The family of Moyo Thomas, a former First City Monument Bank employee who allegedly had two children for Adam Nuru, the Managing Director of the bank, has spoken about the death of the woman’s late husband, Tunde Thomas.

Moyo and Nuru have been subjects of controversy lately after some friends of Tunde, who died on December 16, 2020, in a petition alleged that his death was caused by the FCMB’s Managing Director.

They claimed he died of depression after finding out that his two children with Moyo did not actually belong to him, but fathered by Nuru.

According to the petition, the woman had informed her husband that she was leaving Nigeria for the United States with the kids, only to call him upon arrival that the children were not his.

The petition further claimed the news initially caused Tunde to suffer a stroke but he later recovered and thereafter met another lady whom he planned to marry.

He was, however, said to have suffered cardiac arrest after returning from work about two days before his relations were billed to be introduced to the family of his pregnant girlfriend.

Speaking in a statement released on Monday, Moyo’s family said the two kids belonged to Tunde, contrary to online reports.

The statement, signed by one Adetunji Iromini on behalf of the family, read, “This is quite unfortunate in many ways. It does not augur well for the memory of the departed soul, especially as we are all grieving the loss of Tunde, who was buried on Wednesday, 30th December, 2020. The pictures of the children are being posted in the social media, without care.

“There would not have been any need to respond to issues raised in the petition but for the sake of posterity, the memory of Tunde and for the sake of his children. Like any marriage, there were differences between Moyo and Tunde, leading to their separation and eventual relocation of Moyo to the USA in December 2017.

“It is important to note that the divorce process was never thought of or initiated by Moyo. And to the best of our knowledge, no divorce papers were ever served on Moyo. This means that they were still legally married. In the opinion of Moyo and her family, the channel for reconciliation was still open up until Tunde’s unfortunate demise.

“Tunde is the father of the two children and Moyo never told him he was not their father. Moyo and Tunde clearly worked to ensure the differences they had did not affect the relationship they respectively have with the two children.

“Tunde paid a visit to the USA to visit the children in June 2018. He met them and interacted with them unhindered. This was after his recovery from the stroke he had earlier that year.

He was in touch constantly with the children, calling and having fatherly conversations with them, even at odd hours, at least twice every month from December 2017.

“The last of such calls took place on Thanksgiving Day on 26th November, 2020. You will agree that this does not paint the picture of a man who had been told he was not the father of his children as was maliciously stated in the petition and is being circulated on social media.

“It is very sad that a group of people have decided to take the differences between a married couple and misrepresent it into a sensational story. It is unfair to have the pictures of his young children splashed all over the Internet.

“Tunde had a mild stroke in 2018. By the grace of God, he was able to fully recover from this and carried on with his life. He was obviously doing well at his job and was in another relationship with a lady who was pregnant before his death.

“Why he had a cardiac arrest that led to his eventual death almost two years after remains a mystery that only God can provide answers to. We can begin to postulate on possible reasons, but we would rather not, to preserve the fond memories of Tunde.

“Tunde has now gone to be with his maker. We do wish his family and friends, including his pregnant girlfriend, the fortitude to bear the unfortunate loss.

He has now been laid to rest and we implore all to allow those grieving his loss, including Moyo and his children, to do so in peace. May Tunde’s soul rest in perfect peace. Amen.”