Report: Dino Melaye assaults wife, points pistol to her head; woman sues for divorce

Former legislator, Dino Melaye’s crusade against oppression and victimisation seems to be limited to government officials and agencies, and apparently does not extend to himself.

 

According to reports, Melaye’s consistent violent attacks on his wife, Tokunbo Melaye, has led to the woman filing for divorce.

Melaye who is noted for his confrontational style while in the House of Representatives, and subsequently, is reported to have made it a habit to batter his wife of 10 years who has 3 children for him. Melaye’s wife became a constant visitor to the hospital, as a result. He has also been accused of infidelity after “sleeping with the house help and various other women.

A report by Stella Dimokokorkus blog says that “for the past 9yrs  Dino has been beating his wife to the point that there are police records stating some reported instances, she was five months pregnant with her second son when the beatings began,and it got worse. She was rushed to Zanlin hospital in 2005 at exactly 10pm, and was treated for injuries on the head when he hit her with an iron rod.”
It was also reported that Tokunbo was rushed to Wuse general hospital in October 2010 by the police themselves after she ran for safety in her bloodied nightgown with deep cuts on her arms. During that incident, Dino Melaye was said to have flogged her with a plank which caused deep cuts in her arms while she was trying to protect her head which Dino was aiming for.

The final straw occurred on September 25, 2013 when Dino allegedly pointed a silver pistol to Tokunbo’s head during an argument and was allegedly seconds away from pulling the trigger when his phone rang, distracting him. That was Tokunbo’s saving grace as she took off leaving behind her shoes.

According to insiders, the issue on the morning of September 25th was caused by Tokunbo’s attempt to wear a dressing gown in Dino’s wardrobe. Dino had refused her request saying that all the dressing gowns and perfumes he had were gifts from his girlfriends and he did not buy them with money. Believing that what is good for the goose is also good for the gander, Tokunbo was reported to have responded by saying she could as well accept gifts from male friends.

This infuriated Dino who thereafter accused his wife of referring to her ex boyfriend and asked her to leave his house. After escaping, the wife eventually reported the incident to the Commissioner of Police and was escorted back to the house with five policemen who came to search for the gun with a warrant of arrest.

Dino was invited to the police headquarters and the same warrant of arrest later surfaced online claiming he had been arrested because of the Stella Oduah corruption case he was previously arrested for.

Tokunbo has now filed for divorce and is demanding custody of the kids but she has not been allowed to see them or have any contact with them.

According to a source who spoke to the earlier quoted blog, “Dino sacked three of his domestic staff because they were updating Madam on the whereabouts and well being of her three children but was later quoted as being nine domestic staff sacked for being security risks? Dino has over 10 cars but if he has small issues with his wife,he seizes all the car keys and forces her to either trek or take public transport. If she returns home anyway after 7pm,she must sleep outside the gate till he returns home by 1am his usual time and when he gets back, just know that there is fire on the mountain.”

Expectedly, Dino Melaye’s camp has given a different explanation for the cause of the crash of his marriage while the former lawmaker is also demanding the custody rights of the children through his lawyer.
Tokunbo Melaye’s claim is being backed by FIDA, an international body for female lawyers, who are now involved in the fight for the rights of the estranged Mrs Melaye , who is asking for full custody of the three children who have been seized from her