First Lady reacts as man pluck out wife’s eye, injure landlord in Abia

The First Lady of Abia State, Mrs. Priscilla Otti, has expressed profound sorrow and condemnation over the shocking incident involving a man who allegedly gouged out his wife’s eyes in Umuahia, reportedly for ritual purposes.

The disturbing incident occurred in the early hours of Sunday in Umueze Ibeku, Umuahia North Local Government Area. The suspect, Lawrence Uzor, an aluminum worker from Umuchieze in Bende Local Government Area, allegedly attacked his wife, Amarachi Lawrence, while she was asleep at their home in Adiele Estate.

According to reports, the attack took place around 1 am, when Uzor used a knife to remove his wife’s eyes. The couple’s landlady, Madam Lovejane Nwaiwu, who was also injured in the attack, described the horrifying incident. Nwaiwu, who sustained injuries to her hand and mouth, recounted that on Saturday night around 10 pm, she heard Uzor shouting “Odogwu, Odogwu” (meaning “mighty, mighty”), which raised her concern as the couple had never prayed loudly like that before.

Mrs. Otti, reacting to the news, expressed deep concern over the growing incidents of domestic violence and ritual-related crimes in the state. She called for justice to be served swiftly and urged law enforcement agencies to thoroughly investigate the matter to ensure that such heinous acts do not go unpunished.

The First Lady also reiterated her commitment to supporting victims of domestic violence and ensuring that they receive the necessary medical and psychological care. She emphasized the importance of community vigilance and urged citizens to report any suspicious activities to the authorities promptly.

The incident has sent shockwaves throughout the community, with many expressing outrage and disbelief over the brutality of the act.

“I started praying for them. After that, I couldn’t sleep until about 12 am and was restless. At about 1 am, the wife, who is a teacher with one of the foremost private schools in Umuahia and aged 38 years, started shouting, ‘Mummy, I have been killed’. I opened my door, came out, peeped through their bedroom window and saw the man pressed down on the wife with a knife in his hands.

“I started pushing on people’s gates and calling out to the Umueze people, but nobody came out or responded. After all attempts to call neighbours to come and nobody answered me, I went to their parlour door and started knocking. Suddenly, he opened the door while holding the knife and tried giving me cuts on the head but I defended my head with my hand. He cut me on the hand and further slashed the knife at my face which incidentally cut me at the mouth. Some of my upper teeth came out.

“I ran into my house and locked the door, while he ran outside, locked our gate and went to a neighbour’s house to tell them that he had killed his wife and his landlord’s wife. While inside my room, I called my mother and my daughter, who then called a church neighbour and the community vigilance team who rushed to the neighbour’s house and apprehended him.”

Speaking at the Federal Medical Centre, where the victims are being treated, Mrs Otti said she was deeply saddened by the case just a few days after signing the compact agreement with the UNFPA on gender-based violence, stating, “This is a terrible case of violence, attempted murder and violence”, adding that she would take immediate action to ensure Mrs Lawrence was well and protected.

Mrs Otti further assured the state that she would ensure further GBV response front desk and team took proper actions and commended the Umueze Ibeku community over their response and support to the issue. The Abia First Lady also donated cash for the treatment and upkeep of the victims.

Earlier in his response, the Medical Director of the FMC, Umuahia, Prof. Azubuike Onyebuchi, who was represented by the Director, Medical Services, Mrs Aisha Onyemaobi, explained to Mrs Otti that reports indicated that the main victim, Mrs. Lawrence, (38 years old) was deeply asleep when the husband woke her up and started cutting her, adding, “There was an attempt to gouge out her eyes and she had genital mutilation”, while the suspect is in custody.

Onyemaobi further disclosed that good progress in her recovery was expected.

The victim’s sister, Ijeoma Okpokiri and her cousin, Chioma Okpokiri, both from Emede Ibeku, pleaded with the Inspector General of Police and the government at all levels, particularly the Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, to look into the matter and to also help their sister to recover.