Pastor allegedly murders wife after infidelity claims, dies under moving truck in Ogun

A pastor with the Celestial Church of Christ, Iri Orun Parish, in Ogun State, Bidemi Odukoya, has allegedly killed his wife at their residence before reportedly taking his own life.

The incident occurred at Ogooluwa community, Akiode Ibogun, in Ifo Local Government Area of the state.

According to reports, Odukoya, who was a father of three boys, allegedly attacked his wife during a domestic dispute in the early hours of Monday, August 31, before later throwing himself in front of a moving truck along the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway.

The incident was said to have happened around 2am after the couple reportedly became involved in another violent disagreement.

A neighbour, Oluwatoyin Oseni, said the couple had a history of domestic disputes, with some previous altercations allegedly leaving the woman injured.

Oseni said the repeated conflicts had at one point attracted police intervention.

“Sincerely, Mummy Daniel and her husband, who we fondly called Iri Orun, have always engaged in domestic fights.

Recently, I had to help take care of the wife after their usual fight,” the neighbour said.

“There was even police involvement, after which we thought that the misunderstanding had been settled.

“It was after the tragedy of Monday, August 31, that we got to understand that both husband and wife had reportedly not been on speaking terms since June as a fallout of their regular squabble.”

The neighbour further disclosed that the couple’s 14-year-old first son, Daniel, raised the alarm after allegedly witnessing his father attack his mother.

According to Oseni, she and another neighbour rushed to the residence after being alerted and found the woman lying motionless on the ground with severe injuries to her head.

“We later got to hear that the Shepherd used a machete and wooden stool to smash the head of his wife. We also saw Daddy Daniel with a cutlass in his hand,” the neighbour said.

“As I was asking him why he would go to the extent of killing his wife, he calmly said that he too was as good as gone.

But because he was holding the cutlass, we could not move closer.

“He later went inside the house, but we never knew that he had escaped that midnight from the community to go and kill himself at Ifo along Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway.”

Meanwhile, Seun Adelana, the community youth leader, attributed the couple’s prolonged disagreement to allegations of marital infidelity.

“The husband was said to have been alleging that the wife was dating another man, and some people also said that the shepherd was dating another woman,” Adelana said.

“So, this is what we gathered led to the altercation, which made the husband kill the woman.”

The Baale of the community, Taiwo Akiode, also recounted what residents in Ifo allegedly observed before the pastor’s death.

“Some people at Ifo told us that when the deceased got to the expressway, he was crossing the expressway back and forth repeatedly,” Akiode said.

“He later sat on the divider, after which he saw an oncoming truck and jumped before it and died.”

Confirming the development, Opeyemi Oluborode, the Deputy Police Public Relations Officer in Ogun State, said the state Commissioner of Police had directed that the circumstances surrounding the incident be thoroughly investigated.

Oluborode disclosed that the case had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation and to establish what led to the deaths.