Tenant sets 83-yr-old landlord ablaze over quit notice in Edo

Residents of Uwa Street, Benin City, were thrown into shock on Wednesday, after a tenant, Jeff Obasohan, allegedly set his 83-year-old landlord, Pa Joseph Iyen, ablaze in the early hours of the day.

The landlord reportedly died as a result of severe burns he sustained from the fire.

According to reports, the tenant and his landlord had been having a running battle over Jeff’s refusal to pay rent, resulting in the deceased landlord giving him a quit notice on two occasions.

Esther, the wife of the deceased landlord, while speaking with newsmen, alleged that the tenant had threatened to kill her and Pa Iyen in the past.

She also said that the suspect had failed to pay his electricity bill.

Esther said: “He does not pay his house rent; he does not pay his electricity bill. He (Obasohan) had been told to leave this house since.

“He threatened to kill me or my husband. We took him to court. Then, my husband fell ill. Later, they said that the
case had been struck out.”

Read also: 6 men run from court before counsel files charges

Speaking on the death of her father, Faith Eganbor, the daughter of the late landlord, confirmed that the tenant had been asked to leave the house.

Calling for a thorough investigation into the matter, Faith, who described her late father as “a kind man”, said: “I need justice. My father was a good man; he was kind to a fault. It was not the first time the tenant was asked to leave this house.

“They gave him a notice to quit in 2014, 2015 and early this year. We came this morning to find out (that) our father was dead.”

The spokesman of the Edo State Police Command, Osifo Abiodun, confirmed the incident on Thursday, adding that the case had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation.

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