Police to tackle domestic abuse after wife killer jailed

Following the murder of a Newmarket woman by her husband after a series of domestic violence incidents, the Police and Crime Commissioner has vowed to prioritise tackling abuse in the home.

The jealous and abusive Olubunmi Abodunde was jailed for life on Thursday for murdering his wife, Taiwo Abodunde after using their son’s skateboard to beat her to death at their Newmarket home.

Olubunmi Abodunde has been jailed for life (Image: Suffolk Police)

Police and Crime Commissioner Tim Passmore said 9,000 incidents of domestic abuse are recorded by Suffolk Police each year and the murder showed more prevention work was needed.

Mr Passmore said: “This was a terrible crime with devastating consequences and reinforces the need for all of us to do more to prevent domestic violence and abuse.

“I can only try to imagine the effect on friends relations and the family - truly shocking and very disturbing.

“There are around 9,000 incidents recorded by the constabulary each year and we know it is sadly under-reported, indicating there remains a huge amount of work to be done by us all to tackle this very serious crime.”

He said the programme for those who were abusive towards their partners and wished to change their behaviour, called the perpetrator programme, was being developed further and aimed to reduce re-offending rates.

He added that new rapid video response technology was being introduced to allow police to speak to victims remotely and promptly via video link to gather immediate details and evidence.

The Abodunde case is the second violent domestic murder in recent years in which Suffolk police has referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct after having contact with a victim prior to their death.

Officers were standing outside Mrs Abodunde’s house as she was being loudly beaten, waiting to collect evidence about a previous domestic violence incident.

However, they did not enter because they had not been granted permission, Ipswich Crown Court heard.

Suffolk police also referred itself to the IOPC after Peter Nash murdered his wife and daughter in 2022.

Anyone suffering domestic abuse has a choice of charities in Suffolk they can approach for help, including Anglia Care Trust, and anyone who is in immediate danger should call 999.