- Not true; petrol keg found with me was for my engine boat, suspect says
The Homicide Section of the Ogun State Police Command is investigating the circumstances surrounding the gruesome death of a mother of six who was allegedly killed and set ablaze in her father’s house.
The woman’s estranged husband, 56-year-old Madarikan Emehinola, has been arrested in connection with the incident, with police investigators suspecting that he allegedly committed the crime to retaliate against her for ending their relationship and moving on with another man.
The incident occurred on October 18, 2026, at Igbo Edu, Abigi area of Ogun Waterside Local Government Area of the state.
Police investigators alleged that Emehinola arrived at the deceased’s father’s house at about 1am with a five-litre keg containing petrol and set the building ablaze after allegedly killing his estranged wife, Igbagbo Erobe.
The suspect, however, has denied involvement in the crime, claiming that he had stopped visiting the woman after she told him she had found another husband.
According to police sources, two residents of the area allegedly sighted the suspect fleeing with a keg of petrol as the house was engulfed in flames. They reportedly raised the alarm and alerted the woman’s relatives and security agencies.
The sources said security operatives subsequently launched a search for the suspect and arrested him at a junction in a nearby community.
He was allegedly found with the remaining petrol in the keg and handed over to the police at Abigi Division.
Police detectives also reportedly discovered bloodstains, suspected to be connected with the violence that preceded the woman’s death, on the petrol container recovered from the suspect.
The deceased had reportedly been living in her father’s house since she separated from Emehinola.
A police source at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Ogun State Police Command, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the alleged killing was linked to the breakdown of the relationship between the deceased and the suspect.
The source said: “There was a woman named Igbagbo Erobe, a resident of Igbo Edu in the Abigi area of Ogun Waterside. The woman and the suspect, Madarikan Emehinola, were lovers for about two years.
“Early this year, the woman abandoned him and started a new relationship with another man. On October 18, 2026, the man went to Igbo Edu at about 1am with petrol inside a five-litre keg to kill the woman.
“After killing the woman, he set her father’s house on fire. One Seun Igbamerun and another person saw him running away with the five-litre keg of petrol while the house was on fire.
“They raised the alarm and alerted the woman’s relatives and security agencies in the area. A search was launched for him.
“Some security men in a nearby community saw him at a junction. They made inquiries and discovered that he was the person they were looking for. He was arrested with the remaining petrol in the keg and handed over to the police at Abigi Police Station.”
The suspect, an indigene of Igbokoda in Ondo State, denied the allegations, claiming that he and the deceased had lived together until January, when she informed him that she wanted to return to her workplace.
He said: “We were both living in Ondo State, but the place is not too far from her area in Ogun State.
“Since she returned home to work, I had been visiting her in Igbo Edu. There was a time I spent four days with her. I had been spending between four and seven days at her place since she returned to Ogun State to work.
“Around June this year, she called me and warned me not to come to Igbo Edu again. She told me that she had a new husband and was no longer interested in me.
“I was surprised because we had no disagreement, but I did not say anything.
“One of my friends, who is based in Igbo Edu, also called me and told me that my wife had a new husband and that I should not come to the place again.
“Since that day, I made up my mind that I would not go there again, and I have not gone there. I was surprised when I was accused of going to Igbo Edu to set her father’s house on fire.”
The suspect further claimed that he was arrested at Obi Market during a market day at about 3am.
He said a motorcyclist had taken him to the market, where he intended to sell his goods.
“I usually go to the market to sell. That is not the only market I go to. I sell cassava, fishing nets, firewood and other things at different markets in the area.
“I wanted to use the keg to buy petrol for my engine boat after selling at the market. I did not know that my father-in-law’s house had been burnt until I was arrested and taken to Igbo Edu,” he claimed.
The Police Public Relations Officer of the Ogun State Command, DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi, condemned the incident and reiterated the command’s resolve, under the leadership of Commissioner of Police Olubode Ojajuni, to rid the state of criminal elements.
Babaseyi assured the public that the police would ensure justice for the deceased and her family.
“The Ogun State Police Command strongly condemns this tragic incident. We extend our heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased.
“Investigation is ongoing, and we assure the public that every effort will be made to establish the facts and ensure that justice is served,” he said.
