Kosoko Street in Ayetoro, in the Oto-Awori area of Lagos State, was solemn on Monday, after Folashade stabbed her husband, Lawrence, to death. It was learnt that the couple, who had been married for four years, had been involved in intense fights before the incident happened around 11pm on Sunday.
The couple have two kids – a three-year-old boy and a one-year-old girl – together. Lawrence, an engineer with Greater Inspection and Industrial Services, at Sango Ota, Ogun State, returned home that day after a week-long official duty in the Ikorodu area. The wife reportedly accused him of engaging in extra-marital affair and an argument ensued.
In a fit of anger, Folashade reportedly grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed her husband in the leg. It was gathered that the deceased had lost a lot of blood by the time neighbours responded to the cries of the couple’s three-year old son.
The Benue State indigene was rushed to a hospital, New Ayetoro Medical Centre, where he died. It was learnt that the police from the Ijanikin division were alerted to the incident and Folashade was arrested. A neighbour of the couple, who did not identify herself, said they always fought and reconciled.
She said;
“I heard her calling for help late Sunday night. Their son was also crying. When I got there, I saw the man in a pool of blood. My husband and I took the man to a hospital. While he was there, I went back to their house to check what really happened. Their apartment was filled with blood. I later saw a bloodstained knife, which I supposed she used in stabbing him
“They usually fight and settle and that is why people don’t interfere in their disagreements. Their fights always bothered on infidelity. The fight of yesterday (Sunday) was caused by the issue of girlfriend. She said the man was calling his girlfriend.
“She collected the phone from him and started abusing the person on the phone without even checking who she was talking to. They started abusing each other and went physical.” Another neighbour, Mrs. Blessing Olokpobri, said Folashade, an auxiliary nurse, was aggressive and violent, adding that people always tried to avoid having issues with her.
She said, “There was hardly a day they didn’t fight if the husband was at home. On January 1 this year when everybody was celebrating the New Year, they fought. There was a time she went to meet him at a beer parlour. She dragged and stripped him. There was even a time she sliced his ear lobes with a broken bottle and it had to be stitched.”
The landlord, Chief Gani Akanni, the Balogun of Ayetoro, said he served the couple a notice to quit in December 2016, after he tried in vain to stop their incessant fights.
“I was begged by the other tenants to withdraw the notice. There was a time I also took the woman to the police station because she vandalised my property after I locked up the tenants’ rooms for defaulting in payment of LAWMA bills. It was unfortunate because the husband was such a quiet and peaceful man,” he added.
An aunt of the deceased and human rights activist, Betty Abah, said it was unfortunate that spousal abuse continued to take a toll on partners. She said the family would have intervened in the troubled marriage, but Lawrence hid his marital crisis from them
“My nephew, like many men and women who die daily in violent relationships, would have been alive if had fled such a deadly marriage. We will ensure that justice is done. This is another young and promising life deliberately cut short. Persons suffering domestic violence should always call out for help. It is indeed a big tragedy for us,” Abah added.
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Olarinde Famous-Cole, confirmed that the suspect was in custody, adding that the case was under investigation. While stressing that the command was looking at a murder charge, he said the suspect would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Yaba.
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