Another Nigerian kills wife in America
ACHO ORABUCHI
Dallas, Texas, USA
Thursday, February 8, 2007
‘Till Death Do Us Part’ seems to be a catch-all phrase demonstrative of how deeply in love bride and bridegroom are with each other when exchanging vows before a clergy, family members, friends and well-wishers. Little did Chidiebere, a nurse, know that her death would come in the hands of a man she once loved; a man that solemnly swore to protect her in sickness and good health, in poverty and in riches, and of course, a man that swore to be there for her until death do them part. Sadly, little did Ms. Ochulo know it was going to be a deadly broken vow!
Indeed,
it has happened again! That was the cry among the Nigerian community in the
United States when news about another family violence death broke. Sorrowfully,
another Nigerian marriage ended deadly in Burtonsville, Maryland on New Year,
Monday, January 1, 2007. A Nigerian has abruptly ended the life of his wife in
Burtonsville, suburb of Washington, DC. Mr. Kelechi Charles Emeruwa, 41,
of Old Umuahia on New Year, cut short of his wife’s life, Chidiebere Omenihu
Ochulo, 36, of Old Umuahia in their 4200 block of Dunwood Terrace in
Burtonsvillle, Maryland home. It was reported that Chidiebere died from stab
wounds. However, Officer Melanie Hadley, spokesperson for Montgomery County
Police, could not confirm it citing, “official autopsy report is not out”.
After
killing his wife, Mr. Emeruwa fled to a nearby city, Olney, with his three
children, Kelechi Elijah Emeruwa, 4 years-of-age, Tochi (Antinnoe) Emeruwa, 6
years-of-age and Jaachi Emeruwa, 8 years-of-age. His flight with the three
children triggered the “Amber Alert” for the children. Amber alert is a
nation-wide system for searching and locating missing children. Emeruwa was
shortly arrested after a brief police chase with the children unharmed.
While Mr. Emeruwa remained in custody charged with first degree murder, his children are currently under the custody of Child Protective Services (CPS) pending the availability of a suitable relative for a temporary and subsequent permanent placement of the children. According to Officer Melanie Hadley, “Mr. Emeruwa remains in custody without bond; he’s charged with first degree murder. His children are current with CPS.”
It has been reported that Mr. Emeruwa and his wife had a history of domestic violence and at one time, they were separated for about 12 months. However, during my interview with Officer Hadley, she said, “We do not discuss prior history of defendants.”
Based on court records obtained by Washington Post, Emeruwa and his wife had an extensive record of family violence. “The marriage between Emeruwa and Ochulo was marred by violence and threats by Emeruwa, according to court records,” reported Washington Post on January, 3 2007.
“On July 19, 2004, Ochulo obtained a temporary protective order in Prince George's District Court; it was later rescinded at her request, court records show. Ochulo wrote that Emeruwa had sent word through relatives that he promised to get help for his problems.”
“On April 19, 2005, a District Court judge in Prince George's again granted Ochulo a temporary protective order. The couple were living in Beltsville with their children at the time, according to court records.”
“In that application for court protection, Ochulo wrote that Emeruwa had come into the room where she was sleeping with the children at 2 a.m. April 15 and told her to cook for him. When she refused, Emeruwa shoved her to the floor and punched her, Ochulo wrote. She wrote that Emeruwa had abused her several times and had threatened to kill her and the children.”
“The protective order was rescinded May 4 at Ochulo's request after she wrote to a judge saying that Emeruwa had apologized through his family.”
“On Jan. 31, 2006, she said that he head-butted her twice on the mouth, threatened to kill her, and told her that police could not protect her. On Nov. 9, those charges were dropped because Ochulo did not appear at a court hearing, said prosecutors and Lawrence Hill, the defense attorney at the time.”
Sources close to the family said that the Emeruwas had experienced sporadic family violence for the past few years.
There other similar stories of deadly domestic violence among Nigerians in the United States. Not too long ago, a Nigerian, Mr. Theophilus Ojukwu, 46, of Enugwu-Agu, Ihe in Ogwu LGA, Enugu State, who killed his wife in their 5400 block of Barcelona Drive home in Garland, Texas on Saturday, March 25, 2006 has since been sentenced to life in prison.
Similarly, in Grand Prairie, a suburb of Dallas, Texas, Mrs. Monireti Abeni Akeredolu, a 46-year old Nigerian lady met her untimely death in the hands of her estranged husband, Mr. Ebenezer Akeredolu, Sr., 48, on Thursday night, September 8, 2005, a day after her birthday.
Also, on August 10, 2005 in Euless, a suburb of Dallas, another Nigerian husband, Johnny Omorogieva, 45, murdered his wife, Mrs. Isatu Omorogieva, 35, by savagely striking her on the head numerous times with a hammer in the full glare of his 7-year old daughter.
With the exception of Mr. Emeruwa who’s awaiting trial, these men have since been sentenced to prison. Unfortunately, the surviving children of these families are left to grow up without their parents.
Some people continue to wonder why some of these marriages end deadly. It appears that the gargantuan societal pressure of living a good life coupled with an undue burden from family members in Nigeria continue to exacerbate the already troubled many Nigerian marriages. Additionally, some Nigerian marriages in the Diaspora are steadily and surely growing out of love. Compounding the marital problem is the issue of infidelity on both sides.
Sadly, infidelity has ruined some Nigerian marriages in America. Some of the recent divorces have claims of infidelity as their primary causes of marriage travails. Marital infidelity is causing a vast majority of Nigerian marriages flagging with the inevitability of total collapse. No other Nigerian community has suffered more jinx of infidelity than the Dallas area Nigerians. The aspersion has permeated the fabric of what was once considered a cohesive community. This has broken the trust members of Nigerian community once had with each other. Sad still, the infidelity among Nigerians has been worsened by the recent trend. The latest trend is the annual visit—pilgrimage as some call it—the men pay to Nigeria in the month of December. While in Nigeria some of these men engage in a high risk behavior with flawed boldness and reckless and perhaps, short-lived excitement in the face of ravaging effects of AIDS. This reckless behavior is utterly deplorable.
Nevertheless, it’s not only dreadfully wrong, but also sacrilegious for anyone to take the life of the other, especially his or her spouse. There are other options to get out of a marriage besides killing a spouse. Domestic violence is not one of them; Nigerian community everywhere must help stop this madness—domestic violence!
See also @www.kwenu.com:
CRYSTAL OMOIFO: Save our sisters
HANK ESO: Brothers, defuse!
Rudolf Ogoo Okonkwo: Just before you kill your wife