Kula Pelima who has lived in the U.S. for two decades, called 911 about 3:45 a.m. Monday, fearing that her visa had lapsed. An officer visited her home early Monday and told her local authorities were not going to arrest her, the police chief said. The officer even gave Pelima an immigration hotline number to call, and observed the older boy doing well during the visit. .
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Pelima called 911 again about 8:30 a.m. and said she had drowned her son, 4-month-old Solomon Epelle, and 5-year-old Alex Epelle. Pelima, 30, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and was being held on $2 million bond.
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Pelima’s boyfriend, Victor Epelle, 38, the father of both boys, is a native of Nigeria. He was taken into custody by immigration authorities in Pennsylvania on September 14th. The couple lived together in Wilmington, and she helped care for both children, the police chief said. .
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Epelle was in the United States legally, but he had violated the terms of his status, ICE said. It wasn’t immediately clear what he had done. He was released from custody Monday on humanitarian grounds after being notified of the deaths of his sons.
