A quiet community in Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State has been thrown into mourning after a Celestial Church of Christ pastor allegedly killed his wife during a late-night domestic dispute and died hours later after reportedly stepping into the path of a moving truck.
The incident occurred in the early hours of Monday, August 31, at Ogooluwa, Akiode Ibogun, where the couple had lived and operated a Celestial Church parish for several years.
The deceased were identified as Bidemi Odukoya, the Shepherd of CCC Iri Orun Parish, and his wife. They were said to have been married for years and had three children.
According to residents, the pastor allegedly attacked his wife at their home around 2am before fleeing the community.
He reportedly headed towards the Ifo section of the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway, where witnesses said he repeatedly crossed the highway before sitting on the road median.
He was subsequently alleged to have moved into the path of an approaching truck and was killed instantly.
Both bodies were later returned to the community and buried beside their residence on the same day.
The tragedy shocked residents, many of whom said the couple had been known as friendly and respectful members of the community.
The Baale of Akiode, Chief Taiwo Akiode, said he was informed of the alleged killing shortly after 3am.
According to him, residents initially contacted the police before alerting him about the incident.
He said he visited the couple’s residence and found the woman lying in a pool of blood, with what appeared to be a machete wound.
Akiode said the police later arrived at the scene, took photographs and began preliminary investigation, while Odukoya was nowhere to be found.
He said the community subsequently received information that the pastor had died on the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway.
“Some people at Ifo told us that when the deceased got to the expressway, he was crossing the expressway back and forth repeatedly. He later sat on the divider, after which he saw an oncoming truck and jumped before it and died,” the Baale said.
While the community struggled to understand how the incident occurred, different accounts emerged about the couple’s marriage.
The youth leader, Seun Adelana, alleged that accusations of infidelity involving both the husband and wife contributed to the dispute.
He claimed that Odukoya had accused his wife of having an affair, while there were also allegations that the pastor was involved with another woman.
A neighbour, Mrs Oluwatoyin Oseni, however, said the couple had allegedly experienced repeated domestic disagreements before the fatal incident.
Oseni said she had previously assisted the deceased woman after one of their reported fights and that the police had intervened at some point.
She further claimed that the couple had not been speaking to each other since June because of their prolonged disagreements.
According to Oseni, the couple’s 14-year-old son alerted her after discovering that his father had allegedly attacked his mother.
She said she rushed to the house with another neighbour and found the woman dead.
Oseni alleged that Odukoya was holding a cutlass when they arrived and told her that he was also “as good as gone” when she questioned him about the killing.
The neighbour said she never imagined that the marital disagreements she had witnessed would eventually result in the deaths of both spouses.
She recalled repeatedly advising the deceased woman to seek peace, saying the woman had been reluctant to leave the marriage because of her children.
Another community leader, the Asiwaju of Ibogun Akiode, Chief Oluwasegun Adeboye, said the couple had previously been regarded as peaceful residents.
Adeboye said the extent of their marital difficulties only became known to many residents after the tragedy.
He also said he heard that the couple had taken their dispute to court and were advised to resolve their differences amicably.
According to him, they were expected to return to court on Wednesday, but the tragedy occurred on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Ogun State Police Command has commenced investigation into the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
The Deputy Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Opeyemi Oluborode, confirmed that the command was aware of the case.
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He said the case file was being transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation.
“The command is very much aware of the case. The case file is currently being transferred to the SCID for diligent investigation into knowing the actual facts surrounding the sad incidents,” Oluborode said.
