Ogun State police operatives have arrested a 45-year old man, Gbenga Ogunfadeke, for the death of his two children.
The suspect, who was arrested on Tuesday in Ibiade, Ogun Waterside Local Government Area of the state by men of the Amotekun Corps, allegedly chained and locked up the minors in a solitary confinement till they starved to death.
The Ogun State Commander of Amotekun, David Akinremi, in a statement on Wednesday, said the suspect, a father of three, took the action because he accused the children of stealing.
He said that the suspect chained and locked the children in a solitary confinement, without food and water for over three months,. adding that two of the children eventually died.
The Amotekun commander also said the suspect had been maltreating the children whose age are 16, 17 and 18 since he took custody of them after his crashed marriage with their mother, Busola Otusegun.
He disclosed that the suspect was arrested after his former wife reported the incident at their command, saying: “One of the three children came across his aunty in Ibiade where he currently lives with his father (suspect) and narrated their experience with their father which led to the death of his two elder siblings – Yusuf Ogunfadeke (18 years) and Dasola Ogunfadeke (17 years) between April and June, 2022 in Ijebu-Ode where they were all living with the suspect until he relocated back to Ibiade.
“According to him (the child), their father chained and locked them in solitary confinement, without food and water for over three months which led to the death of the two siblings but he miraculously survived the ordeal.
“When the suspect was interrogated, he admitted the alleged confinement of the children for months, but denied not feeding them and being responsible for their death.
“The suspect. said his action was based on the children’s involvement in stealing, hence the need to ensure they are prevented from such criminal action. The suspect also claimed that the two deceased children were taken to hospital for treatment at different times when they fell ill, but unfortunately died in the process.
“What is however curious about his defence is that the hospital where he claimed the two children died in Ijebu Ode could neither be located nor where he allegedly buried them behind a rented apartment he lived in Ijebu-Ode before relocating to his present abode in Ibiade with the third child for possible exhumation be traced.
“The fact that he refused to make the incidents known to any member of the family also gives cause for concern as the suspect is a herbalist, thus further fueling the suspicion of having killed the deceased for possible rituals.
“Consequently, the case is being transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation with a view to establishing further facts that will facilitate his prosecution.”
