28th March, 2013
Thirty one year old, Akolade Arowolo, standing trial for the alleged murder of his wife, Titilayo, a bank worker, on Thursday told an Ikeja High Court that his deceased wife, Titilayo, preferred her ex-boyfriend to him and their baby.
He made the allegation while testifying at the resumption of his trial before Justice Lateefat Okunnu.
He was charged to court for allegedly stabbing Titilayo, to death on 24 June, 2011, at their residence at Isolo, Lagos.
The defendant, who was led in evidence by his counsel, Mr Olarenwaju Ajanaku, said he got married to Titilayo on 8 August, 2008 and the family was blessed with a baby girl few months after the marriage.
He said that ego and immaturity, however, caused several problems between him and his wife and deprived them of marital bliss. Arowolo said that after a quarrel with his wife in June 2011, he left his house and went to pass the night at a friend’s place in order to give her space.
He said he was shocked that his wife did not even call him to enquire about his whereabouts until he returned home the following day. “I was wondering why she did not call me to ask me why I did not come home to sleep, something I had never done before. So I picked up her phone and scrolled through it and I discovered that she had called three people the previous night. When I went through the call logs, I saw that she had called her father, her ex-boyfriend, Ehime and one other person I didn’t know”.
He said when he confronted her on the issue, Titilayo became angry and ordered him not to “ever touch her phone again.”
“For the first time ever in that marriage, I slapped her and she ran out of the house and left my baby behind. So I took the baby to my mother’s place at Ejigbo and I told her everything that happened; I told her that my wife preferred her ex-boyfriend to me and my baby.”
The defendant also alleged that Titilayo’s unusual closeness to her father, Mr George Oyakhire, and her step-mother, Mrs Adetoun Oyakhire, caused most of their problems.
He said that Titilayo had confessed to aborting a baby on the instructions of her step-mother without his knowledge.
He said:”I never threatened her with a knife; it is not true that I beat her and she had a black eye. The only time I slapped her was that June 2011 incident and I regretted it and promised never to raise my hand against her again.”
He alleged that Titilayo had a hot temper and was nick-named “Thatcher” by her family members.
The defendant said she was always running back to her parents home at the slightest excuse which had a negative effect on their relationship and marriage.
Arowolo, however, could not finish his testimony due to his health condition and the judge adjourned the matter to May 22 for continuation of trial. (NAN)