The following case may not refer to a ritualistic murder though there are strong indications that a ritual murder has indeed been committed. Moreover, the article refers to previous ritual killings that have taken place as “There have been concerns over the high number of ritual killings in the province for years, particularly of women.”, see below (webmaster FVDK).
Polokwane police launch manhunt after discovery of mutilated body
Published: December 15, 2019 By: The South African – Thabo Baloyi
A passer-by made the gruesome discovery of a mutilated body near the Peter Mokaba Stadium.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) in Limpopo are on the search for the perpetrators behind the horrific discovery of a badly mutilated body in Polokwane on Thursday 12 December 2019.
The body was found dumped in the bushes along the N1 bypass, near the Peter Mokaba Stadium. A passer-by, who came across the body, noticed some limbs were missing and called the police who then rushed to the scene.
“Upon arrival at the scene, the police were met by the gruesome scene of the badly mutilated body of a man who is estimated to be in his forties, wearing grey trousers, a blue T-shirt and black shoes”, police spokesperson Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo said.
Provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nneke Ledwaba strongly condemned the attack and called for those responsible to face the full might of the law
“The commissioner has noted the incident with shock, especially the brutality that characterised this murder and has ordered an intensive manhunt for the suspects,” the statement read.
Police are appealing to anyone with information that can assist in the arrest of the suspect(s) and who can assist in the identification of the deceased, to contact Crime Stop at 08600 10111 or the nearest police station.
Ritual murder not ruled out as motive
While Mojapelo did note that the motive was unknown at this stage, they were not ruling out the likelihood of a ritual killing and investigations into the murder are ongoing.
There have been concerns over the high number of ritual killings in the province for years, particularly of women.
Earlier in 2019, Giyani villagers discovered that the private parts of a 69-year-old Giyani man, who had been killed after being hit by a car, were missing. His family believes that he had actually been murdered as part of a ritual act.
In 2018, the headless body of a woman was found in Lulekani, outside Phalaborwa, insider her bedroom. In the same year, the Polokwane High Court sentenced two men to life in prison for the murder of a 17-year-old girl. They were reportedly arrested while trying to sell her head to a local businessman.
The dark practice of ritual murders, motivated by cultural beliefs, is usually carried out by traditional leaders and involves the removal of body parts, whether for self-enrichment or to appease ancestors.
Read this “chilling story of how a prison warden, moviemaker and con-herbalists abduct, butcher 30-year-old hunchback in Osun State, Nigeria, for money ritual.” The cold-blooded murder of an innocent man for money ritual occurred in September last year and the article was published in December.” Warning: the article contains graphic details of the heinous crime the accused allegedly committed (webmaster FVDK).
Reporters of the Saturday Sun were able to interview some of the suspects in police custody – which his amazing and raises several questions. Who authorized these interviews and why? Is this in conformity with the defendants’ rights, despite the horrible accusation against them and their alleged responsibility and guilt? What is the added value of interviewing people in detention who have not yet been tried by an impartial court?
The following article is a sad story. We sympathize with the victim and his dear ones. Once more, it is demonstrated that the belief in the power and juju obtained through ‘money ritual’ in Nigeria is widespread. We must fight against ignorance and superstition and compliment the Nigerian authorities for all efforts to help eradicating this evil from Nigerian society (webmaster FVDK).
Nigeria: Hunchback hunters
Published: December 21, 2019 By: The Sun, Voice of the Nation – Chioma Okezie-Okeh
On September 15, 2019, a 30-year-old hunchback, Olusegun Fasakin, was abducted from his home at Igangan-Ijesa, Atakunmosa East Local Government Area of Osun State. All efforts by the police, his family and friends to locate him did not yield any result. His abductors never called to demand a ransom.
The truth of what became of him recently resurfaced. It was an accidental discovery by law enforcement agents tracking a suspect of a robbery case.
Since then, detectives have picked some of the suspects involved and interrogated them. The suspects sang like canaries, divulging the ghastly details. The suspects are a ragtag group of desperadoes, that include a prison warden (correctional officer) and a set of herbalists who are ex-convicts previously jailed for a similar offence.
Saturday Sun interviewed some of the suspects in police custody. Their stories add up to a macabre tale of the cold-blooded murder of an innocent man for money ritual.
Discovery by mistake
Acting on a petition by the victims of the armed robbery incident that took place in Ijesa, on October 10, 2019. Head of the Inspector General of Police, Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Deputy Commissioner of Police Abba Kyari, drafted operatives at its Osun annexe to investigate the case.
The IRT team, led by Chief Superintendent of Police Bisiriyu Akindele, tracked down one Akinyemi Oyebode who participated in the robbery. While on his trail, detectives intercepted a phone conversation between him and a prison warden. In the conversation, he was heard threatening to expose a prison warder if he fails to pay him some money.
He was grilled after his arrest, during which he made a clean breast that the incident he was talking about was the abduction and killing of Olusegun Fasakin, a 30-year-old hunchback.
Law enforcement agents consequently rounded up those allegedly involved in the crime. The suspects were identified as Akinyemi Oyebode, Jamiu Adeniyi, Isaac Ayandokun (a.k.a. Baba Niyi), Kehinde Oladokun (a.k.a. Alfa), Ojo Taiwo Olasukanmi (a.k.a. Ifa) and Mukaila Kolawole (a.k.a. Baba Beji) who all claimed to be herbalists, and Charles Adebusuiyi, a serving prison warder at the Ilesa Correction Centre.
Presently, all primary suspects, save for the prison warden, have been arrested
The search for a hunchback
Saturday Sun spoke with Akinyemi Oyebode, the suspect originally tracked by IRT operatives.
He alleged that several meetings were held inside the office of Charles Adebusuiyi at Ilesa Correctional Centre.
The 24-year-old, a native of Okemesi in Ekiti State, was a school dropout who trained as a vulcanizer, but has served time in prison, jailed in 2016 after he was found with wraps of Indian hemp during a raid by operatives of National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). He was released earlier this year after three years behind bar.
His family sought to straighten his life. They bought him a motorcycle so he could earn his daily bread as a commercial bike man. He soon made a lot of customers including the prison officer.
“He was one of my early customers and I normally pick and drop him in front of the prison. One thing led to another and I told him that I have spent about three years in prison. Gradually we became friends and sometimes he will invite me to come and have a drink with him,” he said.
Oyebode insisted they held several meetings in his office at the prison premises.
“This was how I got to know the likes of Alfa, Baba Beji and Ifa who are all herbalists,” he said. “One of the days that I took Charles to Sabo, I overheard them talking about doing rituals to make money. I needed money at that time so I was interested. As soon as Charles came out and we were heading back to town, I told him that I am also interested in what I overheard and he assured me that he will alert me when everything is set. I was so excited especially when he told me that he was going to pay me one million at the end of the deal.”
Oyebode admitted he knew they were going to abduct someone for money ritual only that he was not sure who the target was.
His story threw illumination on the dark deed that took place on the night of September 15.
He narrated: “Few days later Charles called me to come and pick him up that we have an important job. I took him to where his car was. Three other persons were already there. They were not the regular faces that I knew.
“When we got to Igangan Square around 10 pm, he asked us to wait, while he and the three young men went into the neighbourhood. In less than 20 minutes, they came back dragging one tall man with them. The man did not resist or shout; he was just following them like a fool. They put him in the car and drove off. Charles told me not to worry that he would handle everything.”
After waiting for some days and it was clear Charles had no intention to give him any money, Oyebode called up and threatened to tell the police what he was up to.
The warden pacified him with N18, 000. In the meantime, one of his friends invited him to join a robbery gang.
“We attacked a compound in August and raided the entire flats. I got a big phone which I sold for N16, 000,” he confessed.
That was to be his undoing, as IRT operatives who took charge of the case, tracked him down, for the robbery, and also routinely queried him about his telephone conversation with a “prison warden” he threatened.
With this background, the next logical question is, who commissioned the search for hunchback?
In their various depositions during interrogation, the suspects all claimed they were contracted by a shadowy figure, a medical doctor who promised them millions of naira in return for a real hunchback.
The answer could only come from Mukaila Kolawole, popularly known as Baba Beji. It was he who got the contract from a man whom he claims people know as a medical doctor.
The native of Iragbiji in Osun State earned a livelihood as a farmer. He was, however, jailed in the past for the killing of a hunchback. “I was framed,” he said.
He told Saturday Sun the details.
“In 2009, I was a member of Odua Peoples Congress (OPC). One of our members, known as Muritala, misbehaved and was suspended from the group. He got annoyed and formed his own local vigilante group. They were the ones who attacked a nearby village and abducted a woman with hunchback. We were at a meeting the night her mutilated corpse was found. The Muritala-led vigilante group raised alarm that we were the ones responsible for the murder. About ten of us were arrested that day and charged to court for murder. I was released last year after spending nine years.”
It was during those nine years he met Charles Akinbusuyi.
“He was our warden. He normally ‘dash’ us money. We became friends with him. He assured us that anytime names of those to be helped by government was compiled, he’d make sure my name was included.”
He was part of the inmates granted amnesty by the Chief Justice of Osun State in 2018.
Back to the business of September 15, he continued: “When I regained my freedom, I went back to farming but kept in touch with Charles. One day, he called me that he was tired of depending on monthly salary that he wanted a faster way of making money. He asked me if I knew anyone who is into money ritual and I said yes. I introduced him to some of my friends who were herbalists and they suggested to us different ways that we can make quick money. It was while we were at it that I received a call from my longtime customer and asked if I can help him abduct and kill a man or woman with a hunchback. He offered to pay us millions and I told Charles about it and he agreed to be part of it.”
It turned out that Baba Beji who claimed in the beginning of his confession that he knew nothing about hunchback killers, was the person who assembled the best hands to find a hunchback. “Millions were involved and I know that it is not a one-man thing,” he said. “I alerted my herbalist friends that I know and told them about the contract. Everyone started searching until Charles said that he knows of one in a village called Iwara where he normally goes to consult a native doctor.”
According to him, the prison warden planned the abduction. “Charles agreed to hire boys that will abduct the man,” he claimed. “He is a prison warden so he knows a lot of criminals.”
Kolawole took charge of the second part of the mission. “I assembled my fellow herbalists who would help in the killing and removal of the hump. All of us went to the area, and Charles and three other young men that I assumed are professionals, moved into the compound and asked us to wait. In less than 20 minutes, they came out with a man. The young men left and the rest of us entered the vehicle to an agreed place where we intended to slaughter him.”
Kolawole was the one who delivered the killing stroke. “When we got to a deserted area that night, I brought out my spanner, and because I knew what I came there to do, I quickly hit him on the head and he fell down. When I was sure he was dead, I used a knife to cut out the deformed part of his back.”
“We called Niyi, who is an expert in such things, to come and confirm if it was authentic.”
They received a big blow when the expert arrived and proclaimed the hump not useful because it was not a natural hump but a growth.
“We were disappointed. We had no choice but to discard the body and return to Osogbo.”
While he claimed that he had no idea what exactly the hump of a hunchback is used for, Kolawole admitted he knew native doctors use it to produce charm for wealth. “I heard that if you want good money from everywhere, that some people used their (hunchback’s) bones to make bathing soap. This is what I heard, maybe doctor [the one who commissioned the job] will explain better.”
Additional information came from Olasukunmi, popularly known as Ifa, who claimed that he was lured into the crime.
“I am a movie producer and I have successfully produced three movies as far back as 2010. During my spare time, I also do herbalist work which I learnt from my father. I am still working on one of my movies when police arrested me,” he stated.
His connection to the group was Akinbusuiyi, the prison warden.
“I knew Charles in prison when I was arrested by the police during a raid. I didn’t spend much time with them before I was released from prison,” he said.
He was present on the killing ground.
He explained his role: “On the day of the incident, I met them at the express. They asked me to help hold the torch because it was late at night, at about 11:30pm. I held the torch while Baba Beji cut him open. I was not the one who killed him.”
Ifa tried to distance himself from the murder, saying: “I am a herbalist and my stock-in-trade is assisting fraudsters to be successful.”
He explained he got entangled in the plot hunchback plot. “Baba Beji came to me and asked if I knew where we could get a man or woman with a hunchback. I told him to leave me alone as I was not into any money ritual. He called me one day to join him and I asked him what it was. He said that one of his friends who can pay very well wants to see me. I thought he was real till we got to the forest,” he narrated.
He tried desperately to justify his role: “I was scared, that was why I joined him. I know how these things work out ––if I don’t join them, they will kill me.”
Baba Niyi is the expert in the group, the man who could identify the hump of a natural hunchback.
He, too, once spent time in Ilesha prison. He was one of the vigilantes that were jailed alongside Baba Ibeji over the killing of a hunchback.
He, also, knew the man who commissioned the job. “I have known the doctor for many years. He normally asked for herbs. This was why he asked me to go and cross-check. I went there and discovered that it was not real,” he said.
Baba Niyi insisted on his innocence. “I did not follow them to kill anyone,” he submitted.
What became of the body?
They claimed the remains was dumped inside the bush along Osun-Ibadan expressway.
The fugitive prison warden
Charles Adebusuiyi, the prison warden, has since vanished into thin air. His office, Nigerian Correctional Services, confirmed no one has seen him at work since the case broke out. He has been declared wanted by the police.
From others’ confessions, it was he who allegedly contracted the services of the abductors –Emmanuel, Kazeem and another popularly known as MTN – to go to Igangan and abduct the victim. The three abductors, presently on the run, are suspected criminals who were once inmates at the Ilesa correction al center, where Adebusuiyi was a warden until he became a fugitive.
The victim’s family
Saturday Sun spoke with one of the relatives, Olatunji Fasakin, who was at the police station.
“I am his nephew and we live at Igangan-Ijesa, Osun State,” he introduced himself.
According to him, the family had given up hope of finding when they heard that IRT operatives had cracked the case.
He gave his side of the story thus: “On September 15, 2019, around 6 pm, I left to the forest to hunt. At about 8 pm, my wife called me that they have kidnapped my nephew and urged me to hurry back home. Upon my return, I met his mother and grandmother in tears. They told me four men took him away on a motorcycle. I took my motorcycle and drove towards the direction they were heading. When I got to Iwara junction, the persons that I met said that they have left and that some of the villagers who tried to stop them were beaten up. I returned to the village and reported the matter at Igangan police post.”
Although, some community members who heard of his abduction had rightly deduced that he was picked because of his hunched back, the family, nonetheless, had hoped his abductors would, in time, call to demand a ransom.
“But they never did,” he said, “When we couldn’t find him, everyone assumed that he was used for money ritual.”
He explained why his cousin was not a natural hunchback: “He had been sick right from birth, the constant ill-health affected his growth and he was no longer walking properly. Anyone that saw him would assume he had a hunchback. He wasn’t a hunchback.”
On how they got the news of the arrest of his abductors and killers, he said: “A family friend at Ayesan police post informed us that it was IRT Osun that arrested them.”
He said the family is still in mourning, stating, “but now we know what really happened to our brother.”
The family pleaded with the police to help them find his remains so that they can give him a befitting burial.
The following article, published by the Sunday Mail in Zimbabwe in late December 2019, is strictly speaking not about ritual killing or a specific ritualistic murder case. However, it has everything to do with the subject: superstition and the use of rituals using human body parts. It is a shocking account of a thriving market for human body parts. The interviews, and apparently also the investigations, have taken place in Zimbabwe, yet there is no reason not to believe that similar practices may be reported from other countries.
As the articles also concludes: ‘In Zimbabwe and other parts of the world, trading in human body parts is illegal.’ Hence, it is up to the government(s) to maintain the law (webmaster FVDK).
Inside the thriving human body parts market
Published: December 29, 2019 By: Sunday Mail, Zimbabwe – Emmanuel Kafe and Simbarashe Manhenda
Human body parts, according to sources and a pathologist, can also be harvested during post-mortems.
HUMAN body parts, mostly fingers, internal organs and private parts, are being sold by syndicates made up of mortuary attendants and security guards, investigations carried out by The Sunday Mail Society have revealed.
Information gathered revealed that the syndicates are conniving to harvest the body parts from mortuaries without the knowledge of the deceased’s families.
Investigations revealed that the body parts are much sought after and literally cost an arm and leg.
Water used to clean corpses, which is believed to be used in the preparation of juju used in housebreaking, is also in great demand.
As a result of the high demand, the water and body parts are only being sold in foreign currency.
The Sunday Mail Society’s investigations revealed that there is a ready and thriving market for the human body parts and water.
Among those that are acquiring the parts from the morgues are traditional healers, prophets, sex workers, criminals and businesspeople.
Apparently, acquiring human body parts can be as easy as ordering pizza.
A phone call and a little bargaining is all that it takes. After agreeing on a fee, the deal is sealed.
From the interactions with those involved in the illegal and unusual trade, it is clear that the syndicates are making a killing.
After getting a tip-off from a security guard who was once part of the human body parts’ cartel, The Sunday Mail Society crew went underground and pretended to be genuine buyers.
Following the tip-off, we approached one of the security guards manning the premises of a well-established funeral parlour in Harare.
Posing as traditional healers, we enquired from him how we could get certain human body parts.
We also asked about the prices.
The security guard, whom we were later told is paid a “commission” by the mortuary attendants for linking them with buyers, did not even attempt to exercise caution.
Without hesitation, the security guard gladly gave us the mortuary attendant’s contact details, saying his colleague would gladly help us.
After contacting the mortuary attendant, who was expecting our call, a meeting was promptly arranged.
The meeting took place at a local eatery.
From our deliberations with the mortuary attendant, we gathered that human private parts can be sold for as much as US$ 500.
Internal organs such as the heart were pegged at more than US$ 1 500.
The mortuary attendant, who remained composed and relaxed as if he was negotiating the sale of a heifer, explained how the body parts are harvested.
“The parts are mostly removed when the bodies are cleaned in preparation for burial,” he explained, adding that harvesting external body parts was often a challenge since relatives usually inspected the bodies of their departed loved ones.
“However, there is no risk in harvesting internal organs such as the heart and lungs since relatives of the deceased rarely inspect those parts of the body. Those ones are easier to get,” said our source.
In addition, he also said bones and teeth could be “easily obtained’”
But despite that, external organs such as the eyes, breasts and private parts were in great demand.
Also in demand is the water left after washing corpses.
Criminals, among them armed robbers and burglars, are believed to use the water as juju or to induce heavy sleep among house occupants.
According to sources, the water is mixed with juju to produce a concoction which criminals believe will protect them during their escapades
A 500ml bottle of the water was being sold for US$ 200.
It is widely believed that if the water is sprinkled on the door of a targeted house, the victim will fall into a deep slumber, resulting in the robbers ransacking their homes.
Mbuya Alice Nhemachena, a traditional healer, said the water was in great demand.
“The water can be used to make it easier for burglars to steal. Criminal elements can fork out a fortune to get hold of this water. It can also be used to make love potions,” Mbuya Nhemachena said.
Sekuru Friday Chisanyu, another traditional healer, said stealing and selling human body parts is a form witchcraft.
“Some traditional healers tell their clients to bring ‘a warm heart, freshly pulled out of a person’. People who engage such traditional healers want easy money and will end up engaging in ritual murders,” Sekuru Chisanyu said.
“But some people approach us saying they are now being tormented by avenging spirits after buying human body parts,” he said.
So who are the victims in this macabre scam?
According to sources, accident victims are the most common victims of human body parts’ theft.
For accident victims, relatives normally cannot tell whether missing body parts was lost during or after the accident.
Dr Edwin Muguti, a former Deputy Minister of Health and Child Care, said it was possible for one to steal human body parts during a post-mortem.
“It is possible for pathologists, mortuary attendants and security guards to illegally harvest body parts. Such laws as the Human Tissue Act and the Anatomy Act were enacted to deter such practices,” Dr Muguti said.
But Mr Talent Nharara, the operations manager at Foundation Funeral Services, said he was yet to come across such criminal cases.
“I have heard about such things, but I am yet to come across such cases. However, it might be possible for body parts to be harvested during embalming and when the corpse is being washed. The fact that people always talk about this means that such things might be happening,” Mr Nharara said.
The human body is usually washed, embalmed and dressed up in preparation for either burial or cremation.
But according to Mr Nharara, the water used in cleaning corpses is disposed of in a manner which makes it almost impossible for one to collect it for sale.
“The water is disposed of using special drainage pipes. Like I said before, I am yet to come across people who siphon such fluids, but that does not mean that the fluids are not being siphoned off,” added Mr Nharara.
He was, however, not at liberty to reveal exactly how the water is disposed of.
Mr Taka Svosve, Zimbabwe Association of Funeral Assurers’ (Zafa) general manager, said there was much speculation regarding the harvesting of human body parts. “From our investigations, nothing of that sort is happening. Some fraudsters might actually be selling ordinary water, which they claim to have come from mortuaries.”
“Our people are professionals and we make sure that such acts are detected. Just like any other professionals, those that work in morgues adhere to stipulated rules,” Mr Svosve said, adding that there was need for the public to be educated about the role of morticians and undertakers so that society can get to understand how they work.
Zimbabwe Republic Police national spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said no such reports hadbeen made to the police.
“I cannot comment on that one at the moment. There is need for investigations and verification,” Ass Comm Nyathi said.
In Zimbabwe and other parts of the world, trading in human body parts is illegal.
The recent disturbances in Zambia have given rise to many articles in local, regional and international newspapers. To cite them all would be an impossible task, I will not even attempt it here. Below I reproduce a kind of summary given by Home Affairs Minister Stephen Kampyongo. Of course, I realize that he is a high placed Zambian official (politician) who might be interested in the political correctness of his statement, or having – understandable – political objectives. However, his Ministerial Statement before Parliament provides us with enough elements to be relatively well informed about the recent incidents which occurred in many places and regions of his Southern African country. Besides, it is interesting to note the ‘definition’ of ritual murders which he gives us: ‘(….) I wish to state that the term ritual killing means slaying a human being to appease deity. In short, victims of ritual killing are found with certain body parts missing from them for suspicious ritual use. (…)’
The article is reproduced here for various reasons. First, it shows the willingness and determination of the Zambian authorities to maintain the law. Secondly, it gives insight in the fear of local people and the reason why mob justice occurs. Furthermore, it establishes – once more – the fact that ritual murders have not been eradicated from Zambian society and, finally, it shows the nowadays complex nature of this phenomenon with the mixture of traditional beliefs, superstition and outright criminal behavior which characterize ritualistic killings, in Zambia as well as other countries.(webmaster FVDK).
‘370 households, 1198 people affected by gassing so far’ – Home Affairs Minister Stephen Kampyongo
The heading of the present case hardly sounds as ‘new’ news, but it reminds us of earlier cases of murdered victims whose vital body parts were removed for ritual purposes. Yet it is another case, the umpteenth case of ritualistic murder in Nigeria, certainly Africa’s Number One Country when it comes to ritual killings (webmaster FVDK).
70-Year-Old Woman Murdered And Used For Money Ritual In Ondo
Published: February 17, 2020 By: Sundiata Post
A 70-year-old woman identified as Sidikat Jimoh, has been gruesomely murdered by some suspected ritualists, removing her vital organs in Ogbagi Akoko in Akoko North West Local Government Area of Ondo State.
It was gathered that the woman killed this morning and found in a pool of her blood in her residence around Ayetoro area of the town in the early morning.
According to an eyewitness, the assailants after removing the vital parts from the woman also tried to set her remains ablaze but had to leave in a hurry, leaving behind some of the vital organs removed from their victim.
He described the late Septuagenarian as a peace-loving and religious and wondered what could be responsible for the killing as no property or money was removed from her home.
He said: “This woman was full of life yesterday and even attended the weekly prayer meeting at the Ansar Ud Deen Society of Nigeria Central mosque, before returning home.
“It is unfortunate that these hoodlums visited her home and killed her and removing her vital organs.”
He, however, said the incident was reported to the police station while security operatives from the area removed her corpse to the State Specialist Hospital in Ikare Akoko.
The Area Commander for Ikare Police Division, ACP Razak Rauf, who confirmed the incident, said policemen from the town swung into action and visited the scene of the incident.
He said there was no arrest but disclosed that investigation had commenced into the killing, assuring that the killers would be brought to book.
Muti or ‘muthi’ murders are ritualistic murders committed to enhance one’s prestige, power, wealth or luck. It’s a quite common name for a heinous crime, all over Southern Africa – not only in South Africa. Perpetrators are rarely arrested and prosecuted. Also in the case of the late Maria Skhosana whose lifeless body was found mutilated – case presented below – police was reluctant to intervene. Why? The deceased’s partner, however, insisted, and a suspect was arrested and brought to court to be judged. Read the saga below. At least, the rule of law seems to be applied this time, which unfortunately cannot be taken for granted in South Africa…. (webmaster FVDK).
Photo: Sourced (Bosveld Review)
Extra court security for Centurion ‘muthi’ murder accused Published: February 6, 2020 By: Centurion Rekord
David Ntosi will appear in the Pretoria magistrate’s court again on 3 February.
Ntosi was arrested a week ago, on allegations that he killed 40-year-old Maria Skhosana, mutilated her body and dumped it near the Mnandi cemetery in Olievenhoutbosch.
He appeared in court on Monday, for an interpreter to be appointed. The case was remanded to allow legal representation to be appointed for him.
Skhosana’s mutilated body was found dumped near a cemetery in Olievenhoutbosch earlier this month, in what was suspected to be a muthi murder.
She was last seen by her family on 27 November last year, and reported missing to the police the next day.
Her partner Thamisanqa Mahlangu told Rekord he had to investigate her disappearance all on his own.
This allegedly included “luring” the suspect as well as taking valuable information to police which they allegedly failed to act on.
Protests flared up in the area following Skhosana’s murder.
Earlier this month, rubber bullets and stun grenades were fired at a group of protesters who were allegedly involved in torching muthi shops in Olievenhoutbosch.
Centurion ‘muts’ murder accused appears in court Published: January 23, 2020 By: Centurion Rekord
David Ntosi was arrested a week ago on suspicion that he killed 40-year-old Maria Skhosana, mutilated her body then dumped it near the Mnandi Cemetery in Olievenhoutbosch.
A 27-year-old man who is accused of killing a woman for muthi appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court earlier this week.
David Ntosi was arrested a week ago on allegations that he killed 40-year-old Maria Skhosana, mutilated her body and dumped it near the Mnandi Cemetery in Olievenhoutbosch.
Skhosana was last seen by her family on 27 November last year and reported missing to the police the next day.
She was four months pregnant when she decided to have an abortion and had left that day to have the procedure performed, but was never seen again.
The case drew a lot of attention as members of the community filled up the gallery screaming slurs at the accused.
On Sunday rubber bullets and stun grenades were fired at a group of protesters who were allegedly involved in torching muthi shops in Olievenhoutbosch.
Skhosana’s partner Thamisanqa Mahlangu said community members had vowed to support the family during court proceedings.
“This matter hasn’t only affected us as a family, but the entire the community as well,” he said.
“They do not feel safe in their own neighbourhoods.”
He said the Olievenhoutbosch taxi industry has offered free transportation to supporters.
The matter was remanded to 27 January in order to get an interpreter for the accused.
His address was yet to be confirmed in order for him to apply for bail.
Centurion herbal shops torched following ‘muthi’ murder Published: January 23, 2020 By: Centurion Rekord
Rubber bullets and stun grenades were fired at a group of protesters who were allegedly involved in torching muthi shops in Olievenhoutbosch on Sunday evening.
The protest comes after the body mutilated body of 40-year-old Maria Skhosana was found dumped near the Mnandi cemetery on Wednesday.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Mathapelo Peters said preliminary reports suggest that the incident stemmed from the arrest of a 27-year-old man suspected of being behind the murder of the woman.
“A group of people went on the rampage and raided a number of shops alleged to be selling muthi,” she said
Peters said the group initially started earlier in the day, going into the shops, removing muthi-products and setting them alight, but were dispersed by police.
An even bigger crowd started again later in the evening and attacked and burnt some shops that were part of a chain of stores known to be selling muthi.
“An unconfirmed number of shops were damaged and some set alight,” Peters said.
“The group allegedly became violent and attacked the police nyala and the members responded by firing stun grenades and rubber bullets.”
She said police found another group allegedly looting a shop and arrested four suspects.
Skhosana was last seen by her family on 27 November last year and reported missing to the police the next day.
Her partner Thamisanqa Mahlangu said the woman, who was four months pregnant, had decided to have an abortion and had left that day to have the procedure performed, but never returned.
He previously told Rekord that he believed Maria’s killer lured women to his “surgery” under the pretense of being an abortion specialist, takes their money, kills them and steals their body parts.
“Police must investigate who else he has killed and who are the other people he is working with,” he said.
Family devastated after missing woman (40) found mutilated Published: January 17, 2020 By: Centurion Rekord
Thamisanqa Mahlangu at the scene where his partners remains were found. Photo: Ron Sibiya
Maria Skhosana’s body was found near the Mnandi cemetery in Olievenhoutbosch .
The family of a 40-year old missing woman is devasted after her body was found dumped near a Cemetery in Olievenhoutbosch on Wednesday.
Maria Skhosana was found mutilated in what is suspected to be a muthi murder.
Skhosana was last seen by her family on 27 November last year and reported missing to the police the next day.
Her partner Thamisanqa Mahlangu said Maria, who was four months pregnant, had decided to have an abortion and had left that day to have the procedure performed.
“I didn’t agree with her decision, but I couldn’t stop her either. I didn’t even know where she was going to have it done” he said.
“I was in Mpumalanga when I received a call the next day that she had not returned home.”
He said he rushed back to Pretoria to search for her and his first instinct led him to hospitals.
“I thought that maybe she was hospitalised after the procedure, that maybe she may have been bleeding and needed additional attention. But we didn’t find her.”
Weeks went by and Maria was still nowhere to be found.
Mahlangu said the family had even resorted to seeking the help from spiritual leaders, who reassured them that she would be back.
” A week ago, I then searched for all the contact details of abortion places in the area. I contacted one who said they had not treated my partner, but something was not right about him.”
He said he knew something was wrong when the so-called abortion expert asked for a picture of Maria to confirm if he had not in fact treated her.
“Why would he ask for a picture? Would he not know her names and Surname?”
“I pleaded with him to please bring her back, but he insisted that he knew nothing.”
On Sunday Mahlangu received a call from an anonymous person, who said he had information about Maria’s whereabouts.
He said the person told him that Maria was killed.
“He gave me the location of a place where he said the owner was involved in Maria’s murder,” said Mahlangu
“I took this information to the police who were reluctant to help.”
He mobilized members of the community who then followed the information which led them to a muthi shop in extention 21.
“We found a young man who insisted he knew nothing and that he had a boss he worked for. We took him to the police, but he was later released and he wasn’t even interviewed.”
Mahlangu said he and the community members pleaded with the police until they caught the attention of one officer who after following leads rearrested the same young man.
The father of two said he believed that the young man was using illegal abortions to lure women into his “surgery” stealing their body parts and then killing them.
Police spokesperson Sergeant Pretty Mokadi confirmed that the 27-year old man was arrested on Monday.
“The suspect then took police to a place where illegal abortions are conducted and a bag full of women underwear was found and burned.”
“Regarding the muthi killing, at this stage, we cannot confirm as the matter is still investigated,” said Mokadi.
Mahlangu said the family has been struggling to cope and the idea of waiting three more months for Maria’s burial was even more stressful.
“We couldn’t identify her because of how she was badly mutilated. We were told that DNA test would take up to three months,” he said.
“We can’t even sleep at night.”
Maria, a mother of two, was employed as a domestic worker.
“Her birthday on the 16th of December was a very dull one,” Mahlangu said.
Women in the community who did not want to be named said they felt unsafe and targeted.
They called on the police to reopen unsolved missing persons cases to see if they cannot be linked to the suspect.
” How many other women has he killed? Who are the owners of the other underwear found? “
They said they would mobilise other members of the community to raise their concerns with the police.
The 27-year old man is expected to appear in court soon.
Olievenhoutbosch is a township in Centurion in Gauteng, South Africa. It is the furthest suburb situated from the Pretoria CBD. Source: Olievenhoutbosch – Wikipedia Map of South Africa with City of Tshwane highlighted
Sometimes one gets the impression that a lifeless human body does not get the respect it should get. At least, that’s what I thought when reading the news below. The fact that it concerned a suspected mad man – as mentioned by the newspaper, even in its headline – is totally irrelevant (webmaster FVDK).
Headless body of suspected mad man found in Delta
Published: February 8, 2020 By: The Sun – Paul Osuyi, Asaba
A headless body was found on Saturday along the popular Nnebisi Road in Asaba, Delta State capital.
The discovery of the unidentified headless corpse caused consternation among residents of the area.
Those who thronged to the scene to catch a glimpse of the gory dismembered corpse could not identify the deceased.
A local source who volunteered information to Daily Sun hinted that the deceased was sighted on the ground struggling to breathe the previous day, apparently after getting intoxicated.
“We saw the man around 11:00 pm Friday night still on the floor with all parts of his body intact,” the witness said.
“But we were surprised to see the man this morning without his head and some vital organs.”
Public Relation Officer of the Delta State Police Command DSP Onome Onowvakpoyeya confirmed the incident.
She said an investigation has already begun to apprehend those behind the suspected ritual murder.
Onowvakpoyeya noted that the deceased was said to be insane but wondered how his head and other vital organs were removed.
“We are aware that parts of his body were missing when he was found,” the police spokeswoman said.
Whereas the dust has hardly settled down in Chingola (see my previous postings), another rumor led to rioting and mob justice. This time in Solwezi, in the northwest of the country. Whether true to not – the suspected crime – it is clear from what happened that the belief in the power of ritualistic murders remains widespread and undisputed. Also, mob justice and the incapacity of official authorities to maintain the law go hand-in-hand (webmaster FVDK).
Published: February 7, 2020 By: The Independent Observer – Mwape Mwesa
A mob in Solwezi has killed unidentified man on suspicion that he was allegedly a ritual killer.
This was after the deceased was in the company of three others was apprehended a security guard after they attempted to break into one of the offices at Kimakolwe School.
Northwestern Province Police Commissioner Hudson Namachila has confirmed the incident that happened between 7:30 and 8:00 hours yesterday.
Mr Namachila said the security guard alerted members of the public who descended on the deceased hitting him with stones, sticks and planks.
He said the victim had multiple head injuries and his body has since been deposited in Solwezi general hospital mortuary awaiting postmortem.
No arrest has been made so far.
In a similar development a rioting mob set ablaze Kazomba Police Post destroying property whose value is yet to be ascertained.
Mr Namachila said Inspector Kabambi, the officer in charge at the said police post reported the matter on behalf of the Zambia Police Service.
He said the incident happened at 09:00 hours yesterday and no arrest has been made yet.
In another incident, a rioting mob assaulted a police officer at Solwezi central police station identified as Albert Mulunga 43.
The Provincial Police Chief said Mulunga was hit with a stone unknown people who were rioting at Kimakolwe School.
Mr Namachila said the officer sustained a deep cut on the back side of the head.
On February 1, I reported the discovery of the mutilated body of a 9-year old boy in Nimba County and the – usual – gossip and rumor that it was a case of ritualistic killing. Not a coincidence. Ritual murders continue to occur (more or less frequently, we don’t know) in Liberia, and since elections will be held, later this year (October), the assumption of a ritualistic killing when finding a mutilated body is never far away. Moreover, a Liberian senator, from Nimba County (!) recently warned against ritual killers.
Police have questioned several ‘persons of interest’ in connection with the dead 9-year old, named Lee Arthur, but have not arrested a suspect. This automatically leads to rumors of a cover-up in Liberia, where ordinary people are used to the impunity of ‘big shots’, as highly placed citizens are called, usually politicians or high ranking civil servants and law makers.
There are multiple reasons to remain vigilant and follow this case closely. The link between elections and ritual killings needs to be broken. In fact, the phenomenon of ritualistic murders should be banished from Liberia and become part of its history. After all, its 2020! (webmaster FVDK).
Published: February 6, 2020 By: The Bush Chicken – Jerry Myers
SANNIQUELLIE, Nimba – Despite efforts being exerted by police in Nimba to identify the murderer of Lee Arthur, a nine-year-old boy who was likely a victim of a ritualistic killing in late January this year, no suspect has yet been arrested.
A police source, who spoke only on condition of anonymity, said those who were invited by the police in Bahn as persons of interest in the murder case have all been signed for by stakeholders in Lorplay and released to the community because of the lack of evidence linking them to the murder.
On Jan. 23, the boy was found dead in a hideout in Sahn Village in Nimba’s sixth district with his body partially dismembered and missing key body parts, including his vocal cord. His arms were also skinned. The cause of death remains unknown. However, residents of the village suspect that his missing body parts are an indication that he may be a victim of a ritualistic murder.
Following police arrival on the crime scene, several persons were invited for questioning to determine whether they were linked to the murder. However, the police source has told The Bush Chicken that, after a thorough investigation of those individuals, they were released.
“They could still be invited at a later time, should the police find sufficient evidence enough to link any one of them,” the source said. “So they are going about their normal activities back home as the police try to find the perpetrators of such an ugly act.”
The source further noted that the community has been cooperative with the police during the investigation.
Meanwhile, following examination of the child’s body by police, medical personnel, and the coroners, he has been buried.
The source noted that because police in the area lacked the capacity to preserve the body as the investigation continues, they turned the corpse over to family members for burial.
Meanwhile, police in Nimba have not yet made any official statement about the case, as the investigation continues.
The recent outcry of the Sunyani traditional authorities leads to mixed feelings. On the one hand, I am glad with their protest against the rituals killings that plague the Brong Ahafo Region and terrorize the people of Sunyani and its environs. However, even though the declaration of war against ritual killers was wrapped in ritual and traditional rites invoking the powers of the gods and ancestors, it is also a token of mistrust in official local and regional security forces who fail to reassure the population by arresting and prosecuting the alleged perpetrators preventing further heinous ritualistic acts, in short, to maintain the rule of law. On the other hand, it is shameful and painful realizing that ritualistic killings and murders still take place on such a large scale that public demonstration against these criminal practices is warranted. Let’s hope that the traditional authorities thus contribute to tipping the scale and I wish from the bottom of my heart that their demonstration will act as a wake-up call for the official Ghanian authorities to make the region a safe heaven for all of its people, be it children, adults or elderly people (webmaster FVDK).
Sunyani traditional authorities declare war on ritual and serial killers Published: February 5, 2020 By: Christopher Tetteh – GNA
