The Federal Government will on Friday (today) arraign Peter Nwachukwu, husband of late popular gospel artiste, Osinachi, who died in April after she was allegedly assaulted by her spouse.
Nwachukwu will face a 23-count bordering on culpable homicide, verbal, physical abuse and wrongful confinement, wrongful restraint, economic abuse, forced isolation, emotional and psychological abuse and attempt to commit culpable homicide, among others.
The Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, confirmed this to The PUNCH on Thursday, adding that Nwachukwu would be arraigned before Court 56, FCT High Court, Wuse.
The PUNCH reports that the 42-year-old musician had died after spending days at a hospital.
Nwachukwu was consequently arrested by the police after colleagues of Osinachi, who was a lead singer at the Dunamis International Headquarters, Abuja, accused him of beating her.
The defendant was charged under Sections 104 and 379 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.
The case with charge number, CR/199/2022, was filed at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, on May 20, 2022, by the Head, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, Department of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Ministry of Justice, Mrs Yewande Gbola-Awopetun.
The prosecutor accused the defendant of forcefully ejecting the deceased from the family home, contrary to the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015, adding that he also attempted culpable homicide by pushing Osinachi out of a moving vehicle.
The Federal Government further alleged that the defendant deprived the deceased of her liberty by restraining her movement and locking her up in the house.
Nwachukwu was also accused of emotional, verbal and psychological abuse contrary to section 14(1) of the VAP Act, 2015.
The defendant was said to have denied Osinachi access to her money for medication and household necessities and forced her into begging and borrowing.
The charge further alleged that Osinachi’s husband forcefully isolated and separated her from her family by preventing the deceased’s mother and siblings from visiting her matrimonial home.
Nwachukwu was similarly accused of cruelly beating the children and recording their cry and playing it on his phone.
The charges added that he threatened the children and prevented them from reporting the acts of domestic violence against their mother to his pastor, Dr Paul Enenche or any other person.
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