Have mercy on us, Evans wife, Uchenna begs Nigerians

…I didn’t know he was into crime
…He took part in our daily prayers and always prayed Psalm 23
…His wealth should be sold off and given to his victims
…I didn’t know he was this rich, the highest he gave to me was N200,000
…Please, forgive him for the sake of myself and the children

By Emma Nnadozie, Crime Editor

The call was a surprise. And in the words of our Crime Editor, Emma Nnadozie “it was shocking but revealing and even pathetic.” The caller had said “hold on for Evans’ wife.” The female voice quickly pleaded to Mr. Nnadozie to call her back as she did not have enough credit. Nnadozie returned the call from Ghana and the caller told her story. Excerpts:

My name is Uchenna Precious Onwuamadike, the wife of the Chikwudubem Onwuamadike who you call Evans.   I am 31 years old.   I got married to Evans at the age of 17 at Oraifite, Anambra state in 2004.

He met me while I was coming back from lesson as a student of All Saints Secondary School, Oraifite and I was in class 6 going to take my West African Examination. After we met, I agreed to go with him because of my poor background.

He told me his father married three wives when he was six years old and threw his mother out of his house. He said that one of the wives influenced his father to drive them out of his house also and they were forced to stay with outsiders.   Evans was taken to his grandmother who trained him.   He told me his father accused the mother of being adulterous before driving her out of his house.

Our marriage is blessed with five children. Our first issue is 12 years plus and her name us Udochukwu.   After we got married, he said I should stay with his mother in his village at Akanmiri, Umudim, Nnewi   to teach me how to be a good housewife.   I was there for three years before he took me to Lagos.   We were living at Satellite town in 2006 and after one year, he relocated us back to the village because he could not pay house rent.

While in the village, he normally came to see us.   We spent three years in the village and relocated to Ghana.   On our way to Ghana, we passed through Lagos and stayed at Benny Hotels in Festac where we spent two days before travelling to Ghana.

He spent a month with us in Ghana before coming back to Lagos.   I was pregnant with our fourth child in 2010 when he left for Nigeria to come back in two months time.   After I gave birth, he came back four months later and was able to clear the accumulated bills we kept for him because I borrowed money from friends to clear hospital bill. When he came back, he complained bitterly that things were rough for him in Nigeria and that customs seized his goods.

I was not aware that he was into kidnapping and all the criminal acts he is being associated with now.   All I know about his business is that he was into haulage, buying engine and spare parts for trucks and imports exhaust pipes.   That was what he told me.   The reason he kept me in Ghana was because he said our children should get quality education.

I have spent six years here and after I stopped hearing from him, I called and complained bitterly but he said I should stay for some time.   I then called his friend, Okechukwu, who now   lives in China. He told me that he has not been seeing him and that he spends most of his time with a girlfriend in Festac.     When I called him to complain, he was angry with me and warned that I should stop listening to gossip.   He said that If I should return, I should go to his younger brother’s house in Lagos until he is ready to get accommodation for us.   The brother was formally living in Lagos but he is in Brazil now.   So, when it was impossible to pay my children’s school fees, I packed my bags and baggage and came back to Lagos with our children.