A plumber, Bright Ikechukwu has narrated how a 41-year-old woman, Mrs. Chika Orji contracted them to kill her estranged husband.
Ikechukwu who came to Lagos from Delta state for the job, said they were offered drinks and Kola nuts and promised N500,000 to kill the man.
The suspect who was arrested while trying to steal from the apartment, said they (he and two others) went to the man’s house at Jakande Estate, Ajah, on four occasions but didn’t succeed in stabbing him as they planned to do.
He said: “I live in Ogwushi -Ukwu, Delta state. My friend, Ekene, called me on the phone to inform me that he has a job for me. This was three weeks ago. I hurriedly came to Lagos and stayed with him in Ajah, I met another of his friend, Samuel. He told us that Madam Chika promised him N500,000 to kill her husband. Thereafter, he told Samuel to take me to Mr Orji’s house, so as to be able to identify the target.
“We went there and hid inside a tricycle, waiting for Mr. orji, whom we were told always opened his gate himself whenever he returned home. But on that day, it was his daughter that opened the gate. We went back the next day, it was his daughter that opened the gate again.
“By the time we went the third day, it was Mr. Orji that opened the gate himself. The plan was to rush to him and stab him eight times in the chest, rib and neck. But Samuel, who was supposed to stab him went to buy cigarette and by the time he came back, our target had gone inside and shut the gate.
“Out of frustration, I went back home and told Ekene to give me my own share of the money that I was going home. But he said that madam Chika would only pay after the deed was done.
“I decided to go into Mr. Orji’s apartment to steal instead, in order to get some money to go back to Delta state. But as I was trying to jump through the fence, somebody raised alarm and I was arrested by vigilantes. I was tied with a wire and beaten without mercy. I had to open up when they almost killed me.”
However, the woman denied the allegation, claiming she only asked them to beat him up for denying her access to their children and selling their property without giving her share of the money.
She said: “We got married 14 years ago and have three daughters and a son. All of a sudden, my husband suddenly became a wife beater. He would beat me and leave me with swollen face. He threatened to kill me. It continued until three years ago, when he finally chased me out of the house and denied me access to my children.
“I made several efforts to get my children back, part of which was to report him to human rights offices for settlement but he did not honour any of the invitations. Both families have made attempts to settle us but he would not listen.
“He was served with a court warrant over the issue but he also refused to show up. Along the line, he sold the house we both built, for N85 million but never gave me any dime. He also stopped my children from visiting me and any attempt to see them always resulted in beating.
“Out of frustration, I told Ekene, our carpenter, to beat him up, so as to teach him a lesson. I did not hire anyone to kill him. I am a frustrated woman and I am sorry for everything.”
