Woman Set Ablaze by Husband Dies

The sun set yesterday for Mrs. Ifeoma Egeonu, 27, who was set ablaze by her husband, Alexander, along with her two children, Udochukwu and Emmanuel, 6, as she passed on at the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu, where she had been receiving treatment since the tragic incident occurred on October 1.


Daily Sun had reported yesterday that Mrs. Egonu was in a critical condition after she was delivered of a premature baby as a result of the incident.
The baby who was delivered at seven months and kept in incubator died on Sunday, October 23 at the National Orthopaedic Hospital.


The unfortunate housewife had earlier lost her son, Udochukwu, on October 21 in the same hospital, while doctors battled to save her from severe burns inflicted by her husband.




Ifeoma who hailed from Amuri in Nkanu West Local Government Area of Enugu State was said to have died at about 10am yesterday and her remains deposited in the morgue alongside the corpses of Udochukwu and the premature baby.
An uncle to the deceased, Mr. Luis Ede, confirmed the death in a telephone chat with Daily Sun in Enugu.


Said he: “As I talk to you now we have deposited her at the mortuary. So we have three corpses there. We are, however, expecting the police doctors to carry out an autopsy to determine the cause of death.
“We have left the hospital because we have nobody there again. They are all in the mortuary. As I am talking to you I am on my way. The three corpses are in the mortuary now.”


The only survivor of the October 1 incident, six-year-old Emmanuel has been discharged from the hospital.
A police source told Daily Sun that they were still expecting Alexander who is being detained at the Criminal Investigation Department at the Enugu Police Headquarters to make statements on the dastardly act.

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Man sets pregnant wife, 2 sons ablaze in Enugu

While Nigerians were celebrating the 51st independence anniversary yesterday, a man was busy attacking his family, Alexander Ndubuisi Egeonu set ablaze members of his family made up of his pregnant wife and two sons aged between two and three years. 

The youngest son, who went into coma following the injuries he sustained in the inferno, was later revived at the National Orthopedic Hospital, Enugu two hours after the incident which occurred at about 11a.m while the wife and the first son are now on danger list at the hospital. 

The fleeing father of two, who hails from Umunoha in Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State, according to eyewitnesses, had, on arrival at his container shop at No. 61 Mount Street, Awkunanaw, Enugu where he sells musical records and Compact Discs, asked his wife to escort him to the filling station to buy fuel.

Thinking that the fuel was meant for their generator, the wife consented, but, shortly after returning to the shop, Egeonu went to a neighbour’s shop and began to drag the owner (a woman) to his own shop claiming that she was indebted to him. The woman began to shout and attracted neighbours and passersby who promptly rescued her from the man said to be very troublesome. 

Immediately the man returned to his shop, he tied the hands of his wife and poured the fuel on the floor. He thereafter locked the wife and his two sons inside the container and lit matches through the window to ignite it,” the eyewitness said. The pregnant woman and her two sons were severely burnt before neighbours forced the container open and brought them out. They were rushed to the Eastern Nigeria Medical Centre.

The pregnant woman and her first son said to be in critical condition were later transferred to the National Orthopedic Hospital. The state Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Mr. Ebere Amaraizu, who confirmed the incident, said the suspect took to his heels after setting his family members ablaze and has not been found. He said that investigations had commenced to ascertain the motive of the arsonist, adding that the police would do everything possible to apprehend the suspect.

The fleeing Egeonu also a barber, was described as “troublesome” by residents of the area and had beaten the wife on several occasions on account of minor disagreements. A neigbour said the record and CD seller had, in the past, engaged other tenants in the area in a bitter quarrel but it was not known if he had a fresh rift with his wife to warrant yesterday’s incident.

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