Woman claims husband poured hot water on her

Ifeoma. Inset: Samuel
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A 35-year-old woman, Ifeoma Oraka, has accused her husband, Samuel Oraka, 44, of pouring hot water on her.

As a result of the incident, Ifeoma is being treated at the hospital for burns on her neck, chest and arm.

Ifeoma explained that after Samuel poured the hot water on her, he pressed her to the floor and started rubbing her body with his bare hand.

“The action further compounded my injury as my skin was peeling as he was rubbing my body,” she said.

It was learnt that Samuel, who is based in Angola, is currently at large.

She told PUNCH Metro that she was fed up with her 10-year-old marriage and would want to leave the relationship, but was afraid of her husband’s reaction.

The Anambra State indigene who hails from Idemili-South Local Government Area, said the latest incident was the climax of a troubled marriage.

Narrating her ordeal to our correspondent at the Hilton Hospital, Apapa, Lagos, Ifeoma said she began to have doubts about the marriage after her husband slapped her only two days into the union.

She said, “I knew I married the wrong person when he slapped me just two days into our marriage. I wanted to run away from him, but his family members begged me. Pastors also came to intervene, insisting that our marriage will be successful.

“Because he is based in Angola, he could be there for up to 10 months. So, it was easier to cope with his brutality because it was not regular.

“In fact, all the time that I was pregnant, I went through the stages alone because he was in Angola.”

The NCE holder, who alleged that her husband also seized her certificate and made her a full-time housewife, said Samuel not only maltreated her, but also brutalised their four children at the least provocation.

She said it was one of such attacks that led to her present predicament.

She claimed that her husband had beaten up two of their children on Sunday morning, January 19, 2014, for allegedly refusing to greet him.

 “From that time, he stopped talking to all of us. He did not give us money for food. He would buy food, eat it alone, and take the bones into the dustbin.

“On Saturday of that week, he suddenly gave one of the children, Uzomma, N3, 700 for me to cook stew and soup. I told the child to put the money on the fridge.

“That morning, I prepared noodles and egg for the family. I asked the children to call their father because I don’t have free access to his room. If I must enter, I must knock. When he is not in the house, he will lock the door.

“He refused to eat the food and said Nonso, a boy he brought from the village, should go inside the kitchen and prepare his food.

“I told the boy that he did not have the right to enter into my kitchen. The next thing that happened was that my husband entered the kitchen, took a kettle that was on the fire and emptied the hot water inside on me.

“He then slapped me and pushed me to the floor. He began to use his hand to rub my scalded skin. My children started screaming. I was also shouting and screaming. It was a mess.”

She said neighbours were prevented from entering into the apartment because the doors were locked. She said after her husband left her, she mustered the strength to drag herself to the door and open it before she was rushed to the hospital.

“With this situation, I cannot sleep. Each time I close my eyes, all I see is someone pouring hot water on me,” she sobbed.

The medical doctor treating Ifeoma at the Hilton Hospital, Dr. Onyekachi Uzor-Igwe,  said, “When she was brought here there were extensive blisters on her face, neck, chest and right limb. Some days later, she complained of not hearing well with her right ear. Her ear was bringing out pus, blood and water. We had to change her treatments. I cannot tell when her wounds will completely heal.”

Tochukwu Okafor, the victim’s cousin who reportedly rushed her to the hospital, said he also reported the matter at the Agboju Police Division.

Okafor said the police had yet to start any investigation into the matter as nobody had been arrested.

“I called the Investigating Police Officer and she told me that anytime we see the man, we should call the police to come and pick him,” he said.

Coordinator, Research and Programmes, Women Arise for Change Initiative, Gbenga Ganzalo, said the group had decided to take up the matter and ensure the culprit was arrested.

“We heard that the victim’s husband is likely to travel back to Angola where he is based. We gave them a letter to take to the airport so that he will not be able to travel. We also tried to reach the man’s elder brother, but he refused to pick his calls. We advised that they should reach out to the man’s family, to see the woman in the hospital, but they refused,” he said.

Brother-in-law to the victim, Hillary Oraka, however, told our correspondent on the telephone that his brother had not been around since the incident.

“I am the immediate elder brother of Samuel. Since the incident happened, we have not seen him. The last time I spoke with him, he said he will be finding his way out of Nigeria,” he said.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, promised to call back and react to the allegation of slipshod investigation. But she didn’t call back as of press time.

PUNCH