In a shocking turn of events, a police officer is being probed for severing his wife’s hand following a dispute over money.
Typically, disputes are resolved, but this was not the case in the household of Ibrahim Shagari, a police officer from the Plateau State Police Command.
Hauwa Shagari, his wife, who is pregnant and a mother of three, reported that the incident occurred after an argument with her husband.
She shared her ordeal from the hospital where she is currently recovering and receiving medical care.
“I don’t have issues of violence with him, except insults when he is drunk. Whenever he drinks and gets drunk, he misbehaves. I manage to take care of him whenever he is drunk and lock him up in a room,” she said.
“He often says he would break the door and I have always responded that anything he wants to do, he should do. Then he would start calling neighbours to open the door for him. He would get tired and sleep off. That’s all.
“That day, I was trying to do the same thing so that he would enter and go and sleep. However, I was not aware that he was holding a sharp cutlass, and that was how he cut my hand. He has never beaten me before. Only that we argue from time to time.”
Officials from the Ministry of Health, Women’s Affairs and Social Development, and the Gender and Equal Opportunities Commission visited the victim at the Plateau Specialist Hospital, where she is currently receiving medical care.
The Plateau Command of the Nigeria Police Force has completed the trial of Ibrahim Shagari on charges of domestic violence, while the Plateau State Government has committed to supporting his wife and providing for the children.
The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Caroline Dafur, spoke to journalists about the government’s stance, strongly condemning the incident and the broader issue of gender-based violence, which is increasingly prevalent.
The rising cases of domestic violence, which predominantly affect women, are a growing concern.
