Delta High Court Judge Weep Bitterly after DNA Test Revealed he is not the Father of his three Adult Children

Delta High Court Judge Weep Bitterly after DNA Test Revealed he is not the Father of his three Adult Children 

The judge at the Delta State High Court says he won’t stop taking care of the kids.

Justice Anthony Ezonfade Okorodas was alarmed that he was not the biological father of the three children he had with Celia Juliet Ototo, his former wife.

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The Delta State High Court judge said in a statement released on Thursday, January 28, 2021, that he conducted DNA tests on all three children with the wife he divorced 11 years ago and discovered that they were not his.

He said that last year, after receiving a tip off from an anonymous source that proved correct, he conducted a test on the last child, a 17-year-old boy.
He said his former wife hesitantly admitted to having an affair with another man while they were married, after confronting her, prompting him to perform DNA tests on the other two kids he had with her.

The findings showed that his biological children are also not the two university undergraduates, a situation he says has caused him ‘excruciating mental trauma’.

The judge noted that, since he divorced Ototo over a decade ago, he has been taking care of the children with his current wife, Ebi, and that recent developments will not change his attitude towards them.

He revealed that with his current wife, DNA tests on all his other four children proved that they belong to him.

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Describing the actions of his former wife as an abomination, Okorodas said he made the issue public in order to avoid harmful speculations, half-truths, and outright lies.

In Nigeria, paternity fraud is a controversial issue, with the nation renowned for having one of the highest cases worldwide.

The statement read;

 

PRESS STATEMENT: BY HON. JUSTICE ANTHONY EZONFADE OKORODAS

Ladies and gentlemen of the Press, I thank you for attending this press conference. I have taken the decision to address the Press in respect of certain traumatic developments that have arisen between me and my ex-wife, Barrister Celia Juliet Ototo of the Ototo Family of Ovom in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. It is now nearly 11 years since our separation and divorce. This Press Statement is important in order to prevent damaging speculations, half-truths and outright lies from persons who may want to cash in on the tragedy that has befallen my home.

Sometime during the coronavirus lockdowns early last year, I received information from an anonymous source that indicated that the last of the three children from my previous marriage was in fact not my biological child. Due to the COVID-19 restrictions at the time, I had to wait until August 2020 to carry out a DNA test. The DNA test result which came out in September 2020 confirmed that I was not the biological father of the child.

Consequently, I convened a joint meeting between my extended family on the one side, and Celia’s paternal and maternal families (i.e., the Ototo Family of Ovom Town and the Agbagidi Family of Yenagoa Town) on the other side, where I confronted her with the paternity fraud allegation.

Although she initially strongly insisted that I was the biological father, she has since confessed to having the child with another man during the course of our marriage.

This repulsive act of my ex-wife prompted me to conduct DNA tests in respect of the two other children. A few days ago, the results came out. Sadly, none of them is my biological child.

This abomination has caused excruciating mental trauma to me, my present wife, Barrister (Mrs) Ebi Okorodas and all of the innocent children involved. This is particularly so for Ebi, who has had to agree to have DNA tests on the four children of our own marriage. Thankfully, the test results confirm each of them to be my biological child.

It is important to state that Celia walked away from the marriage when her youngest child (who is now 17 years of age) was just 6 years old. Since then, all of her children have lived with my wife, Ebi and I, and we have been wholly responsible for their wellbeing and education.

Friends who are close to my family would readily attest to the fact that unless specifically informed, no one could tell that the children were not the biological children of my present wife.

Ebi and I would continue to support the children in any way that we can. Indeed, even after the release of the first DNA test result which proved that I was not the biological father of the last child, we have continued to pay for his education in a private boarding school. The two other children are University undergraduates. The first, a female, will be a graduate later this year, and the second will soon enter his 4th year of study. We pray for them to overcome the trauma and become responsible citizens of our country.

For Celia and her boyfriend or boyfriends, we leave them to their conscience. Thank you very much.

The Hon. Justice Anthony Ezonfade Okorodas, PhD. Judge
High Court of Delta State
January 28, 2021.

 

# Delta High Court Judge Weep Bitterly after DNA Test Revealed he is not the Father of his three Adult Children