Man 35 kills own 4 children before committing suicide

A 35 year-old man, Patrick Archibong, of Alesa in the Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State, has committed suicide after killing his four children.

Archibong was said to have locked up in a room his four children, aged eight, five, three and one, and strangled them before hanging himself.

It was also gathered that Archibong had set the house, which he occupied as a tenant, on fire before taking his life.

A source told PUNCH Metro that Archibong’s wife raised the alarm after discovering what the husband did, and the incident was later reported to the police by the landlord of the house, identified as Gomba.

Archibong, who hailed from Ogoja in Cross River State, was said to have committed the crime at about 1am on Tuesday when neighbours had already gone to bed.

It was also learnt that the wife had escaped the aggression of her husband before he locked up the children and began to strangle them.

A source, who preferred anonymity, said, “It is shocking that a father could kill his four children. After killing his four children, he locked their corpses in the room and set the house ablaze.

“The man had earlier chased his wife away in the night and bolted the door before embarking on the killing spree that ended in him taking his own life.”

It was also gathered that Archibong did not leave a suicide note to explain the reason for his action, especially the killing of his children.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mr Nnamdi Omoni, confirmed the incident, adding that the landlord reported the matter to the police in Aleda, Eleme.

Omoni explained that the corpses of the deceased had been taken away for post-mortem, adding that the police had since commenced investigation into the matter.

He stated, “In the early hours of today (Tuesday), Mr Gomba, who is the landlord of Mr Patrick Archibong, reported the incident to the police. The corpses of the five persons have been sent to the mortuary.

“An autopsy will soon be conducted on all the corpses. The reason for the action of the man (Archibong) has not been ascertained.”