I still hear my kids calling for help – Father of three siblings stuffed in freezer

Forty-seven-year-old nurse, Ejezie Udochukwu, opens up to IKENNA OBIANERI about the indescribable pain of losing his three children under mysterious and shocking circumstances in Nnewichi, Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State

Recently, reports went viral about the killing of your three children. How did it happen?

I am from Umuokanam Umucheke, Umueze-Uga in Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State. I am 47 years old and a nurse by profession. I reside in Edo State, while my wife and children live in Nnewi, Anambra State, but I visit them regularly.

On February 1, 2025, my wife went for an official assignment and left our children at home, as usual, because it was not a school day. She gave them instructions as she always did. However, when she returned at about 5 pm, she noticed that the doors were wide open, unlike before.

Why was the door open?

She was expecting her children to greet and hug her, but she didn’t hear any voices or see any of them. She went to the kitchen to check if the food she had left for them had been eaten, but the food was still there. She began wondering where the children had gone.

My first daughter is an altar server, and every Saturday, she goes for rehearsals. My second daughter attends catechism for her first holy communion, and the youngest one, they can’t keep him at home, so he is usually taken along. But on that day, they didn’t go anywhere, and nobody knew where they were.

What happened thereafter?

At first, my wife didn’t suspect anything, as she came back from her assignment tired and needed to eat.

While she was eating, I called and asked if she had seen the children. She said ‘no’. I asked her how she could comfortably eat without knowing where our children were. She asked me to allow her to eat first, and I agreed. After eating, she went to the church that the children attended. I even told her that if she found them, she should discipline them, not knowing that my children had already been killed and stuffed inside the freezer.

How old were the children?

My first daughter, Chikaima, was nine years old; Chimdirim David, my son, was five; and Chimziterem Dominica, my second daughter, was eight years old. They were the only ones at home when the incident occurred.

How long have you lived in the compound?

We live in a two-room apartment behind the main building. There are two separate one-room apartments occupied by medical students, and we have been living in this compound for five years. We are the only family living there, along with two medical students.

What time did your wife start searching for the children before discovering their bodies in the freezer?

She started calling people whom she thought my children might have visited, though they were not the visiting type. Every person she called said they had not visited them.

My wife also asked their friends if they had seen them, but they all said no. The search, which began at about 5 pm, lasted until 8 pm, and still, the children were nowhere to be found. At that point, my wife became anxious, and it dawned on us that something was wrong. We assumed they had gone to visit someone and there was no adult to bring them back.

I told my wife that we should make an announcement. I went to my Facebook page to post their pictures, but when I tried to type a message, the pictures disappeared. Some of my Facebook friends, who had seen the pictures, mistakenly thought I was celebrating them. I called my wife and asked her to go to the church to make an announcement. When she arrived at the church, the reverend father was there, and he sent a priest to accompany her.

Was there no electricity?

There was no electricity, and even the fridge where the children were kept was not cold as there was no food inside. The medical student entered the house to help search for the children. A few minutes later, my wife, accompanied by the priest, was approaching the house.

When the medical student saw them, he went to my wife and asked, “Do your children usually play in any strange way?”

That question sounded negative to my wife. The priest noticed that the medical student was about to break some bad news to my wife, so he pushed him aside.

The medical student then narrated to the priest what he had seen inside the fridge. Before we knew it, people had started gathering in my apartment to see what had happened.

Where was your wife at this stage?

Someone held her back to prevent her from seeing what was inside the freezer, apparently to shield her from the shock. They wisely chose not to disclose the information to her immediately, though she kept noticing people entering and leaving the house.

At that point, she still didn’t understand what was happening.

Who broke the news to you and your wife?

After some time, the people, including the priest, calmly told her what had happened. I was in Edo State, managing the situation over the phone.

I called my wife multiple times, but she didn’t answer. When she finally did, I asked her to hand the phone to the medical student because by then, I had started sensing something was terribly wrong.

The medical student asked me if I was alone because there are some things you don’t disclose when someone is by themselves. But I gathered my courage and asked him to tell me what had happened. That was when he broke the news to me.

After hearing the news, I hung up and immediately started calling my brothers, relatives, friends, and in-laws. I also informed my professional group in Edo State about the tragedy.

They were the ones who came to be with me so I wouldn’t be alone that night. The next day, I travelled to Anambra State.

In what positions were they found inside the freezer?

I didn’t see the picture myself, but I was told that they were found in sitting and bent positions, placed side by side. The freezer was not large enough to contain them because they were bigger than it. I guess that’s why their bodies had to be forced into it, based on what people told me. The freezer had not been used for some time due to a power outage. I will continue using the freezer because it wasn’t the freezer that killed my children, and it doesn’t make me feel bad to keep it.

Did they ever play hide and seek in the freezer?

No, there was never any time they played and tried to hide inside the freezer. There was no history of them climbing it, and there were no signs indicating that they had done so. If they had, there would have been a chair nearby to assist them, but there was no chair.

Those that found them in the freezer didn’t see any chair around it.

Were there injuries on their bodies?

According to the people who saw them, there were no visible injuries on their bodies, but they were bleeding from the nose. When I asked if any vaginal exams had been done to determine if any of them had been sexually assaulted, nobody answered me.

This is the problem we face in our country. In other places, there would be equipment to determine who the children were last seen with. Unfortunately, we don’t have such technology here.

How has this incident affected you?

It is with tears in my eyes that I speak. Every parent understands the pain of losing a child, but losing three at once is unimaginable. It has shattered us. We loved our children dearly.

My first daughter, Chikaima, was exceptionally brilliant. If she were here as I grant this interview, she would be telling countless stories. She was well-known in school for her intelligence—so much so that they called her the ‘Kri Kri Star.’

If you took first place from her in class, you were looking for trouble. My home became a gathering place for children who needed help with their assignments, and Chikaima was always there to guide them.

How many children do you have?

I have four children. The first one is in the seminary school. We plan to visit him on his school’s visiting day and use the opportunity to break the news to him.

Now that this incident has occurred, will you support him to become a reverend father if that is his desire?

It’s still God’s will that will determine everything. We want him to reach an age where he can make mature decisions and choose his career path.

Do you see yourself as having more children in future now that they are no more?

I found fulfilment in my children. Even though they are no longer with us, I don’t view them as truly gone. I would still consider myself as having four children, though three are now deceased.

However, this is not something I can decide alone. Marriage involves both partners considering each other’s feelings. If it weren’t for my wife, I might have said I’m content to stay as I am. Anything that would erase the memory of my late children would be something I couldn’t do. I will enlarge their photographs and look at them all the time because those children were a special gift to me. I will never forget them.

Do you think the situation could have changed if you were around?

God knows what’s best. I can only imagine the agony the children must have endured at the hands of their killers. I still hear them shouting “Daddy, daddy…mummy, mummy,” but no one came to help. When I look at their pictures, I apologise to them, and I can only imagine how they must have cried for help and struggled to breathe, with no one to come to their aid. It is heart-wrenching.

Have they been buried?

No, they are still at the morgue. The police are still conducting their investigations.

What remarkable things do you think you would be missing now that your children are no more?

Every child has their own unique qualities. For my first daughter, I’ll miss her stories and brilliant mind. I had already prepared myself for her university education and hoped to see her graduate with first-class honours.

For my second daughter, I’ll miss her voice as she would often help decide family matters with us. For my little boy, I can’t forget the gentle, angelic way he would sing to God.

Are you satisfied with the investigation being carried out by the police so far?

Absolutely. I am satisfied with the progress, and I’ve urged them to continue until those responsible for this heinous act are found. I have confidence in the police to do what is necessary so that justice will be served. The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare has also visited us and assured us that justice will be done. While what has happened cannot be undone, we can only ask for justice, so that these children’s deaths won’t be in vain.

Has any arrest been made and are you suspecting anybody?

I don’t believe anyone has been arrested yet. Our co-tenants, who were initially questioned, were released after 24 hours after providing their accounts of the incident. We have no suspicions, as there have been no quarrels or conflicts with anyone. I am leaving everything in the hands of the security operatives, trusting them to uncover the truth.

Where are you currently staying since your apartment has been sealed?

We are temporarily staying with a relative until our apartment is unsealed.

How old is your wife, and when did you get married?

My wife is 34 years old. We got married in 2012.

In what ways are you helping her to manage the situation?

I am always by her side. This kind of incident could lead someone to do something drastic, and even contemplate suicide. Thankfully, people are constantly around her, offering words of comfort and encouragement. I do everything I can to support her through this devastating time.