Legal practitioner, Maurice Ampaw has professed that the late Barbara Tommey refused to report her abusive relationship with Sylvester Ofori because she feared that will lead to his deportation.

According to him, the Ghanaian pastor, Sylvester Ofori was living in the United States without legal documents.

In an exclusive interview with GhanaWeb, Mr. Ampaw stated that the deceased rather exposed herself to danger by not reporting the threatening messages to the appropriate security agencies.

“In America, if a man tells you that I will deal with you and end your life, it is a serious issue. But the woman out of love and in order to protect the husband whom she claims does not have the necessary papers so any attempt to report him to the security agencies will lead to his deportation has rather exposed herself and the man has carried on the threat.

“When you have an abusive husband, where he’s everyday assaulting you, every day causing unlawful harm to you and then receiving threat, you need to quickly report the conduct of the husband to the necessary security agencies,” he stressed.

The legal practitioner advised all women in abusive relationships to immediately quit to safeguard their lives.

“When the men are being ungrateful, pack out of the relationship. Don’t say in the name of love, to protect your image and reputation so you’ll stay in an abusive relationship to the extent that you lose your life”.

Background

27-year-old Barbara Tommey, according to the Orlando Police Department (OPD) was shot several times by her husband, Sylvester Ofori, near her business front doors on the 4600 block of Gardens Park Boulevard, some minutes to 9.00 am on Tuesday, and was pronounced dead at Orlando Regional Medical Centre shortly afterward, the Police announced.

The deceased was an employee of the Navy Federal Credit Union, in the USA.

The Ghanaian pastor, Sylvestor Ofori, 35-year-old, was arrested and taken into custody Tuesday evening. He is being held at the Orange County Jail without bond on a charge of first-degree murder with a firearm.

Detective Matthew Rogers stated that Barbara Tommey and Sylvester Ofori were in the middle of a divorce and she hadn’t lived at the apartment they shared for months. No records documenting their divorce could be found. The couple married in September 2015, according to a marriage license.