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Tragic Death as Lusaka Man burns himself to death after court ruling that ended his marriage
EXTREMELY upset with a court ruling that ended his marriage and ordered that the couple sell their property and share the money equally, a 52-year old man of Lusaka’s 10 Miles area resorted to pouring petrol all over his body set himself ablaze.
Despite the best efforts from friends, neighbors and medics to save his life, Charles Ngoma died of severe burns on Tuesday evening.
A day before the tragic incident, Ngoma and his wife Faustina Chanda aged 28 were before the Matero Local Court for a divorce hearing.
The couple had been on separation for a month and the wife had sued for divorce.
In their earlier hearing last week, Ngoma complained that his wife Faustina wasn’t the cleanest of people, so much so that he had even lost the desire to sleep with her.
Ngoma complained that his wife’s body had a strong foul stench that was caused by her reluctance to interact with bath water.
He said that two met in 2017 but that their relationship did not start on a smooth note after discovering that she had aborted his pregnancy of twins. Later, they cohabited for four years before officially getting married last year.
The retired Zesco employee complained that also among the reasons of their troubled marriage was that his wife was a stubborn alcoholic who consumed anything intoxicating she came by.
He also accused her of being an addicted smoker of Nsuko.
“Sometimes, she seats drinking wine from evening and sleeps at 02:00 hours in the morning, she later wakes up late and doesn’t even cook me any meals,” said Ngoma.
“She is too dirty, she doesn’t even clean herself, she stays for two days without bathing. She has over eight dirty pants that I can even produce here in court. She just looks clean from the outside but inside, she is very dirty. I had to buy her expensive spray, but it is in vain because each time we go in bed, she smells like fish and she doesn’t even clean her pubic hair, now how can I have appetite to sleep with her when she is like this?,” wondered Ngoma.
But in her defense, Faustina said her marriage become as rough as the Livingstone Sesheke Road after her husband started beating and insulting her each time he came back home drunk.
Faustina said he at one time chased her with a shovel and she ended up sleeping at their neighbor’s place.
Further, she added that efforts to seat them down by their close friends failed as Ngoma could always return to his violent self after a few days.
And on her drinking and smoking habit, Chanda said she did so only to relieve herself from stress. She later asked the court if she could be granted permission to go and get her belongs and vehicle from her matrimonial home
After hearing both parties, Magistrate Gastone kalala adjourned the matter to March 4, 2024 for submission and judgment.
And in his judgment on Monday, the court upheld the claim and ordered that the couple should sell their jointly owned property, including the house, with the proceeds to be shared between them.
But disappointed with the court’s judgment, Ngoma, in an apparent act of despair stopped by a filling station on his way home and bought petrol.
When he reached home around 19:00 hours, he sprinkled the petrol on his house and on his vehicle, a Toyota Passo with registration number BAX 1448 and ignited lit a fire that quickly engulfed the entire house.
From the fire, Ngoma sustained severe burns as neighbors courageously rescued him from the fire and immediately rushed him to Matero Level One Hospital but despite the help of medical personnel.
Unfortunately, he was declared dead 30 minutes after arrival.
The matter was later reported by his friend, Emmanuel Mutale to Muwanjuni Police Post and upon receiving the report, officers visited the scene of the incident.
Police Spokesperson Rae Hamoonga who confirmed the incident to #Kalemba said that an inquiry file has been opened to investigate the circumstances surrounding this tragic event.
Aloy Ejimakor, lead counsel for Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has accused the Department of State Services (DSS) of denying the agitator access to his legal team and visitors, in violation of existing court orders.
Ejimakor expressed growing concern over Kanu’s health and wellbeing following the DSS’s latest refusal to allow his legal team to see him. The incident occurred during a routine visit to the DSS headquarters in Abuja on October 14, 2024, as part of a court-ordered visitation schedule.
“We were blocked from seeing Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in direct violation of subsisting court orders,” Ejimakor revealed in a statement. He further noted that Kanu has been denied visitors since his last court appearance on September 24, 2024, when the IPOB leader demanded that Justice Binta Nyako recuse herself from his case due to a lack of confidence. Although the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, overruled the recusal, the DSS has consistently blocked access to Kanu since then.
Ejimakor raised alarms about the DSS’s actions, suggesting that they may be related to Kanu’s successful bid to have Justice Nyako step down, even though her recusal was later overturned. He added that previous attempts to enforce court compliance through legal applications have been ignored, leaving the impression that the DSS is acting above the law.
“The DSS should remember that court-ordered visitations are meant for Kanu’s relatives and lawyers to ensure his wellbeing. Now that access has been completely denied, one must ask: What is the DSS hiding? Is Mazi Nnamdi Kanu hale and hearty?” Ejimakor questioned.
This latest development has fueled ongoing tensions, as the legal battle surrounding Kanu’s trial intensifies, with the DSS facing increasing criticism for defying judicial orders and infringing on Kanu’s rights.
Three kidnappers suspected to have attempted to kidnap the wife of a member of the Delta State House of Assembly have been killed by the police in a fierce gun duel.
According to the information on PUNCH Metro, it was gathered that the hoodlums had failed in an attempt to kidnap the woman on September 2, 2024, at the Okoloba Junction, Jakpa Road, Uvwie, where the suspected kidnappers killed two policemen and the driver, Mr. David Imela, during the incident.
However, the police spokesperson, Bright Edafe, confirmed this to the PUNCH Metro on Sunday in Asaba, the Delta State capital.
He said, “Following the failed attempted kidnap of the wife of one of the members of Delta State House of Assembly where the suspected kidnappers murdered two Mobile Policemen and the driver, the Commissioner of Police, Olufemi Abaniwonda, immediately ordered a water-tight deployment around Warri and its environs as well as narrowing the roads and blockage of all exit points.
“Police operatives of the Ebrumede Division led by the DPO CSP Iwok Ndifereke strategically deployed and created an artificial hold-up at the DSC Roundabout and sighted the vehicle as described with a matching registration number.
“On noticing the traffic and sighting the policemen, the hoodlums opened fire on the team which the team equally responded professionally owing to the busy nature of the area.”
He said the hoodlums immediately abandoned the vehicle shattered with bullets and escaped with bullet injuries while three AK-47 rifles and their operational vehicle with registration no. WWR-436-GZ were recovered.
According to Edafe, the CP who was not satisfied with their escape, directed that the DPO Ebrumede should go all out and ensure the suspects were arrested and brought to book.
“Armed with available information and exhibits found in the abandoned vehicle, on October 3, 2024, the DPO Ebrumede Division, CSP Iwok Ndifereke, led operatives to their hideout in Agbarho where the police engaged the suspects in a fierce gun duel.
“The policemen who prepared for the battle ahead overpowered the hoodlums, three of the suspects sustained serious gunshot injuries while others escaped and another AK-47 rifle was also recovered.
“The suspects were taken to the hospital where they were confirmed dead. A manhunt for the other fleeing members of the gang is ongoing,” he said.
Edafe said Olufemi also commended the bravery the DPO and his men displayed during the operation and urged other officers and men of the command to emulate them.
The Ogun State police command on Monday said that its Igbeba Division, Ijebu-Ode, arrested one Shedrack Olawale Olayemi, who had been on the police wanted list for armed robbery and alleged rape of some female students of Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, in July.
The spokesperson for the state police command, SP Omolola Odutola, disclosed this in a statement sent to journalists on Monday.
Odutola said that Olayemi was picked up after an intelligence report revealed that the 33-year-old alleged armed robber and rapist was sighted at the university area, Ijagun, where he has been trying to conceal his identity.
The statement said, “The divisional police officer of Igbeba Division has arrested a wanted notorious suspect for armed robbery.
“Following a tip-off, that one Olayemi Olawale Shedrack, aged 33 was sighted in Ijagun, trying to conceal himself among other citizens, but his identity was immediately confirmed by intelligence, and the police were contacted. In swift action, he was apprehended.
“Olayemi Olawale Shedrack has been on the police search for armed robbery and rape. He was fingered as the prime suspect for an alleged crime of armed robbery and rape in which he participated actively on the 21st of July, 2024, where he and his cohort broke into a female Royal Villa accommodation area in Tai University of Education Ijagun, where he robbed harmless female students of their luxury educational devices, including laptops, iPhones, sports wristwatches and cash, and further had unlawful carnal knowledge of the innocent female student and has since fled.”
The police said that a preliminary investigation has commenced, and the suspect has been immediately taken to the Igbeba police station for interrogation and will soon be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for discreet investigation and prosecution.
