By Martha Dike
The Edo State Police Command has declared one Miss Cynthia Omosefe, 17, wanted over the death of one Alhaji Alex Iyanye, 77, who allegedly married her against her will over a debt owed him by her family.
According to findings by Gender Desk, in 2010 the younger sister of Miss Cynthia Omosefe got sick and needed treatment for a terminal ailment and the money demanded by the hospital was quite huge.
Mr Tony Omosefe, father of the sick child and who is also Cynthia Omosefe’s father approached the said Alhaji Alex Iyanye, a business man and resident of Sapele Road in Benin City, and requested for loan from him to enable him offset his sick daughter’s hospital bill.
The Alhaji actually lent Mr Omosefe the huge sum of money, which attracted huge interest and proviso to pay back in 6months time.
Sadly, after the young girl was discharged from hospital, she died in June 2010, an unfortunate incident that caused so much emotional and psychological setback for the Omosefe family, especially as Mr Tony Omosefe, the head of the family and his wife, Mrs Faith Omosefe suffered shock following the death of their second daughter.
By reason of his failing health and inability to continue working to earn a living as breadwinner of his family, Mr Tony Omosefe was unable to pay back the loan he had received from his friend, Alhaji Alex Iyanye within the agreed time. This development marred their relationship and caused disaffection between the two families, to the extent that the said Alhaji continued to endlessly threaten the Omosefe family, sometimes sending heavily armed thugs to the family house to fight and cause unrest.
To resolve this matter and put an end to these constant threat to their peaceful existence and lives, Mr Tony Omosefe agreed to a truce brokered by Alhaji Alex Iyanye which was that Cynthia Omosefe, the 17 year old daughter of Mr Tony Omosefe be married in a secret marriage to Alhaji Alex Iyanye, 77 year old business man.
Miss Cynthia Omosefe, according to investigations, was shocked when her father told her that plans were already made to marry her off as collateral to the family’s creditor, Alhaji Iyanye. However, she accepted, and in 2011 a quiet marriage ceremony was conducted right in the family’s sitting room, under closed doors.
A Family source, under the condition of anonymity, told Gender Desk that the young Cynthia Omosefe became a shadow of herself after the marriage and often confided in her mother that Alhaji Alex Iyanye always subjected her to verbal torment and physical torture, that his older wives and children made her dummy for physical abuse and mental torture.
“Cynthia Omosefe, our daughter, told us that she was reduced to a slave in Alhaji Iyanye’s house. He would beat her with horse whip during sexual intercourse and inflict bodily injury on her.
She often cried back home with signs of abuse written all over her, but her father Mr Omosefe was helpless because she was a sort of collateral for debt he owed his friend.
In a later development, Miss Cynthia Omosefe ran home to her parents with injury marks all over her tender body, she had bloated eyes and was crying so loud that everyone thought she had gone crazy. She told her mother, Mrs Faith Omosefe that she had stabbed Alhaji Alex Iyanye as he continued to batter her face while having sex with her.
According to her, it was on self defense. Alhaji Alex Iyanye was later reported to have died in hospital while Cynthia’s mother took Cynthia to Lagos when threats to kill her was rife from the family of the late Alhaji Alex Iyanye and it became pertinent that her life was not safe in Benin City, Edo State after the Late Alhaji Alex Iyanye’s family came one day in 2012 to the family house in their numbers, destroyed the building and murdered Mr Tony Omosefe, Cynthia Omosefe’s father.
In a twist, Police Declares Miss Cynthia Omosefe Wanted
The Edo State Police Command has declared one Miss Cynthia Omosefe Wanted over the death of one Alhaji Alex Iyanye, who allegedly married her in unknown circumstances.
The Police spokesperson said that Miss Cynthia Omosefe was declared wanted over the stabbing to death of one Alhaji Alex Iyanye during a family crisis.
