Special Report: Ofori And Barbara: The Sordid Tale Of US Based Ghanaian Pastor Who Killed His Wife

More than one-third of murders of women are committed by an intimate partner.

Sylvester Ofori and Barbara Tommy

Domestic Violence is a touchy issue. The number of arguments advanced against it are as many as those who are its victims. There’s a tinge of sentimentality woven around domestic violence discourse depending on the gender divide the actors and victims are. However, there’s an unspoken consensus that the female gender are mostly at the receiving end of domestic violence, this might be up for debate but data and happenings out there tend to corroborate such conclusion.

The aforementioned notion is not to downplay the pain of men who’ve had their own fair share of the social malaise — domestic violence.

On Tuesday september 8 2020, United States based Ghanian Pastor, Sylvester Ofori tracked his wife, 27 year-old Barbara Tommey, to her work place at Navy Federal Credit Union and shot her point blank

The fatal shooting happened outside of the bank near the Mall at Millenia, on Gardens Park Boulevard in Orlando, according to reports.

The United States based Ghanian Pastor, Sylvester Ofori who shot his wife, Barbara Tommey dead on Tuesday has been showings some signals of the danger ahead only known to him.

Consequently, the Orlando police promptly arrested him, after a search. He was arrested in his apartment and taken into custody.

But the action of Ofori is not spontaneous or impulsive. Ofori had exhibited his predilection for violence and atrocious act, albeit subtly, in weeks and days leading to the perpetration of his heinous crime.

They were their own his Facebook page, his psychopathic disposition and diabolical tendencies, staring at members of the public who could not see through the danger that’s lurking around the corner. But Ofori’s tell-tale signs of penchant for violence was probably ignored as rhetorics of clout chaser.

https://twitter.com/ekohotblog/status/1306843404832305153?s=21

In his pinned post he wrote on 22 August, he wrote: “When you start looking at people’s heart instead of their face, life becomes clear”.

The statement was probably indicative of a sour love affair with Barbara.

On 24 August, he posted: “I truly believe that every single person has to go through something that absolutely destroys them so that they can figure out who they really are”.

Same day, he also wrote, “snakes don’t hiss anymore. they call you babe, bro. or friend”.

On 28 August, Ofori shared another message: “A tiger’s tongue is so strong that it can remove paint from the wall, and help to remove skin from flesh of its prey, classified as the second most dangerous tongue after the tongue of woman.”

The posts were illustrated with fearsome images of a tiger and a serpent.

A day before he shot Barbara, he also dropped this eerie message: “One thing people gotta understand about extremely kind, nice, loving people, is that their other side is just as extreme.”

https://twitter.com/ekohotblog/status/1306841811978194946?s=21

Then he struck at the bank to kill Barbara. He shot her seven times. According to Orlando Police, the killing was captured on CCTV.

“You can tell that she was surprised by what was happening,” Police chief Rolon said.

So-called Prophet Sylvester Ofori has reportedly been abusing his wife for a long time.

Due to the abuse, Barbara was persuaded by her family to leave him. But Sylvester tracked her to her workplace.

The case Ofori and Barbara is not a one-off scenario, such happens from time to time among the African migrants in the United States, it is a norm rather than exception.

Although there has been a significant amount of research in the area of domestic violence and intimate partner violence (IPV) in Western countries (the exploration of this issue among immigrants has been limited.

Domestic violence is a significant public health issue. It is the physical and/or psychological abuse of a current or previous intimate partner. Generally, one in three women experience intimate partner violence in their lifetime. It is associated with a number of health issues such as depression, physical injury, an erosion of self-esteem and even unintended pregnancy and abortion. Also known as intimate partner violence, global estimates show that more than one-third of murders of women are committed by an intimate partner. Traditionally, DV is a lifelong issue for many African women: they are often abused and there is an expectation that they occupy a subordinate position in the family. On the other hand, men are expected to play a traditional role of breadwinner and are referred to as the head of the family.

African migrant women living in developed countries are under-represented in reporting of DV despite their ongoing experience of violence from their intimate partner. They generally only seek assistance when the violence is more severe than usual. The women lack an understanding of what constitutes DV, perhaps as a result of their socio-cultural perception of intimate partner violence as normal, adherence to traditional gender roles, poor language skills, low level of integration into Western culture, lack of understanding and trust in the formal criminal justice system in mediating at a time of matrimonial crisis, and concern for the safety and wellbeing of children. Cultural norms that reinforce keeping domestic issues within the private domain also constitute barriers to help-seeking by African migrant women experiencing DV in a developed country. African migrants often feel isolated, and there is a growing concern that African migrant women suffer DV in silence, not reporting it to law enforcement agents.

In the case of Ofori, different factors came into play the society and system failed Barbara. Prior to carrying out his sinister motive, Ofori left cryptic traces of mental and emotional instability. There are subtle messages of Impending doom on his Facebook page but people didn’t pay attention. If Ofori had been hospitalised for psychiatric evaluation, if someone had been able to see through the sordid cryptic messages and call appropriate authorities to them, probably Barbara might still be alive.

Barbara also played a troubling role in the misfortune that befell her, her refusal to acknowledge that she was in danger somewhat emboldened her abusive husband. She also ignored the admonitions of police and family to part ways with Ofori. All efforts to  salvage the situation and prevent it from degenerating to the tragic and macabre occurrence that it turned out to be were spurned by Barbara.

Barbara actions further emphasized the need for women who find themselves in a matrimony that’s fraught with woe and discomfort to move out or seek help before it’s too late. The system must also find a way to put a lid on the diabolical tendencies of roving spouse.

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