‘Na mistake, I no mean to kill my girlfriend’

Sources for di Nigeria police say dem go cari Edeh Tochukwu, di 31-year-old suspect wey allegedly kill im 49 years old girlfriend Ijeoma Phyliss go Federal High Court, Abuja for di new year for January.

Nigeria Police say investigation of di murder of Miss Ijeoma Phyliss don reach advanced stage and di accused go face di law.

Di Intelligence Response Team (IRT) of di Force Intelligence Bureau bin arrest Edeh Tochukwu Christian say im allegedly kill im girlfriend for Lugbe, Airport Road area of Abuja, Nigeria Capital.

For inside statement wey di Abuja Secretariat of di IRT release earlier, dem say “Edeh Tochukwu alledgedly kill im girlfriend wey senior am Miss Ijeoma Phyliss, kan japa wit her car, mobile phones and oda belongings” di statement tok.

Di statement also say “di IRT operation under di command of DCP Olatunji Disu arrest di suspect for Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital on 2 November 2022, afta im run comot from di crime scene for Lugbe to squat wit a single mother wey be im new lover”.

Since early November wey dem arrest Tochukwu, im dey for police detention as investigations dey go on.

On 27 December 2022, di suspect tell tori pipo for Abuja say ” I hit her for back of her head wit pestle” sake of say im girlfriend dey “abuse” am domestically and dem bin get plenti issues wey dem dey try settle wey cause anger and tensed environment.

Meanwhile, di suspect Tochukwu also tok to BBC Pidgin ontop di mata say, e no mean to kill im girlfriend, e say na mistake.

“I wish to end my life make all di problems end at once, I no mean to kill her, na mistake” E tell BBC Pidgin.

Tochukwu, wey from Nara Unateze for Nkanu East Local Goment Area of Enugu State, dey face offence of culpable homicide.

‘She turn me to wife of di house’

BBC

BBC
Edeh Tochukwu go show face for court for late January 2023

Tochukwu tell BBC Pidgin say wen im meet Ijeoma for mid-2020 ontop social media platform Facebook, im bin no dey inside any relationship, and wen dem meet, im no get plans of dating her.

“Di period I meet her dey close to her birthday, she invite me to come for her birthday say she no get too much friends, na she come NNPC Filling station for Kubwa to cari me, afta we jolly finish, she cari me go her house, na dat day be di first time I go her apartment, but no be di same place she dey stay now.

I no take advantage of her, she begin tell me some deep tins about her, she tell me say she don dey out of relationship for eight years, she no wan trust, she just want to settle down, I discuss maturely with her too, but I no make any committment dat day.”

Im explain say im dey stay for Kubwa (Bwari Area Council) while she dey stay for Lugbe (Abuja Municipal Area Council) and na afta two weeks wen she tell am how relationship neva favour her, and how she need love and pikin sharp sharp im consider to enta di relationship wit her, becos she be beta pesin wey dey take care of am well-well.

“I no go lie, she be beta pesin she dey buy me clothes, she dey into fashion line so anytin wey go make me look good she go buy for me, but she no dey give me money.” E tok.

“But few months into di relationship she begin change, she dey suspect me, dey abuse me, I feel say na her insecurity dey cause am, na why I introduce her to my family as di woman wey I wan marry so dat her fear of insecurity go reduce, but e no stop,” im tok.

Tochukwu wey be di first born out of five children narrate to BBC Pidgin say im be teacher and im dey earn 75,000 naira as salary, real kasala for dia relationship start wen she tell am to dey bring 100,000 naira evri month to support house keeping and buy food stuff.

“As I no fit meet up wit di money she turn me to “wife” of di house, na me dey clean house, like messenger, she begin disrespect me, di disrespect come turn to domestic abuse. “Im add.

‘I no mean to kill her’

Even though Tochukwu and di late Ijeoma don dey get issues for dia relationship for sometime, Tochukwu say dem dey settle dia problems.

Im add say dem bin don break-up before dis argument wey lead to her death for October 2022.

“On 23 October she invite me to come her house sake of say we get issues to settle, I dey see her for shop but I neva go her house for sometime.

We don break-up but she no know say I don already get anoda relationship.

Wen I reach her house she say make I return di car as I say I no wan stay wit her again, I tell her say I go return di car money just to calm her down.

She say make we go ‘intimate’ I no agree, di quarel come enta anoda level, I just close my room door go sleep, I dey hear her voice as she dey shout dey quarel around past 11 pm, I just dey wit my phone till I sleep off.

Wetin wake me up na sharp pain, she hit me wit sometin, as I wake up she dey shout say she no be dat kind of woman, say na either she kill me or I kill her. I still dey in pain wen she wan hit me di second time I dodge am, I collect di pestle from her hand, fling am troway, I grab her, she no dey too strong to drag wit me so I over power her”.

Tochukwu say no be di first time dem dey get dis kain arguments, say wen dey usually argue like dis na she go begin beg am, but since dem start to date im neva beat her before.

Im add say di argument become ‘very serious’ wen im cari im phone to comot, as im go door e dey lock and she don hide di key.

“I ask her wia di key dey, she no gree tok, she go wia di pestle dey cari am say she go kill me dat night, I collect di pestle again, she cari home Theatre speaker hit me, as I dey pick di speakers she cari di pestle again to hit me, by den I don vex well well, She begin shout, I dey hear as neighbours dey knock our door but I no fit open am sake of say I no know wia she hide di key.

She comeback wit di pestle again to hit me, na dat time I collect di pestle again, push her, as she dey try get up again I ‘reflexively’ hit her wit di pestle for back of her head, so she fall down come begin cry, as she dey cry dis na around 3:05 a.m.

As she dey cry, I follow back door comot from di house, drive her Toyota Camry car so I fit comot from di estate easily, I cari her phones too so dat she no go fit call me, den I park di car for my friend place for Abuja, den travel go Port Harcourt” im explain.

According to am, light bin no dey dat time and na rechargeable light dem bin dey use, so im no see well.

Im tell BBC Pidgin say she dash am di car wey she bin dey ask about, – Highlander Jeep for March 2022, im sell am for April 2022 and im relationship wit im new girlfriend become serious May 2022,

‘Ijeoma family dey in shock’

Di elder sister of late Ijeoma Phyliss neva fit recover from di shock of di sudden death of her sister.

For her interview wit tori pipo for Abuja she say she no wish wetin happun to her sister to happun to anybody.

“Evritime wen I remeber di condition I see my sister I dey cry, sake of say I no pray for dat kind of tin for any body.

Di guy kill her wrap her up for over four days” She tok wit tears.

According to Police, na di elder sister and her husband go report to Lugbe police station afta di acretaker of di compound call her to tell her say her sister dey miss.

She also say na she, Police and some friends of di late Ijeoma force her house open and recover her body wey don dey decompose wey dem wrap wit rug carpet.

According to her Facebook profile, di late Ijeoma get Masters Degree for Med Socioloy from University of Abuja.

She study Sociology for Enugu State University, she also get Bachelor of Science degree from di same University.

She also be business woman wey dey into fashion.

She get shops for Abuja wia she dey sell cloths and oda fashionable items.

Operatives of di IRT carri out di operation wey lead to di arrest of di suspect for culpable homicide.