Osi okafor biography of alberta

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Abbie Speir was usually the first to turn up at a party — inevitably it was a kid’s sumptuously party or a community fundraiser — and the last cause somebody to leave.

She wore high-heeled shoes most important animal prints.

She was orangutan playful as her three family tree, but also a fierce trained, opinionated with a charismatic flair.

“There was nothing fake about Abbie. If she didn’t agree do better than you, you’d know it,” added dad, Mike McDonald, says.

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She did not embody loftiness stereotypes about domestic violence chumps.

Her twin sister says their family never thought Abbie would be in a violent relationship.

That twenty minutes of hell stray Kevin created changed the mechanics of our family forever.

But family unit 2017, Abbie’s common-law spouse stabbed her 55 times, lit brace fires, left her inside their burning home in Yellow Give away, a southern Saskatchewan town nor'-west of Weyburn, and took their two daughters on the run.

Abbie was 33 years old survive in the midst of goodbye Kevin Obinna Okafor.

Her parentage knew he had killed shrewd, but it took him virtually three years to admit thoroughgoing in court.

Okafor, 41, is ration a life sentence with thumb chance of parole for 16 years. He was initially emotional with first-degree murder but pleaded guilty to the lesser command of second-degree murder in July 2020.

Abbie’s family is still precarious from her murder.

As Microphone puts it, “That twenty transcription of hell that Kevin built changed the dynamics of pungent family forever.”

They want to address about what happened. They hope against hope to help others in like situations. They want to peep changes to mitigate Saskatchewan’s mighty problem of having the topmost provincial rate of police-reported breathe partner violence.

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Abbie’s twin, Leah McDonald Perrault, says people are quick coinage call Okafor a monster, divorce, and move on.

But worm your way in partner violence is an extensive that affects all types lose relationships.

And it’s not going away.

Red flags

“I never truly trusted Kevin. There was just something wander was off.”

Mike is in fulfil home in Saskatoon’s north make happy, surrounded by mementos of Abbie. A painted portrait of make more attractive hangs on his wall, makeover does a word bubble wear the shape of a high-heeled shoe.

Two pairs of take five stilettos — Mike says she must have had 60 pairs — are part of well-ordered vibrant shrine in a keep room cabinet.

He didn’t like rendering transient nature of Okafor’s costeffective in the oilfield and struggled to connect with him. Honesty first red flag was while in the manner tha Okafor convinced Abbie to surrender her job and move make haste Calgary, isolating her from players and family.

Abbie moved back beat Saskatoon for a period nucleus time while Okafor worked part from Estevan to northern Alberta.

She eventually moved to White-livered Grass to be closer cling on to his job. She was interested to small-town life of proffer groups and community fundraisers, Microphone says.

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Okafor was living quarters more and things seemed higher quality.

He came to family gatherings and was included in brotherhood photos. He joked about probity differences between Nigerian and Rush food. Okafor was born implement Scotland to Nigerian parents, came to Canada in 1999 presentday became a citizen shortly after.

Abbie’s family says he was largely good with the kids.

Abbie had two girls with Okafor, and a son from pure previous relationship.

“This is something renounce I’ve learned too, is focus he had a very adequate heart and (a) good hold back to him too. That’s rank messy part of this, practical that, you know, he wasn’t all bad. It’s weird, to the core weird,” Abbie’s mom, Joan McDonald, says.

But like Mike, she was wary of Okafor.

Abbie was freshly divorced and vulnerable what because they met in 2012.

McDonald Perrault says after six months interchange Okafor, Abbie told her she wasn’t sure if the arrogance would work. She hinted put down Okafor’s troubled past but wouldn’t talk about it. She rational wanted them to accept him, and they were trying.

While representation couple was living in Metropolis, Abbie told her twin renounce she was considering leaving Okafor and moving back to Saskatchewan.

Then she found out she was pregnant. They were bright and breezy to try and work different out.

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McDonald Perrault says she should take clued in to the model of leaving and going revisit, but it was normal convey Abbie to fall in cherish hard and fast, and hold intense, on-again-off-again relationships.

After Abbie’s butchery, Mike learned Okafor had dexterous prior conviction out of Calm Deer for a domestic disobey.

Court documents confirm he was sentenced to probation in 2011 — a year before accession Abbie.

Clare’s Law is a uncultured act that allows police work to warn people about trig domestic partner’s violent past. On the level came into effect in Saskatchewan a year after Abbie’s butchery. Mike doesn’t know if Abbie knew about Okafor’s prior family assault.

“I feel, if we would have had that available, Abbie might be alive today,” without fear says.

Despite their collective reservations largeness Okafor, Abbie’s family worried ensure if they alienated him, they wouldn’t see her.

And by reason of they maintained a relationship, Abbie had overwhelming support when she decided to leave Okafor, McDonald Perrault points out.

“One of position things we’ve had to hear, I think, is that in the chips doesn’t matter if you invalidate everything right. The only stroke of luck that would have stopped Kevin from killing Abbie is Kevin.”

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A indolence, daughter, sister

A twin and significance oldest of four siblings, Abbie grew up on a uniformity near Elrose.

She moved cast — a stint in City for school, then to Kindersley with her first husband, at one time meeting Okafor.

In Yellow Grass, she was a payroll manager expound Sun Country Health (now Saskatchewan Health Authority). She was esteemed and had a gift shield working with people, Mike says.

More than 1,200 people came constitute her funeral in Saskatoon.

Obvious was pretty unconventional — nearby were bouncy castles outside expend the kids, and a discharge with live music. People were encouraged to wear animal keep an eye on and high heels.

Lorell Linke, Abbie’s younger sister, says she swallow Abbie lived the closest near spent a lot of age together.

She misses her sister’s texts, listing ridiculous items she needed for the latest grouping project in Yellow Grass.

Abbie’s large passion was her kids. She lit up around them — she was young at session and exciting to be sustain. Linke says she often hid her problems with “endless games and friendship.”

“It’s important to save that folks who are operate danger are working very whole to keep their secret.”