Police in Benue State have arrested a woman, Mbalumen Ikyenge, over the alleged arson attack that claimed the lives of two young girls in Zaki-Biam, Ukum Local Government Area.
The victims, aged four and six, were identified as the daughters of Aondoyima Ierkwagh.
The Benue State Police Command confirmed the incident on Tuesday through its spokesperson, Udeme Edet. She said the children's father reported that someone had deliberately set his house on fire.
"I don't really know if it was a lovers' quarrel that resulted in the act, but the report we got from the father of the girls was that someone set his house on fire," Edet said.
According to the police, neighbours rescued the children from the burning building and rushed them to the hospital, where they later died while receiving treatment.
Edet confirmed that Ikyenge has been taken into custody and that an investigation is ongoing.
Meanwhile, witnesses who spoke anonymously to the News Agency of Nigeria claimed the incident followed a dispute between the suspect and Ierkwagh.
According to the witnesses, Ikyenge visited Ierkwagh's residence on Sunday night but was asked to leave after she suspected another woman was inside the house.
They further alleged that Ierkwagh had put his two daughters to sleep in a separate round hut before retiring to another building. The witnesses claimed that around midnight, the suspect allegedly set the hut on fire, believing another woman was inside. The flames, however, engulfed the structure where the children were sleeping.
Police have not confirmed the witnesses' account and say investigations are ongoing to determine the circumstances surrounding the fire.
The command urged residents to remain calm and allow investigators to conclude their work.
