Morufa Alagbala, a 26 year old woman, who got missing for two days, has been found inside a well in the Omitoro, Ijede area of Ikorodu, Lagos State.
It was learnt that the family had reported Morufa missing last week’s Tuesday at the Igbogbo Police Division, when her whereabouts were not known.
PUNCH Metro gathered that she was discovered dead on Thursday when some plumbers came to work inside the well in the house. Punch visited Babatunde Aina Street, where the family lived, the deceased’s elder sister, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said although Morufa had a history of mental illness, her death was shocking.
She added that although the deceased had wandered from home in the past, she usually returned after some hours.
She said,
“On Tuesday, Morufa was not found at home or in the neighbourhood. I thought it was the usual way she had been straying from home. But she would always return. The illness made her get violent and act strangely sometimes. There was a time when she became too aggressive, and struck me on the head.
“We had been managing her condition until that Tuesday when she went missing.
“On Thursday, some plumbers came to fix a problem with our well, and they complained that the water stank. When they looked more closely, they found that a dead body was on the surface. That was how her corpse was discovered.
“As a result of the illness, I used to take her to a psychiatric hospital in Yaba for treatment. But the last time we went, they were on strike, but she was given some drugs. She could not marry or go to school because of the illness. So when she was not found, we reported at the police station. Her death is unexpected and so shocking, but we believe that it is the will of God.”
It was also learnt that the men of the Lagos State Fire Service came to the house to remove the corpse from the well. The Director of the service, Dr Razak Fadipe, who confirmed the incident, said the officials from the Ikorodu station, attended to the matter.
He said, “The lady accidentally fell and got trapped inside the well. It was about 120 feet deep. She was recovered dead by firefighters from the Ikorodu Fire Station.”