Police arrest man filmed assaulting woman over ‘pot of soup’

Police said the suspect would be arraigned on charges of attempted murder and assault.

The police in Abia State, South-east Nigeria, say they have arrested Agwu Ukpo, a 37-year-old man who was filmed assaulting a woman, Amarachi Chinyere, in the state.

The police spokesperson in Abia State, Maureen Chinaka, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.

The viral video clip

A video clip circulating on Facebook showed Mr Agwu aggressively assaulting Chinyere inside an apartment in Aba, the commercial hub of the state.

The man, who wore only shorts, was heard in the clip threatening to kill the woman as he pinned her down while repeatedly and aggressively hitting her with his fists.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the incident happened in April but the clip surfaced online in June.

This newspaper reliably gathered that contrary to insinuations the man and the victim are not lovers but were only living in the same apartment belonging to a man called Chinonso Ebegbulem.

Mr Ebegbulem, the owner of the apartment where the assault happened, has confirmed in a separate video clip that he personally recorded the assault incident in the now-viral clip.

He said he could not help the victim at the time of the assault because he was ill.

Mr Ebegbulem said he subsequently reported the matter to the police in Abia which prompted the suspect’s arrest.

He confirmed that he and the duo hail from the same Ohafia Area of the state, which was why he accommodated them in his apartment because both of them had accommodation problems at the time.

Arrest

In the Sunday statement, Ms Chinaka, a deputy superintendent of police, said the dispute between the suspect and the victim arose from a pot of soup.

The police spokesperson said the suspect was arrested by operatives of the Violent Crime Response Unit following receipt of a tip-off.

“The case is currently under discreet investigation at the State Criminal Investigation Department and the suspect will be charged to court upon the conclusion of investigations,” she said.

She stressed that the police in Abia have condemned the incident, describing it as “barbaric, unacceptable and inhumane act of domestic violence.”

Ms Chinaka said the suspect would be arraigned on charges of attempted murder and assault.

The police spokesperson urged Anua residents to desist from all forms of violence, as the police in the state remain committed to ensuring that perpetrators of the crime would be prosecuted.