Soje, who worked with the Teaching Service Commission (TSC), according to a family source, had not received salary in the last 11 months, when the wife was delivered of the triplet at a private hospital in Abuja, after 17 years of marriage.
Sunday Tribune gathered that the lifeless body of Soje was discovered on Thursday hanging from a tree beside Mammy market at Maigumeri housing, at the Nigeria Army Command Records, Lokoja.
It was further learnt that the deceased left a suicide note in his room before leaving for the place where he hanged himself.
The note read: “Psalm 121:3: God will not suffer your foot to be moved. He that keepeth you will not slumber. Amen. You and the three boys, the God Almighty keep you and prosper you, amen. I love you.”
The Ogori-born Grade Level 16 officer was said to have been facing financial challenges before the birth of the triplets, through caesarian operation on October 7.
He was among thousands of civil servants owed between two and 21 months salary arrears by government.
A family source told newsmen that Soje recently sold his only car and a three-bedroom bungalow he was building at Otokiti area of Lokoja, in order to meet some of the challenges.
The building, which was at lintel level, was sold by Soje at a giveaway price of N1.5 million in April to meet urgent family needs.
He was said to have stayed with his wife and children in the hospital, until October 13, a day before the naming ceremony, when he decided to return to Lokoja.
The source explained that when he got to Lokoja, Soje approached his bank to collect the remaining N30,000 in his salary account and thereafter informed the bank in writing of his decision to close the account.
He immediately left Lokoja for the hospital in Abuja, where he rejoined his wife and handed over the N30,000 to her, following which the couple was joined by two pastors and a few relatives for a brief naming ceremony for the triplets in the hospital.
He later left the hospital on the pretext that he wanted to pick a few things from his wife’s apartment in Abuja, with the promise to return soon.
However, after many hours, Soje did not return and did not pick any of the calls made to his telephone line, a development which forced his wife to send somebody to the house to ascertain why he wasn’t picking his calls.
The person, on getting to the apartment, knocked on the door many times, but got no response, and decided to call his telephone number, which was said to be ringing in the apartment.
The person was said to have knocked several times again, but still got no response, which made him seek the assistance of neighbours to force the door open.
The people were said to have been shocked when they saw Soje’s telephone handset placed on a suicide note on the centre table in the sitting room, while he was nowhere to be found.
Efforts made to locate him did not yield fruitful result, until relations decided to visit hospitals in Lokoja on Friday, and the corpse of Soje was found in the morgue of the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja.
They were said to have been informed by the management of the hospital that Soje’s corpse was brought in by the police who found it dangling on a tree.
Confirming the incident, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), William Aya, said the dangling body of Soje was found on a tree behind the barracks.
Aya said the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Area D division received information about the incident from the military intelligence office in the barracks.
According to him, the men of the command removed the corpse to the morgue of the FMC, Lokoja, saying nothing was found on the man to help trace his address and family.
He, however, said investigation into the circumstances that led to the suicide was still ongoing.
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