Ogun man hacks wife to death over alleged infidelity

The suspect was reportedly suspicious of his wife having extra-marital affairs, a development that triggered him.

Residents of Idekan Farm Settlement in the Ijebu-Ode area of Ogun State were left in shock when Matthew James killed his 55-year-old wife, Etim Mary, over suspicions of her having an extramarital affair.

The incident occurred around 8:00 pm on Sunday, June 16, 2024.

Community and police sources confirmed that James, now in police custody, committed the crime after suspecting his wife of infidelity with another man in the community.

An anonymous eyewitness stated that police operatives from the Ijebu-Igbo Division apprehended James shortly after the incident.

The eyewitness revealed that James claimed he and his late wife had a "blood covenant" not to betray each other.

“They had a blood covenant that they would not leave each other. He suspected the wife was having an extramarital affair. The woman had been married before she met James and had grown children. James married her when she was already ageing,"

"James claimed they had a blood covenant not to leave each other for any reason. He returned one morning with a machete and hacked the woman to death. He didn’t run away after committing the crime; he just stood beside her," the source said.

The spokesperson for the state police command, Omolola Odutola commented on the incident, stating that the wife was pronounced dead by a doctor after being rushed to the hospital by other residents.

"She was found lying in a pool of her blood just in front of the house around 5:00 pm on Sunday. She had deep cuts on her forehead, shoulders, and other parts of her body. The husband was found with the blood-soaked machete believed to have been used to commit the crime," Odutola said.

"The body was taken to a general hospital in Ijebu-Igbo, where she was certified dead by a doctor on duty. Her corpse has been deposited at the Alayangbe Private Mortuary in Oke-Agbo, Ijebu-Igbo, for an autopsy. We will move the case to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Abeokuta as soon as the preliminary investigation is concluded."

In a related incident in April, a similar case occurred in Ekiti, where a suspect named Dare Onipede allegedly killed his wife, Arinola, during a dispute over accusations of her having an extramarital affair.

Onipede reportedly stabbed his wife, the mother of three, to death during the confrontation.