Olayiwola Matthew
Mrs Retyit Haruna, the woman accused in viral online reports to have set her soldier husband ablaze, has denied the reports.
It had earlier been reported that Retyit had poured petrol on her husband, Lieutenant Samson Haruna and set him ablaze over domestic argument.
The incident occured on Monday September 22, 2025, at the couple’s residence at Wellington Bassey Barracks, Ibagwa, Akwa Ibom State.
Retyit now arrested and under interrogation has now broken her silence on the matter, saying she did not set her late husband ablaze contrary to the viral report.
She told her interrogators that rather than kill her husband, he was the one that inadvertently set himself on fire.
According to her, the tragic incident was not intentional. She explained that since the very first month of their marriage, her husband had been physically abusing her, and almost everyone in the barracks was aware of it.
“There was a time he beat me so badly that I suffered a miscarriage,” she said tearfully.
She claimed that the abuse continued until Monday, 22 September 2025, when her husband allegedly threatened her, saying she should leave his house or something terrible would happen to her. He reportedly warned her not to take any of the items he bought during their wedding, threatening to burn them if she did.
She continued: “He left for work that morning and told me he didn’t want to see me in the house when he returned. I stayed, thinking he didn’t mean it. But when he came back, he came with petrol. He told me again to leave or he would set me on fire. I thought he was joking until he pulled out a lighter”.
In fear, she said she tried calling the Commanding Officer (CO) to report what was happening, but there was no quick response.
“He mistakenly kicked the petrol container, and it spilled on the floor. The lighter fell from his hand, and suddenly the place caught fire. I ran out screaming for help, while he went back inside to retrieve his documents, that was when the fire spread and burned him.”