Police confirm arrest of Celebrity Lagos businessman over wife’s death

Police confirm arrest of Celebrity Lagos businessman over wife’s death

The Lagos State Police Command has confirmed the arrest of a 37-year-old Lagos-based celebrity car dealer, Ikechukwu Ogbonna, aka IVD, over the death of his wife, Abimbola, in the Lekki area of the state.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin confirmed the arrest to newsmen on Monday, saying, “He was arrested on Saturday, he’s with us.” 

Hundeyin, in a tweet via his Twitter page on Tuesday, further informed that  IVD has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Yaba.

He tweeted, “Contrary to claims by family and friends that 37-year-old Ikechukwu Ogbonna aka IVD is on the run, he has been arrested and transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Yaba.

Contrary to claims by family and friends that 37-year-old Ikechukwu Ogbonna aka IVD is on the run, he has been arrested and transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Lagos.

Recall that Ikechukwu and Bimbo had been married for 16 years and their marriage has been blessed with five children.

But, the marriage was greeted with disagreement and alleged domestic violence, which saw the couples separated and reunited recently, according to reports.

Bimbo, on Saturday, October 15, 2022, was trapped in a fire, which gutted their home in Megamound Estate, Lekki, Lagos, leaving her severely injured, while IVD escaped with minor burns.

She was rushed to a hospital, where she died afterwards.

Reacting to the death of his wife, the suspect posted a series of videos, alleging that the deceased had been violent to him and destroyed his property.

The suspect stated, “See what she did to me? She just hit me right now. This is me bleeding. I won’t take this.”

A post on his page partly read, “My greatest hurts will be at my funeral, everyone will be like, Bimbo was such a fantastic human, a clown, she’s that one person you had on your sos call, she had the biggest heart, very smart, she looked out for her family. Bobby yen yen yen, my corpse will wake up and shout ‘Shut up all of you and put me inside the ground let me be with the lord’.”

The deceased’s family, while demanding justice in a statement, said Ikenna was on the run.

The statement read in part, “As you may be aware, on Saturday, October 15, 2022, Abimbola Martins passed away after suffering fatal burns in a fire incident at her Lagos home.

“It has been a heartbreaking period for her parents, siblings and particularly her children. It is a tragedy that nobody should go through, especially in the painful manner her life was cut short and at the hands of a husband she dedicated her life to.

“Several times during the course of their marriage, we intervened in a bid to rescue her from a terrible situation that ultimately has now taken her life. Abimbola was a loving individual and a committed wife and mother, who put the desire that her children were raised by two parents before her own peace of mind, happiness and well-being.

“The perpetrator of this dastardly act, her husband of 16 years, Ikenna Darryl Ogbonna, an auto dealer widely known as IVD, is currently on the run, hoping to evade justice. We know that it won’t be forever.

“As the family tries to come to terms with this terrible loss, we want to appeal to members of the public to join us in demanding that justice is done.”