False rape accusation: Nigerians outraged as Florida Police confirms Izu Madubueze shot himself
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office in Florida, United States, has shed more light into the circumstances surrounding the death of a Nigerian entrepreneur Izuchukwu Madubueze who committed suicide over alleged false rape accusations.
The Public Information Office of the Sheriff’s Office told Neusroom that Madubueze shot himself on Thursday July 16, 2020.
“Izuchukwu Madubueze was the victim of what appears to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound on July 16, 2020,” Deputy Travis Sibley, a spokesman of the PCSO wrote in an email sent to Neusroom correspondent.
After gathering that Madubueze was a resident of Tampa in Florida, Neusroom sent an email seeking information on his death to the Tampa Police Department (TPD), but it said it does not have any information.
“The last record we have of Mr. Madubueze in our system is from 2019. Nothing since,” TPD’s spokesperson Jamel Lanee wrote in response to Neusroom correspondent’s email.
“You may want to check with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office or Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office.”
Following the TPD’s advice, Neusroom sent emails to the Hillsborough County Sheriff Office (HCSO) and the Pinellas County Sheriff Office (PCSO).
The HCSO responded first and said it has no information.
“I am not finding any reports of a suicide involving an individual by that name in our system. You may want to check with Tampa PD,” Crystal Clark, its Chief Communications Officer said in an email.
After sending different emails to the Clearwater Police Department, TPD and HCSO all in Florida, the PCSO finally confirmed Madubieze’s death late on Monday night.
The death of the fashion entrepreneur has sparked a wave outrage on the internet on Monday over reports that he took his life after he was falsely accused of rape.
In several tweets examined by Neusroom, his friends and other Twitter users said he was wrongly accused in June 2020 by a lady with the handle @nanichianese (also based in the United States) who claimed she was compiling “a compounded list of abusers to avoid for safety purpose”, and had included Madubueze’s name.
One of the deceased’s friends, Khalid Oshoke, said Madubueze had reached out to the lady who shared the list on Twitter to disclose the accuser so he could clear his name, but she refused and claimed the accuser prefers to remain anonymous.
“Someone was accused of nonphysical sexual assault and added to a list of rapists,” @KhalidOshoke tweeted. “The young man pleaded with the curator of said list to tell him who his accuser was, the curator refused. The young man has committed suicide and the curator has locked her account.”
He had also shared a personal note apologising to his accusers:
He wrote: “I just opened up about my personal survival story this morning so to be accused of harassment right after is coming as a shock to me. First I would like to apologize to anyone who feels I have harassed them in the past…”
Madubueze had insisted that he was “still pretty clueless as to who this is, so if you feel comfortable enough please feel free to reach out to me so I can understand wherever I went wrong and make amends and do better overall.”
Madubueze shot himself after posting what appears to be a suicide note on his Twitter page. “Oh and if you’re reading this, I’m dead lol,” he tweeted at 1am (WAT) on Friday July 17, 2020.
What we know about Madubueze:
Until his death, Madubeze was Creative Director and Founder of Uhuru Designz, a fashion design company he founded in 2016 in Tampa, Florida.
He was an alumnus of Kings College in Lagos and the University of South Florida where he studied Criminology.
The PCSO said the case is open and active and no further information will be provided at the time of sending the email.
Nigerians demand justice:
Since reports of Madubueze went viral on the internet, many Nigerians tweeting with the hashtag #JusticeforIzu, have taken to Twitter to call for justice and also condemn false rape accusations. Many argued that it could ruin the life of the accused and also make the story of real rape victims unbelievable.
In June, a popular medical practitioner on Twitter, Dr Olufunmilayo was accused of rape by his estranged girlfriend Bola Aseyan in the United Kingdom.
A popular Twitter user Kelvin Odanz wrote: “Let’s collectively stand against anonymous accounts accusing random men of rape.Let’s give men a fair hearing, listen to their side of the story. Let’s stop this culture of absolutely believing ALL women.Let’s also take a stand against false rape accusations.
“And some men don’t have the mental strength to withstand the barrage of insults, calls, negative attention they get when accused.”
Another Twitter user with the handle @LadyGrasha wrote: “The story behind #JusticeforIZU Is a sad one and still hammers what I’ve been saying. It’s important to listen to both sides of a story. An allegation ain’t enough proof. Of course some ladies don’t agree with me but it’s true. False rape allegations are real and a crime.”
@ToyosiGodwin tweeted: “If you are going to accuse someone of rape, DO NOT DO IT ANONYMOUSLY! Tell the rapist he/she is a rapist with your chest. If you are right, you’ll get justice. Rape is too big a crime.”
