A 49-year-old man, Lekan Adedeji, allegedly attacked his wife with acid and then drank the same substance in a murder-suicide in Akufo, Ido Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The man and his wife, and Mrs. Zainab Adedeji, 44, left behind their three surviving children, two of whom have sickle cell disorder, without parents, and are facing an uncertain future with urgent humanitarian needs.
Family members said the marriage was troubled by domestic violence, and both partners were unaware that they carried the sickle cell trait, which heavily affected their children’s health.
Morufat Ashake, the younger sister of the deceased woman, spoke to the Nigerian Tribune and explained what happened, revealing she has taken in her nieces and nephew since the tragedy.
She said, “They did not realise their genotype status until their first three children were born, who kept falling ill repeatedly.
‘One of the children became critically ill and was taken to the hospital, where tests revealed that the children were SS. That was when they understood the full extent of their situation.”
Ashake said Mrs. Adedeji went on to have six children, but three died due to complications from sickle cell disorder.
Of the three surviving children, Rashida, 20, is SS; Folawe, 17, is AS; and Folahanmi, six, is also SS. Both Rashida and Folahanmi reportedly suffer from frequent sickle cell crises and need ongoing medical care.
Ashake said domestic violence was common in the marriage, saying, “The man kept insisting that she should continue giving birth, knowing the risks. He frequently beat her. The level of violence was extreme.’
She added that her sister left the family home about three months before the incident.
“We begged her to return in the past, but this time she refused. She said she could not continue like that,” Ashake said.
Ashake said the fatal event happened on a weekend in December last year when the husband called his wife, saying he wanted to give money for their second daughter’s West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WAEC) fees.
“He asked her to come and collect the money. She went with the second daughter and the youngest son,” Ashake claimed.
According to Ashake, once they arrived, the husband told the daughter to take the youngest child outside.
While the daughter was sweeping, she heard her mother screaming, “When she tried to open the door, he pushed it back, locked it, and chased her away. My sister was in danger,” Ashake explained.
Ashake said the husband poured acid on his wife and tried to force her to drink it.
“When he could not make her drink it, he poured it all over her. He then drank the acid himself. Prior to consuming the acid, the husband handed over his mobile phone and money intended for the children’s school fees to another person,” she said.
Mrs. Adedeji received immediate medical treatment, but she later died. The family reportedly spent more than N4 million on medical care before her death on January 23.
Their mother, 62-year-old Titilayo Ayoola, confirmed the family’s account, saying the marriage had long been violent and her daughter suffered greatly.
She said she is now responsible for caring for the children and worries about how she will manage.
“Everything Morufat has said is true. My daughter suffered greatly in that marriage,” she said.
“These children need medication and constant care. I am already old. I do not know how we will manage without help,” she added.
The children also spoke about their pain. The eldest, Rashida, said, “We lost our mum and our dad. We are in so much pain, and now there is nobody to take care of us.”
Folawe described the incident as traumatic saying, “Everything happened so fast. We need help to continue our education and to look after our health.”
The family lived in a four-bedroom flat built by the husband in Akufo, near the state capital.
Meanwhile, family members are now appealing to the public for urgent help to support the children’s medical and educational needs and to assist their elderly grandmother.
KanyiDaily also reported how residents of the Sabuwar Kofa area in Katsina were thrown into panic on Sunday after a young man climbed an unfinished building and refused to come down.
