A four-year-old child is dead and a nine-year-old sibling is receiving hospital treatment after their father’s second wife allegedly gave them a poisonous substance in Takuti community, Lapai Local Government Area of Niger State.
The Niger State Police Command has arrested the suspect, identified as Mariya Abdullahi, over the incident, which occurred at about 6am on Friday, November 6.
Police said the children became unconscious after allegedly drinking the substance. They were rushed to a nearby clinic, but one of them was pronounced dead on arrival. The surviving child was subsequently transferred to a general hospital, where medical personnel were attending to the victim.
The circumstances surrounding the alleged poisoning have drawn attention to a disturbing account of the suspect’s reported motive. Police spokesman Wasiu Abiodun said preliminary investigations indicated that Abdullahi claimed a friend influenced her decision to harm the children because she could not have a child for her husband.
The claim, however, has not been independently established. Investigators are expected to examine the circumstances of the incident, including the alleged involvement of another person and the substance administered to the children.
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In a statement, Abiodun said the Lapai Police Division received a report about the incident on November 6. Officers were dispatched to the community, where they found that the two children had allegedly been given a substance suspected to be poison.
“The suspect was arrested and is undergoing further interrogation,” the police spokesman said.
He added that Abdullahi would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Minna for further investigation and prosecution.
The transfer is expected to allow investigators to establish the precise sequence of events, determine the nature of the substance involved and examine the suspect’s account of how the alleged act was conceived.
Police have yet to disclose whether the substance has been recovered or subjected to laboratory analysis hitherto.
The incident also raises troubling questions about the safety of children within households where adults have unresolved family tensions. Children should not become targets of hostility arising from disputes between spouses or other relatives.
However, the available police account does not establish that a marital dispute directly triggered the incident.
The surviving child’s condition and the outcome of the investigation will be central to the next stage of the case. The suspect’s arrest represents an initial step in the police inquiry, while any criminal responsibility will ultimately be determined through the legal process.
