The maternal relations of Arinzechukwu Chukwumalu, the only survivor in a family of six, whose parents and siblings died mysteriously on April 27, 2020, at Amokpo-Nike in the Enugu East Local Government Area of Enugu State, have expressed concern about his safety.
The boy’s father, Dominic, a native of Eziowelle, Idemili Local Government Area of Anambra State, died with his pregnant wife and three children in mysterious circumstances in their house in Enugu.
Arinzechukwu, 10, who survived the incident, is still recuperating at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu, where doctors have been battling to save his life for nearly two months.
His aunt, Miss Ogochukwu Ngwu, told PUNCH Metro that her late sister, her husband and children were buried last Saturday without post-mortem examination to determine the cause of their death.
She said since their demise, the police had not come up with any information as to what caused their death, adding that the life of the boy was currently in danger.
Ogochukwu stated that the police only visited the boy at the hospital last Monday since the incident occurred.
“We are highly suspicious that my sister and her family were killed. The police appeared not interested in finding out what killed them, probably because we didn’t have money to give to them to do their job,” she stated.
Asked why an autopsy was not conducted before the victims’ burial, she said, “They said the money that should be used to conduct the post-mortem should be used for the treatment of the lone surviving son. That was the information before us and I wasn’t happy with that decision.
“Now, they have been buried and nobody knows what caused their death. What if they were killed by someone somewhere; won’t they come after the son?
“We are living at Abakpa-Nike and my late sister and her family were living in the Amokpo-Nike community, all in Enugu East Local Government Area of the state. If the police can’t find out what killed his parents, how safe will he be living with us?”
Ogochukwu appealed for financial assistance to take care of Arinzechukwu’s treatment, adding that some tests that doctors recommended should be done in Lagos had yet to be done because of lack of funds.
Efforts to get the police to speak on the matter were futile as neither the state Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Abdulrahman, nor the Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Daniel Ndukwe, answered their calls as their phones rang out.