Nigerian man shot himself over rape allegation, says US police

Izuchukwu Madubueze, a Nigerian entrepreneur, shot himself dead in Florida over an allegation of sexual assault, US police has revealed.

The Punch reports that Travis Sibley, spokesman for the Pinellas County Sheriff’s office, confirmed the development while speaking on the circumstances surrounding Izu’s death.

Sibley noted that the Nigerian died after what seemed a “self-inflicted gunshot wound” last week in a suspected case of suicide.

“Izuchukwu Madubueze was the victim of what appears to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound on July 16, 2020. The case is open and active and no further information will be provided at this time,” he said.

The 23-year-old creative designer’s death comes after Nanichi Anese, a self-acclaimed female rights activist, had included him in a list of “sexual offenders” which she published on her Twitter page in June.

Izu, worried by the allegation, was said to have contacted Anese for clarification on whom his accuser was, noting he had not sexually abused anyone before.

The self-acclaimed influencer, however, declined to reveal the identify of Izu’s accuser, claiming she had promised not to divulge the details.

The development was said to have culminated into frustration for the young Nigerian who would later announce in a scheduled tweets that he had taken his own life.

His death had provoked outrage  on Twitter with many calling on appropriate authorities to ensure those behind his death were brought to book.

Izu’s family, in a statement on Wednesday, expressed sadness over his death, adding that the unproven allegation had negatively affected him and Uhuru Designz, his company.

“Sincerely, a part of us has been chipped away forever. Izu was a truly inspiring and kind-hearted young man, who always tried to positively impact the lives of everyone he came across. He was accused of ‘non-physical sexual assault’ and his name added to an unauthorised sex offenders/rape list,” the statement read.

“Pleading his innocence, Izu tried his best to reach out to his anonymous accuser and the peddler of this list, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. He battled with the unimaginable pain of seeing his credible name and brand, which he laboured to build for six years, go to waste over these questionable allegations, which go against his family and societal values. Broken by the stigma of these events, he chose to depart this world.”

The family also called for investigation into Izu’s death, noting such would serve as a deterrent to people who accuse others of sexual assaults with “sinister motives.”

“Our family will be at peace so long as the death of our beloved son serves as a deterrent for false accusations, especially false rape accusations by people with sinister motives,” it added.