but returned to Nigeria with her Austrian passport last December to
celebrate the Yuletide with her family.
In his statement to the police, the suspect expressed regret for
killing a woman who, according to him, he loved. He, however, denied
owing the deceased, asserting that the only business he had with her was
in February last year and he paid for the goods.
He narrated:
“ I am 41 years old and a motor spare parts
dealer. I did not kill her. It happened on the 25th of December very
early in the morning. There is one boy that help me to pack my goods,
the boy was with me. After I dropped my family, I now decided to go and
drop the boy. On getting to Upper Mission junction, she called me and
asked if I didn’t know that, that day was watch night,
and that if I would come to see her. I said I was coming. Immediately I
turned my car and drove down to her shop, she had a bar. On getting
there I saw some boys there drinking. I called the sales girl there and
told her to give everybody drink.
The drink amounted to N1,800. Among the boys there one of them knew
me, so bought me one bottle. So I told my lady friend that I needed to
go and drop the boy with me as he was drunk. I promised her that I will
come back. That was how she allowed me go.
“I drove off. We stopped somewhere to have a
drink. I equally bought drink for people there. But somehow I decided
that I will go home after dropping the boy, but immediately I passed
Upper Mission junction, near her place, her call came in. So I told her I
was coming and I decided to turn my car to her house.
When I got to her place, I took a stick of cigarette from her and told
her that I will need to go home early, that some body was in my car.
But as I was leaving her door she blocked
me. I told her that I guessed she was drunk because any time she was
drunk, that was the way she behaved. But the next thing I noticed was a
slap, I retaliated. Before that I observed that some body was sleeping
somewhere in her room, where I went to collect the cigarette. So I went
outside but the boy sleeping there woke up and told me not to leave the
house. She went to wake up another person and was telling the person
something inside. So the guy came out and said I should not leave the
compound. The boy started making calls, so I quickly entered my car and
locked the car. I saw her rush towards me but I had pinned the doors
already. But she blocked my car and I saw two of the boys trying to drag
her out of my way. Then I
zoomed off, but I was now asking my boy after we left the compound if I
hit anybody. The boy said no, that God forbid. But I was not comfortable
because I was really drunk”.
Asked if he was owing the deceased, he said:
“The only goods she brought to me was in
February, that was when we met. She brought them from Austria. I am not
owing her a dime. Not as if we were even fighting but the problem she
had was that any time I visited her she will not want me to leave when I
wanted to. And that was the argument, especially when she was drunk”.
“After I checked my car very well, I did
not notice anything. I went to my friend’s place to inform him of my
fear. I now called some body to go to my lady’s house to find out
whether I hit some body. The boy went and told me that there was nothing
like that. So I became confused. I called my younger brother to help me
investigate if she was okay. He called me later to say that he heard
she was in hospital and that they had deposited money. He later called
me to say that they saw a body at Upper Mission junction and that it was
the lady. I called my friends and they said I should go to the police
station to report myself.
“I can’t sleep, I can’t eat. This is somebody we did everything
together and I loved her. I did not beat her, I don’t know what
happened. After the incident, some youths went to my house to burn it
down, all my people left the house. My sisters can no longer open their
shops because they are scared. I am not owing her and we didn’t have any
problem. I even bought her a bag of rice for Christmas. I did not kill
before, I am devastated”.