
Reports indicate that emergency services rushed the victims to Babcock Hospital in Ilisan, but due to the severity of the burns, they were transferred to the National Orthopedic Hospital, Igbobi, in Lagos.
The newborn baby reportedly died immediately, while Esther passed away yesterday morning in the hospital.
At the time of this report, the neighbor and her two children are still fighting for their lives while the suspect is currently on the run and has been declared wanted by the Police.
