The Lagos State government, alongside the office of the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP), was on Wednesday called upon to review the case of the late Mrs. Abimbola Ogbonna, the wife of celebrity Lagos auto dealer, Ikechukwu Ogbonna, popularly known as IVD, and ensure the proper charge is preferred against anyone found culpable in the circumstances leading to the death of late Mrs. Ogbonna.
The call came from late Mrs. Ogbonna's family which also pointed accusing fingers at the Nigeria Police for cover-up and questioned how the case was being handled.
Late Mrs. Ogbonna's family equally challenged the Lagos State Commissioner of Police (CP) and the entire Police formation to resist the temptation of being used by Ikechukwu Ogbonna and his alleged godfather, retired Assistant Inspector General of Police, Imohimi Edgal, who was a former Commissioner of Police in the State to harass, intimidate, humiliate and further arrest or detain the deceased mother; Mrs. Ebele Comfort Martins and the entire family members, henceforth.
It would be recalled that the late Mrs. Ogbonna died of burns sustained during an alleged domestic violence incident at their home in Lekki, Lagos State.
Addressing a press conference through the family’s lawyer, Mr. Odiana Eriata, it was reiterated that any issue of domestic violence should be investigated, and appropriate sanctions are issued.
Eriata further revealed that the deceased, before her death, had petitioned the Police over an attempted murder, assault occasioning harm, wounding, conduct likely to cause a breach of peace, domestic violence, and threat to her life by her husband.
According to the petition addressed to the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 2 Headquarters, Onikan, Lagos, which was dated October 6, 2022, and signed by Abimbola Bobby Martins, she alleged, “For the past fifteen years, I have been married to Ikechukwu Ogbonna. I, with my children, have not seen peace with him, every day is hell for me and my children.
"Sir, it is pertinent to state here that the said Ikechukwu beats me all the time like a baby slave as if my family used me to borrow money from him. When I open my cloth, sir, and show my body to you, it is an incomplete body with wounds and injuries all over sustained from the beating, and maltreatment I received from him every day.
"Some few weeks ago, he brought out his gun and threatened to shoot me, I was saved with the help of my Estate neighbour. I reported this incident at Ajah Police Station and the Police invited him and refused to report and all the Police stations including the DPO worship him.
"Anytime there is a misunderstanding between me and him, he always breaks bottle on me, or he will go for a knife, and he cuts me with it.
"I urge you sir to use your good office to wade into this matter by recovering the gun he uses in threatening me and bring him to book for justice to prevail.”
While expressing dissatisfaction at the charge of negligence activated before the Lagos Magistrates' Court in Yaba, designated as Charge No.H/43/2022, in a matter that involves the death of the late Mrs. Ogbonna, and the husband being fingered as the prime suspect, the lawyer insisted that the State must do what is necessary to avert future occurrence, even as he argued that the death of the deceased could have been avoided, except for the systemic failure and lack of effective protection against domestic abuse and violence of the deceased by her husband, Ikechukwu Ogbonna.
The counsel equally stated that facts have emerged that the late Mrs. Ogbonna suffered severe domestic violence and abuse at the hands of her husband before her untimely death and the issues of abuse and domestic violence were reported at the Lagos State Domestic And Sexual Violence Agency, the Divisional Police Office in Ajah and the Assistant Inspector General of Police Zone 2 Lagos was petitioned on the persistent threat to life, abuse and violence before the unfortunate incident.
According to Eriata, “The issue is, what proactive measure was taken by these government agencies before the avoidable incident took place? Why was it difficult for the Police to arrest and interrogate Ikechukwu Ogbonna, except because he has a certain retired AIG and former COP of Lagos State as his godfather? Why did the DPO at the Divisional Police at Ajah Lagos unable to attend to the referral letter from the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency as of the 6th day of September 2022?."
In claiming that the deceased family has it on record that Ikechukwu Ogbonna has been abusing the late Mrs. Ogbonna and her children during the subsistence of the marriage and before the late Mrs. Ogbonna’s death to the extent of inflicting injury on her nose, face, and other parts of her body, the lawyer said: “That at some point, the mother of the deceased requested that her daughter should bring the children to the house, and the case was reported to the Lagos State Domestic And Sexual Violence Agency and the case was referred to the Divisional Police Station at Ajah and the late Abimbola was also referred to the Agencies' in-house psychologist.
“That late Mrs. Abimbola Ogbonna was also assigned a lawyer by the Lagos State Domestic And Sexual Violence Agency to file for a restraining order against Ikechukwu Ogbonna and to protect her from further abuse and violence.
“That late Mrs. Abimbola Ogbonna later called her mother after three days that nothing was being done in her case at the Divisional Police Station Ajah and the mother, Mrs. Ebelle Comfort Martins had to follow her to the Police Station, and they met the IPO (Investigating Police Officer) who took them to the DPO.
“That after meeting the DPO, they were asked to go back to the IPO who called Ikechukwu Ogbonna, but he refused to pick up his calls. The IPO later called the Mopol (Mr. Lawal) attached to Ikechukwu Ogbonna and request that the phone be handed over to Ikechukwu Ogbonna.
“That Ikechukwu Ogbonna spoke to the IPO on phone so rudely and told him to tell the DPO to come and arrest him personally in his house. After which, he texted late Mrs. Abimbola Ogbonna to repeat what he told the IPO in charge of the case.
“That the frustrated IPO advised them to make a report at Zone 2 Onikan, Lagos which they went immediately, and they were asked to write a petition to the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 2, Onikan, Lagos, which the mother wrote, and the petition was approved.
“After approval of the petition, the Police at Zone 2 were planning to arrest the deceased husband, Ikechukwu Ogbonna before the incident of 12th October 2022 took place.
"That late Mrs. Abimbola Martins Ogbonna was taken to different hospitals, and she was rejected and was fortunate to be admitted and attended to at the General Hospital, Gbagada, where she was later transferred to Igbobi Orthopaedic Hospital at Yaba, and she later died on the 15th day of October 2022 after 3 (three) days.
“The question that follows is what was the husband, Ikechukwu Ogbonna doing when the wife was purportedly rubbing herself with kerosene and setting herself ablaze except that he succeeded in videoing her burnt to death? Why did Ikechukwu Ogbonna attempt to escape and abandon his late wife after the fire incident?
"Why did Ikechukwu Ogbonna eventually abandon the wife and her friend after she was rejected in about 6 hospitals at VI Tollgate?.
"Why did Ikechukwu Ogbonna go underground and attempted to escape police arrest until two days after the death of his wife and five days after the fire incident?
"Why did the Police hurriedly charge and arraign Ikechukwu Ogbonna for negligence before the Magistrates' Court 7 in Charge No.H/43/2022 at Yaba in a matter that involves the death of late Mrs. Abimbola Ogbonna, and the husband being the prime suspect?.
"Why is Ikechukwu Ogbonna using the Police to harass the late wife’s family for stealing his $20,000, when he could not pay his children’s school fees and having alleged that he abandoned the wife on their way to the 7th hospital because he needed to go and source for funds to pay her medical bills?."
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