Family of 3 dies in their new house

Minna — Their joy knew no bounds when they parked to their new house last Saturday.

It was a day they had looked forward to and they took the final decision to move into the new apartment in Gbeganu area in Minna, Niger State last Saturday.

The Adewales

Though not completed, the house was, however, habitable as the plan was  to gradually complete the house as they moved in.

However, instead of relatives and well wishers trooping to the new house to congratulate them and “wash” it, it was the burial ceremony of the family of three that relatives and other well wishers went for.

The middle aged man, Seyi Adewale, a generator repairer, his wife, Felicia, aged 23 and their three-month-old daughter, Deborah, were, Tuesday, found dead in their room with the corpses already decomposing.

It was gathered that they died on Saturday night, the day they moved into the new house.

Vanguard gathered that the trio, who retired to one of their rooms late in the night to enjoy their first night in the house switched on their generating set close to the room while the fume emitting from the set consumed them overnight. They never woke up to see the next day.

Unknown to other neighbours that the trio had parked in, the corpses of the three-member family remained in the room unattended to and were gradually decomposing.

However, the junior sister of the deceased husband, Deborah, who had been making frantic effort to locate her brother got more worried, Tuesday, four days after they had moved into the new house.

It was a shocker to her after forcing the door of the house open to meet them dead after being killed  by fume from the generator.

She immediately raised alarm which attracted other neighbours to the scene.

She said: “We last spoke on phone on Saturday night, when he was moving his property and family to the new house.

“On Sunday, which was the second day, I also called but nobody picked. I still tried on Monday thinking it was due to the poor network service or run-down battery and yet no response and that was why I decided to come down to the house only to meet my brother and family dead and decomposing.

“It is very unfortunate for this to have happened to my brother, especially at a time when we are supposed to be rejoicing with them on their new house.”

Land in contention

Vanguard gathered that the land on which the deceased erected his house had been in dispute with another contender, which was, however, “settled” by the community head of the area.

Contacted, the state police command through its spokesman, Mr Richard Oguche, who confirmed the deaths, said they must have died as a result of inhaling the carbon monoxide from the generating set, which was turned on overnight and left close to their room.

The corpses have  been buried in Minna, the Niger State capital.