Residents of Akiode Ibogun community in Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State have been left in shock after a Celestial Church of Christ shepherd, Bidemi Odukoya, allegedly killed his wife during a domestic dispute before reportedly taking his own life hours later.
The incident occurred around 2am on Monday, August 31, at the couple’s residence beside the Celestial Church of Christ, Iri Orun Parish, which they owned.
Odukoya, a father of three boys, reportedly attacked his wife, allegedly using a machete and a wooden stool, before fleeing the community.
He was later said to have headed towards Coker Junction, an Ifo section of the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway, where he allegedly repeatedly crossed the busy road before sitting on the median.
According to accounts given to community leaders, Odukoya subsequently ran in front of an approaching truck and was killed instantly.
The bodies of the couple were later buried beside their three-bedroom home on Monday evening.
The tragedy has left residents struggling to understand how the couple, who had lived in the community for about nine or 10 years and were generally regarded as friendly and respectful, could have ended their lives in such circumstances.
The Baale of the community, Chief Taiwo Akiode, said residents were plunged into deep mourning by the incident.
He described the tragedy as unprecedented in the community, saying nobody had expected such an incident involving the couple.
«“This unfortunate incident is the first of its kind in this environment. It is a tragedy of monumental proportion that no one saw coming. It is something that you only come across in Nollywood films.»
«“It is even more puzzling and very disturbing with the kind of personalities involved, I mean the Shepherd and his wife. Both of them were very jovial and respectful.”»
Akiode said residents alerted him around 3am after first contacting the police.
He said he initially found the report difficult to believe until he visited the couple’s home and saw the woman lying in a pool of blood.
According to him, the woman had what appeared to be a machete wound, while a stool was also found at the scene.
“The police later came around and took photographs of the scene. All this while, the Shepherd was nowhere to be found,” he said.
The community leader said another report reached residents around 7am that Odukoya had allegedly jumped in front of a moving truck at Ifo.
“We thereafter sent some residents to go and confirm the report, which they did. The police at Ifo got involved and took it up from there,” he added.
Akiode said residents were told that Odukoya had been crossing the expressway repeatedly before eventually sitting on the median and jumping in front of an oncoming truck.
The wife was buried around 5pm, while the husband’s remains were returned to the community later that evening and buried beside his wife after 7pm.
The Baale said the incident had generated widespread shock, particularly because residents had not previously known the couple to be troublesome.
He said he only began hearing allegations of frequent quarrels between the couple after their deaths.
The community leader urged couples experiencing marital difficulties to seek counselling and intervention before disagreements escalate.
“It is worrisome that this could happen between husband and wife. It calls for lots of sober reflection. We should know that even if we disagree as couples, it should not be to the extent that life will be lost,” he said.
Infidelity allegations emerge
The youth leader of the community, Seun Adelana, alleged that claims of infidelity involving both husband and wife may have contributed to the dispute.
According to him, the husband was said to have accused his wife of having a relationship with another man, while there were also allegations that Odukoya was involved with another woman.
“These were what we gathered led to the altercation, which made the husband kill the woman,” Adelana alleged.
However, a neighbour, Mrs Oluwatoyin Oseni, gave a different account, claiming that the couple had a history of domestic violence.
Oseni said the couple frequently quarrelled and that some of their previous disputes had allegedly resulted in injuries to the late woman.
She said police had previously intervened in their domestic disputes and that residents believed the couple had resolved their differences.
Oseni said she was awakened around 2am by Daniel, the couple’s 14-year-old first son, after he realised that his father had attacked his mother.
She said she and another neighbour rushed to the couple’s residence, where they allegedly found the woman lying dead on the floor.
“We later got to hear that the Shepherd used a machete and wooden stool to smash the head of his wife. We also saw Daddy Daniel with a cutlass in his hand,” she said.
According to Oseni, Odukoya told her that he was also “as good as gone”, but she and the other neighbour were unable to approach him because he was holding the cutlass.
She said Odukoya subsequently went inside the house, although residents were unaware that he had already left the community.
Oseni said the tragedy was particularly painful because she had repeatedly advised the deceased woman to seek peace in her marriage.
She recalled that the woman had told her she could not leave her children behind, particularly her seven-year-old last child.
Another community leader, the Asiwaju of Ibogun Akiode, Chief Oluwasegun Adeboye, said residents only began hearing details of the couple’s marital difficulties after the tragedy.
Adeboye, 76, said residents were also told that the couple had taken their dispute to court and had been advised to return home and attempt an amicable resolution.
According to him, they were reportedly expected to return to court on Wednesday, September 2, but the tragedy occurred two days earlier.
The community leader also said some residents had attributed the incident to spiritual forces, although such claims remain unsubstantiated.
Meanwhile, the Ogun State Police Command said it had commenced investigation into the incident.
The Deputy Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Opeyemi Oluborode, said the command was aware of the case and that the case file was being transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation.
He said the move was aimed at establishing the actual circumstances surrounding the deaths.