A trader, Joy Akachi, has been arrested by the police in Lagos for allegedly bathing her live-in lover, Ibe Akachi, with hot water at their house on Karounwi Street, in the Ijesha area of the state.
It was learnt that Joy, a mother of four, alleged that her lover of 13 years tortured her over a disagreement before she poured the hot water on him.
The 32-year-old suspect was paraded at the Lagos State Police Command headquarters, Ikeja, on Wednesday.
The state Commissioner of Police, Edgal Imohimi, said the command had recorded many cases of domestic violence.
He said, “This is another case of domestic violence which caused very grievous bodily harm. It involved a woman, who surprisingly poured 100 degree hot water on her lover.
“This woman had an altercation with her man and they still went to bed together. Unknown to the man, the woman still nursed grudges. In the morning when the husband was making breakfast, the woman boiled a full bucket of water and emptied the content on the husband, causing him very severe and life-threatening burns.
“The husband was rushed to a hospital, while the woman was arrested for investigation and ultimately for prosecution.”
The suspect said her husband was fond of beating her up, adding that the constant abuse prompted her to pour the hot water on him.
Joy alleged that her husband did not provide for the family, noting that she had once packed out of the house with their four children.
She said, “We are not married; we’ve been together for 13 years. I have four kids for him, yet he has been maltreating me.
“I sell okrika (secondhand) clothes for children at Aswani market. On that day, I went to get some okrika clothes to take to Aswani. When I got back home around 9pm, he asked me where I was coming from and I told him.
“He asked me to go back. I flared up and told him that he caused everything because he usually went out without dropping any money for food. I told him that I was the one running around like a mad person. It is the money I make from the clothes I sell that I use in feeding the children. My man suddenly dragged me inside and locked the door and beat me up.
“The following morning, he used a boiling ring to boil water in the bucket and asked me to bath the children. When I complained that I was in pain due to the previous night beating, he gave me more fist blows. Out of frustration, I raised the bucket that was filled with hot water and poured it on him…
The CP advised couples to seek professional help whenever their relationships were in crises.
PUNCH.
