Boy, 20, Kills Stepmother For Refusing To Disclose ATM Pin

One Ekenedilichukwu Okeke yesterday confessed being responsible for the gruesome murder of his stepmother, Mrs Theresa Okeke in Awka, Anambra state.

Mrs Okeke, an accountant with the National Population Commission (NPC), was reportedly strangled to death on Sept. 28, 2022 in her residence, No. 4 Umuziocha, Awka by unknown assailants.

But the suspect, while being paraded by the police together with 19 others at the State Criminal Investigation Department, Amawbia, said he took the decision of killing the woman to enable him withdraw N1million from her account.

He said he had to hire his friends to assist him carry out the act, shortly after the woman who had been assisting him in paying his fees, insisted he must leave her house over a misunderstanding.

He said, “I finished writing JAMB and was doing some menial jobs to enable me raise money for my university fees. I also worked for NPC three months ago.

“I had a misunderstanding with my mom, along the line and she scolded me. I pleaded with her, thinking she had forgiven me. But the next day she asked me to leave the house.  I called my dad and elder brother to inform them of the development but my dad didn’t pick. It was my brother who picked that I told what happened.

“After, I called my friends to help me get money from my mom so I can use it for my fees ahead of my admission. Along the line, she collapsed and slumped.

I’m very remorseful and praying God to have mercy on me and government to forgive me,” he said.

One of the accomplices, Peter Jideofor, a musician who confessed he was the one that tied the woman’s mouth when she attempted to scream, said they would not have killed her if she had provided her pin number.

He said, “He told me he had an issue with his step mother and that I should help him extract N1m from her. It was around 2am, with my other guys. We tied her hands and feet.  When she wanted to shout, I personally tied her mouth. In the process, she stopped breathing. It was at that point I left because my mission was not to kill. When I was leaving, I told the guy to keep checking on her every 30 minutes. But it was in the morning he told us that she was dead. All of us were in shock and fled, but I stayed ind