Poisoned rice kills a 2year old boy

Firstclass newsline learnt that there was tension and anxiety in the
Ijora Badia area of Lagos State when a two-year-old boy, Ibrahim, died
after eating a plate of rice suspected to have been poisoned.
Firstclass newsline learnt that the food was prepared by his mother,
Fatimoh Azeez.
Fatimoh, however, said the food was eaten by other members of her
family who were not hurt, adding that she suspected that one of her
sisters-in-law, Fatimoh Rasaki, who had visited her on the day of the
incident, had a hand in the death of the child.
Firstclass newsline learnt that Fatimoh used to visit her boyfriend,
Isa, regularly in his parents' apartment on Olajide Street in the
Ijora community.
She was said to have become pregnant for him and was later delivered of the boy.
The lovebirds were reportedly cohabiting in the house when Fatimoh's
parents took her and the baby away to their house on Akosile Street.
Isa was reportedly allowed to visit both mother and child.
Firstclass newsline learnt that on one of such visits, Isa had a
disagreement with his mother-in-law, which escalated into a fight with
his girlfriend.
Fatimoh's family reportedly stopped him from visiting the child.
His sisters, Fatimoh Rasaki and Latifah Musbau, both married with
children, were said to be visiting Fatimoh's family on the fateful
Sunday to mediate in the couple's dispute, when the child died.
Fatimoh, in her statement to the police, said she was washing some
clothes at the back of the house when she saw Rasaki spoon-feeding her
child, which made her upset because she feared he could be poisoned.
She said, "After I gave birth to my child, my husband's people started
maltreating me and sent me out of the house. I decided to stay with my
parents.
"On August 16, around 11am, I was washing clothes when I saw my two
sisters-in-law coming into the house to meet my parents.
"I saw as Fatimoh (Rasaki) carried my child and began to feed him with
rice. I quickly rushed there and grabbed him from her and strapped him
to my back.
"After some time, I put him on the bed. Suddenly, he started shaking
uncontrollably. I rushed him to a hospital, where the doctor said he
had died.
"I was the one who prepared the rice and it was eaten by all members
of my family."firstclass newsline
learnt that the two sisters-in-law, upon hearing the news, rushed to the house.
They were said to have been arrested by the policemen from the Ijora
Badia division, before the case was transferred to the State
Department of Criminal Investigation, Yaba.
Musbau, a tailor, however, denied having anything to do with the death
of the child.
She said the visit was at the instance of their late father, who
pleaded with them to resolve the dispute between the two families.
She said, "It was when Fatimoh became pregnant that we knew she and
Isa had been dating.
"She stayed with my mother and gave birth to the child, before her
parents took her away.
"After that, Isa started going to visit the boy. But one day, he had a
disagreement with his mother-in-law. His girlfriend also started
harassing him anywhere she spotted him. We warned him to stop visiting
them. And he stopped."
She said their father, who had been ill, appealed to them on his death
bed to make peace with Fatimoh's parents and bring the child back
home.
Rasaki told a source that they decided to go for a truce visitation on
the fateful Sunday.
She said, "When we arrived at Fatimoh's parents' house, it was only
her mother that was around. We also saw three kids eating rice in
different plates. We did not know which of them Ibrahim was.
"Her mother started abusing us, saying she would deal with us for all
we made her daughter go through.
"She was still talking when her daughter suddenly barged into the
room, carried the child and strapped her to her back. She then stormed
out of the room.
"Later, her father arrived and we broke the news of our father's death
to him. He condoled with us and said the dispute would soon be
settled."
She said later, Fatimoh's mother came and broke the news of the
child's death to them.
"She said the boy had died and left the house without saying another
word. We all rushed to their house and saw the corpse of the boy. It
was while condoling with the family that the police came and arrested
us," she added.
A police source said the police were investigating a possible case of
food poisoning.
"It is still not clear what killed the child. But we are suspecting
food poisoning. The remaining food eaten by the boy has already been
packed for a test and we are awaiting the autopsy report. Once there
is a problem with the food, the women will have a case to answer," he
said.
The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Patricia Amadin, when
contacted on the incident, promised to get back.
But she had yet to do so as of the time of filing this report.
Firstclassnewsline.net