In a distressing incident in Yola, the capital of Adamawa State, a POS operator named Umar Usman resorted to consuming a locally made insecticide on Monday in an apparent suicide attempt due to a debt amounting to N1.7 million.
Umar, hailing from Yola South LGA, ingested the toxic substance known as Otapiapia while appearing in court at the Upper Area Court I in Yola. He was brought before the court following a criminal complaint filed by his friend, Mustapha Baraya, concerning the outstanding debt.
Earlier this year, on February 13, Umar’s friend from the same community lodged a lawsuit against him, accusing him of “criminal misappropriation and breach of trust.”
According to the case history, Baraya had provided Umar with a sum of N1.9 million for operating a POS business. However, Umar allegedly misappropriated the funds and only returned N150,000.
Despite the complainant’s attempts to recover the remaining balance of N1.760 million, Umar and his father continuously deceived him even after the court had issued a judgment.
The court had previously ordered Umar to refund the money within one month but he failed to comply. During the proceedings, Umar and his father claimed to have a rice farm that was ready for harvest, promising to refund the money after the harvest. However, they secretly harvested the crop without repaying the debt.
In response, the court issued an order for the disposal of Umar’s house, which was originally given to him by his father.
Evidently discontented with the court’s decision, Usman arrived at the court hearing on Monday with a bottle of Otapiapia. He entered the chamber of Judge Hon. Shehu Mustapha and consumed the substance, leading to immediate vomiting, loss of consciousness, and subsequent hospitalization.
