How my husband met Stella, why she sold his properties

The dispute over the estate of late Nollywood actor John “Mr Ibu” Okafor took a fresh turn on Thursday after his first wife, Ifeyinwa Nwani, made new allegations against his widow, Stella Maris, while recounting how the couple met.

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PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that the family feud resurfaced after Stella appealed to Nigerians for financial assistance during an interview with content creator Mukoro “King Mitchy” Michelle.

The interview prompted fresh accusations from Mr Ibu’s son, Somtochukwu, who alleged that Stella sold some of the late actor’s properties and mismanaged funds donated for his medical treatment, among other claims.

Now, speaking in an interview with digital creator Babatunde Lucky, Ifeyinwa has offered her own account of Mr Ibu’s relationship with Stella and the ongoing dispute over his estate.

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How they met

Ifeyinwa also disputed what she described as the impression that Stella was Mr Ibu’s only wife.

According to her, the late actor met Stella after allegedly finding her stranded following an altercation with her boyfriend.

“My husband, Mr Ibu, met Stella on the road when her boyfriend beat her up and threw her things out. My husband was on his way home from work when he met her and picked her up. That’s how they started. Then Stella claimed she was pregnant, and he brought her home.

“It was my son, Valentine, who went to pack Stella’s properties where she was squatting with some other girls. I don’t know the year they met. After that happened, I just left and faced my life. I’m the only one who mourned this man. You can verify; ask anybody in our local government, and they will tell you. I mourned him for one whole year. I couldn’t attend parties, meetings or celebrations because I was still mourning.”

Mr Ibu’s family life

Ifeyinwa said she married Mr Ibu on 19 November 1994, and the couple welcomed their only child, Daniel, the following year.

According to her, they separated in January 1997 but never formally divorced.

She recalled supporting the late actor financially during the early stages of his career before their marriage broke down.

“When I married my husband, I had nothing. He was an electrician at Benjamin in Onitsha, while I sold pepper in the market. Sometimes I gave him money to meet people in the industry, in the hope that they would give him acting opportunities.

“When he eventually started acting, he changed. He began dating our landlady, who later asked him to send me away. In January 1997, after returning from a trip to the village, my husband asked me to leave with our baby.”

She said she single-handedly raised their son through primary and secondary school, and that Mr Ibu later took responsibility for his university education.

Ifeyinwa further claimed that after their separation, Mr Ibu had relationships with several women and fathered children with them.

According to her, he later had a daughter, Amarachi, with another woman from her village before the relationship ended. She also alleged that he later had a relationship with Somtochukwu’s mother, whom he intended to marry, but the marriage did not happen.

She further claimed that the actor subsequently had three children with another woman in Ghana before eventually marrying Stella, with whom he also had three children.

Property allegations

Ifeyinwa further alleged that after returning to Enugu following Mr Ibu’s burial, she learnt that Stella had sold some of the late actor’s properties without informing other family members.

“The land in Enugu existed, but Stella has sold it now. She sold the one in Lagos, too. She also sold plots where he had started building without telling anybody.

“I didn’t know where the land was, but he told me himself that he had land in Asaba. He is a spirit now and can hear me.”

Backstory

Stella has previously denied selling any of Mr Ibu’s properties without the family’s knowledge.

She said the family jointly agreed to sell one of the properties for N17 million to finance the late actor’s burial.

She also alleged that after the burial, some family members confronted her over money donated to her and her children before she returned to Lagos.

Stella further claimed that throughout her marriage, Mr Ibu never told her he had previously been married or had children with other women.

Mr Ibu died on 2 March 2024 at Evercare Hospital in Lekki, Lagos, following a cardiac arrest. He was buried on 28 June 2024 in his hometown of Amuri, Nkanu West Local Government Area of Enugu State.