Violence of Newmarket murder Taiwo Abodunde revealed

Olubunmi Abodunde, 48, strangled and stamped on Taiwo Abodunde then beat her with a skateboard after a history of jealousy and suspicion that she was having affairs, Ipswich Crown Court was told on Wednesday.

Abodunde pleaded guilty to murder after initially denying the charge, and the court heard the details of the violence against his wife from prosecutor Stephen Spence.

Mr Spence said throughout their marriage the defendant had been a jealous man and accused his wife of having affairs.

Mrs Abodunde, 41, had a family with three children in Nigeria with the defendant and in 2022 they moved to the UK.

The attacker admitted murder on Wednesday (Image: Charlotte Bond)

She got a job as health care assistant nurse at care home in Cambridge but Abodunde, who was trained as a civil engineer, was unable to find work in his profession.

He worked at Tesco and Wickes and there were arguments about bills, the court heard.

Mr Spence said the defendant became convinced his wife was having affairs and police were called to the house on a number of occasions for domestic violence.

However, this violence “was not of the most significant kind”, Mr Spence said.

On November 27 last year, the day before the killing, and the police were again called and Mrs Abodunde had an injury to her lip.

Abodunde was arrested and taken to Bury St Edmunds police station.

He was later released and given bail conditions ordering him not to return to the family home in Exning Road or contact his wife.

On the evening of the 27th Mrs Abodunde went to work in Cambridge and came back home the next morning.

The defendant then went to the home address after his release, he suggested simply to pick up a telephone he had left behind, and he was there when she arrived, the court heard.

An argument then broke out and just before the police turned up at 9.20am to take a statement from Mrs Abodunde in relation to the incident the night before, she was beaten to death, the court heard.

Officers did not enter until 9.55am when they were given permission by superiors.

The court heard while the officers were outside they heard a number of bangs, which the prosecution suggested were the defendant continuing to attack his wife when she was unconscious, if not dead.

When the police went in Mrs Abodunde was “obviously dead” with her “skull smashed in” and blood and brain material was visible, the court heard.

The attacker was arrested at the scene (Image: Suffolk Police)

The pathologist said there were injuries to her neck and the prosecution suggested she was strangled unconscious, then stamped on until her ribs were broken and then beaten in the head using a skateboard so hard the skateboard itself also sustained damage.

The defendant was there and initially taken to hospital “because he appeared to have some sort of mental episode”, Mr Spence said.

He provided a statement and said: “My wife has subjected me to physical abuse for a number of years.

“On November 28 we got into argument, she ran at me with a knife, I grabbed the knife and cut my hand.

“I was defending myself."

There was a cut on his hand but police found no knife in the vicinity of the body, the court heard.

However, the defendant has now admitted the murder.

Defence barrister Nneka Akudolu KC said the defendant believes the medication he was taking at the time affected his behaviour in some way but said no medical evidence will be provided to support this.

She added: “Plainly this level of violence was completely out of character for him.”

The sentencing date was fixed for May 9.