A 40-year-old man identified as Alex Nwabu, has allegedly raped a 34-year-old widow, Mrs Ogodo Egede, to death in Egwudunagu village, Amachi community in Abakaliki Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
According to reports, the mother of four was killed at her house after several attacks from the suspect who threatened to kill her if she ever disclosed the affair to anyone.
The lifeless remains of the widow who depended on her artisan work to cater for her children, was discovered with bruises all over her motionless body following the incident.
A family source said that when the suspect continued the act, the widow’s daughter, a 13-year-old girl was forced by Nwabu to leave the house for threatening to expose him.
The source said: “The girl ran to her grandparents in the night because Nwabu threatened to kill her. She came to greet her mother in the morning only to see that she was dead and was covered with a wrapper.
“The girl went and informed the grandfather that her mother is dead. She had reported Nwabu’s action to her grandfather.”
It was learnt that the youths of the area then mobilised a search party for the suspect on hearing his alleged action and later found him in his father’s compound.
On interrogation, he admitted committing the crime.
Nwabu said: “Mrs. Ogodo was owing me N1,500 and when I visited her for the payment she refused. I actually asked her for sex and she also refused. I later used force on her and I did not know she will die because I didn’t want to kill her.
“But she struggled with me which annoyed me and I beat her up, I had sex with her for several hours.”
The bereaved father of the widow, Chief Ogbonna Ogayi told how his granddaughter ran to him in the night and reported that the suspect stormed their house and harassed the deceased with a cutlass.
