Housewife sentenced to death for stabbing, setting husband on fire

A woman has reportedly been sentenced to death by hanging after stabbing her husband to death and burning his remains.

The house wife identified, Mary Attah, was sentenced to death by a High Court sitting in Effurun, Delta State, after stabbing her husband, Darlington Attah, to death with a kitchen knife before setting him ablaze.

The prosecution disclosed that the accused who was married to the deceased and shared four children with him, attacked the pastor on July 6, 2012, stabbing him in the neck over an alleged phone call from his lover.

The court also heard that Mary was infuriated when the phone call had interrupted the fun time she was sharing with her husband, and in a fit of anger grabbed a knife and grounded pepper with which she immobilised Darlington before stabbing him in the neck.
Mary went on to douse her husband, weakened from loss of blood, with fuel and set him ablaze.

The deceased reportedly gave up the ghost at the Warri Central Hospital where he was rushed to after the incident.

Justice Oritsjafor of the Effurun High Court delivering the death sentence said:
“I must also add that the evidence before this Court do not and cannot support the plea of self defense in favour of the accused person.

I agree with the learned Assistant Director for the Prosecution that there is just no possible defence to avail the accused person when she stabbed her deceased husband in the neck with a knife and thereafter doused him with fuel before she struck the match on him was to kill the deceased or do him grievous bodily harm. The law is trite that a man intends the natural consequences of his act.”

He adds:

“From the evidence before this Court and in particular the extrajudicial statement of the accused person, Exhibit A and the evidence of PW1 and PW2 which corroborates and is consistent with the facts contained in the said extrajudicial statement Exhibit A, I hold that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that the accused person murdered her deceased husband on or about the 6th day of July, 2012, and I find the accused person guilty of the murder of Darlington Attah as charged.

Accused person is accordingly, hereby convicted of the offence of murder. The sentence of this Court upon you, Mary Attah is death by hanging by the neck till you be dead and may the Lord have mercy on your soul."
May the soul of the departed rest in peace.