A middle-aged man, Emmanuel Akposi, has been declared wanted after allegedly pouring fuel on his elderly mother and setting her ablaze in Ojo community, Akamkpa Local Government Area of Cross River State.
The victim, Mrs Atim Akposi, also known as Atim Eyo, suffered severe burns in the attack on Friday, August 14. She was taken to a community health centre in Ojo before being moved to Akamkpa General Hospital and later the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, UCTH. She died there early Monday.
The attack was reportedly linked to Emmanuel’s repeated claims that his mother was a witch and caused the death of his child.
His elder brother, Eyo Akposi, told Vanguard on Wednesday that Emmanuel had accused their mother of witchcraft for years.
“Before now, he had been accusing our mother for years of being a witch. He told people that some pastors told him that our mother was a witch.
“He even accused her of being the cause of the death of his child. He confronted her many times, trying to kill her, until the incident of last week,” he alleged.
Eyo said Emmanuel entered their mother’s room, tried to strangle her and later set her on fire after she resisted.
“On that day, he entered her room and tried to strangle her. When she resisted, he hit her and she fell to the ground. Then he poured fuel on her and set her on fire and fled immediately afterwards,” he said.
Neighbours raised the alarm and took her to hospital. Eyo later advised the family to move her to UCTH after receiving a video of the attack.
“When they sent the video to me, because I don’t live in the same place with them, I told them to move her from the hospital in Akamkpa to UCTH, where she died,” he said.
The matter was reported to Uyanga Divisional Police Station, which began an investigation and launched a manhunt for Emmanuel.
Meanwhile, Advocacy for Alleged Witches (AfAW) condemned the attack. Its Director, Leo Igwe, said the incident showed the deadly effect of witchcraft accusations.
“Mrs Akposi’s death underscores the vicious impact of witchcraft suspicion and accusation on innocent lives,” he said.
AfAW called for Emmanuel’s immediate arrest and prosecution and urged churches to stop promoting messages that could encourage witch-hunting and violence against alleged witches.
