woman identified as Iforiti has claimed she set her son, his wife, and grandchildren ablaze because they starved her of food in her house.
She however said she did not know that his son would die as she intended to kill her daughter-in-law who she claimed had taken over her businesses and made her go hungry. She regretted not separating the son before setting the rest of the family ablaze.
Iforiti, her son, and her family stayed together in Aponmu community along the Ondo-Akure road in Akure South local government area of Ondo State.
The woman has allegedly set her middle-aged son, daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren ablaze.
She was said to have set the house ablaze while the family was asleep, killing three of them including the son, Victor; daughter-in-law Racheal and one of the grandchildren while the remaining child is in critical condition.
A neighbour, Mr. Michael Korede who narrated the incident said he saw the house on fire around 2:00 am at the weekend and had to break the window to rescue everyone in the house.
His words “The woman, her son, Victor Oloro; wife, Rachael; and children, Toluwani and Blessing, were all in the house when the woman set it on fire. She got some dry palm fronds and the little petrol her son kept in a gallon (for generator), spread it around the house, and then put fire to it.”
“I was the first person to notice the fire and jumped into the house before other members of the community joined me in rescuing them. We got a vehicle immediately to transport them to the government hospital in Akure.
“When we got Akure (UNIMED annex), the doctors and nurses rejected the patients, saying they cannot take care of them due to the degree of the burns, and advised that we take them to the Federal Medical Center in Owo.
“Unfortunately, we lost the last grandchild, who was just two and a half years old, immediately we got to Owo. On Sunday, the son and his wife gave up the ghost while the only grandchild left is in a critical condition.”
Korede said the aged woman had attempted suicide sometime in 2022 by jumping into a well but was rescued by neighbours.
Korede said, “the children could not send the woman out of the house when she started behaving strangely because it was built by her late husband”.
The suspect who was in the burnt house confessed she burnt her son and his family because they were starving him.
She said her daughter-in-law has taken her customers because she sold the same things as her, making her hungry. She said he has no regret as she was ready to die as the life is not worth living for her.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Funmilayo Odunlami-Omisanya who confirmed the incident said the case has been referred to State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for further investigation.
