Referring to yesterday’s post (‘Nigeria, Ogun State: a hotbed of ritual crimes‘), the following ritual murder case needs no comments. The victim, Quadri Salami, was murdered for a money ritual in November or December last year. His violent death only confirms the main thrust of yesterday’s post.
Please also note in the second article the confession of the arrested duo that they had used four other human heads for ritual purposes.
Indeed, Ogun State is a hotbed of criminal ritualistic activities.
Warning: the following article contains graphic details which may upset readers (FVDK).
Ogun: Ritualists kill OOU student, sell head, wrists for N100,000
The operatives of the Ogun State police command, have arrested two suspected ritualists, Akeem Usman and Ifadowo Niyi for allegedly killing a 100-level student of the Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Quadri Salami for a money ritual.
The duo of Akeem and Ifadowo slaughtered 18-year-old Salami and dismembered his body part.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the command, Omolala Odutola confirmed the arrest of the suspects to journalists in Abeokuta on Wednesday.
According to Odutola, the deceased’s father had reported the sudden disappearance of his son to the police at Kemta police station on November 14.
The deceased’s father told the police that his son had gone missing on November 8, and all efforts to locate him proved abortive.
The PPRO said the police investigation led to the arrest of one of the suspects, Akeem Usman who was arrested in possession of the deceased’s phone.
The police spokesperson said, that the Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu on Wednesday, led a team of the tactical squad to Mile 6 in the Ajebo area of Abeokuta where the deceased was buried in a shallow grave.
“He (Akeem Usman) implicated one Ifadowo Niyi that both of them committed the heinous crime by slaughtering the victim one Quadri and dismembering his vital parts for ritual purposes.
“Ifadowo went away with Quadri’s head, and his two wrists, and paid the sum of N100,00 into Akeem Usman’s account as proceeds from the sale of the human body parts.
“The suspects thereafter continued to sell the victim’s other body parts on demand to Internet fraudsters and buried the heart, two legs, and flesh inside a plastic rubber for rituals and used the remaining parts for ‘Awure’ (money ritual).
“Among their confessional statement, the duo admitted that they have used four other human heads for money rituals known as ‘Osole’.
“The suspects are now in Eleweran at SCID for the continuation of discreet investigations and will definitely be prosecuted”, Odutola said.
Ogun police arrest two over killing of OAU student for ritual
Published: December 6, 2023 By: Mayor – Chronicle, Nigeria
The police command in Ogun says it has arrested two persons, Akeem Usman and Niyi Ifadowo, for allegedly killing 18-year-old 100-level Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) student Quadri Salami for rituals.
SP Omolola Odutola, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), disclosed this in a statement issued in Abeokuta on Wednesday.
Ms Odutola stated that Mr Salami’s father, on November 14, reported at Kemta Police station, Abeokuta, that his son had been missing since November 8.
She quoted the father as saying he had not set his eyes on his son and all efforts to locate him proved abortive.
The PPRO said that the Commissioner of Police in Ogun, Abiodun Alamutu, on Wednesday, personally led a team of Tactical Squad to Mile 6 in the Ajebo area of Abeokuta.
“The commissioner went with the team to a shallow grave to exhume the decomposing body parts of the deceased after a tracking clue beamed at Usman, who was arrested in possession of the victim’s phone.
“He implicated Ifadowo that both of them committed the heinous crime by slaughtering the victim and dismembering his vital parts for ritual purposes.
“Ifadowo went away with the deceased head and his two wrists and paid the sum of N100,000 into Usman’s account as proceeds from the sale of Salami’s other body parts.
“The suspects thereafter continued to sell the victim’s other body parts on demand to Internet fraudsters.
“They buried the heart, two legs, and flesh inside a plastic rubber for rituals and used the remaining parts for a crime against humanity,” the PPRO said.
Ms Odutola explained that in their confessional statement, the duo admitted that they had used four other human heads for money rituals.
She added that the suspects were now in Eleweran at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for the continuation of discreet investigation, saying that they would be prosecuted.
The police spokesperson said that the CP remained committed to ensuring that justice was served and would continue to investigate further to bring all perpetrators to face the full extent of the law.
She said that such criminal involvement endangered innocent lives, urging parents to collectively work together with the police by volunteering information to eradicate such nefarious practices.
A recent ritual murder case, implicating a gang of seven men including two priests of a white garment church and two herbalist, originating from four different southern states (Ogun, Oyo, Lagos and Edo), was widely covered in the national media (and also abroad). In all, this post covers nearly twenty articles.
The victim was a 35-year old woman, Sulaimon Adijat. She was brutally murdered for ritual purposes, her body heavily mutilated, on or about January 9. Allegedly, the suspects were not only into ritual murders but also dealt in human parts trading on a large scale. Read the details below. It is a chilling account of heinous crimes committed by greedy and unscrupulous men.
Warning: The following articles contain graphic details which may upset readers (FVDK)
Seven Arrested for Gruesome Murder and Trade of Human Body Parts in Ogun State
Seven Arrested for Gruesome Murder and Trade of Human Body Parts in Ogun State
Seven individuals, including two herbalists and two alleged priests, have been arrested in Ogun State for the murder of Sulaimon Adijat and trading her body parts for a ritual called ‘Oshole’. The police are investigating a larger network involved in these heinous activities, shedding light on the moral decay in society.
In the quiet shadows of Ogun State, a chilling tale of greed and betrayal unfolds, as seven individuals, including two herbalists, two alleged priests of the Cherubim and Seraphim Church, and three others, were apprehended for their involvement in a nefarious plot that culminated in the murder of 35-year-old Sulaimon Adijat.
The suspects, ensnared by the allure of wealth, confessed to the brutal killing, aiming to trade human life for financial gain through a ritual known as ‘Oshole’. The Ogun State Police Command, following a report of the missing woman, embarked on an investigation that led to the grim discovery and subsequent arrest of the gang, unveiling a larger network engaged in the trade of human body parts for monetary rituals, seeking to conjure N200 million within a mere seven days.
A Gruesome Discovery
The investigation into Sulaimon Adijat’s disappearance revealed a horrific scene. Various human body parts, intended for use in the ‘Oshole’ ritual, were recovered from the suspects, painting a gruesome picture of the lengths to which some would go for wealth.
The suspects, now under investigation, confessed to their roles in the crime, exposing the dark underbelly of a society where human life is traded for monetary gain. The Ogun Police Command’s swift action has brought to light the existence of a larger network, prompting an extensive search for other individuals involved in these illicit activities.
The revelation of such a heinous crime has sent shockwaves through the community, raising questions about the moral fabric of those who seek prosperity at the cost of human life.
The brutal killing of Sulaimon Adijat for money rituals not only highlights the desperate measures some are willing to take but also the pervasive belief in the power of such rituals to alter one’s financial destiny. The incident has ignited a broader conversation on the societal values and the urgent need for a moral reawakening.
Two Nigerian herbalists named Moses Abidemi and Oluwo Samuel Monday as well as two prophets of Cherubim and Seraphim Church, Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusufhave all been arrested for the killing of one Sulaimon Adijat, aged 35, for money ritual purposes.
Three other suspects, Akinwunmi Ifatosin, Sherifff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria, who are both from Uromi in Esan West Local Government Area of Edo State, were also arrested for the murder.
According to the reports, the aforementioned people are a gang of hardened criminals who are not only involved in ritual killings but also deal in large sales of human parts.
Apparently, the deceased was reported missing in January not knowing that she had been murdered and used for money rituals.
Adijat was said to have been invited out on a date by one Adebayo Olawale Azeez of Ajegunle road, Atan Ota, where she was later kidnapped and murdered.
Police arrest prophet, 6 other ritualists for killing lady to make N200m in 7 days
Published: February 16, 2024 By: Afolabi – Within Nigeria
Olamutu stated that the report of a missing lady, Ms Sulaiimon Adijat, led to the arrest of the culprits
In Ogun State, a seven-man gang that deals in decapitating humans and selling their parts for rituals has been bursted, the police in the south west state have disclosed. The State Police Commissioner, Abiodun Olamutu, made the disclosure in a statement on Thursday.
According to Olamutu, a human heart and two kegs filled with human bodies were recovered from the suspects. He gave the name of the suspects as Moses Abidemi, Oluwo Monday, Prophet Peter Akiwunmi Ifatosin, Jamiu Yusuf, Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitoura.
Olamutu stated that the report of a missing lady, Ms Sulaiimon Adijat, led to the arrest of the culprits.
Olamutu said the Divisional Police Office, Onipanu, received a report that Adijat was missing on January 9 after she waa invited out on a date by one Adebayo Azeez.
“Despite frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts, her mobile phone has been switched off since the day she was reported missing.
“Consequently, the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the command was drafted to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance and a technical-based investigation was embarked on,” the CP said.
The police boss said investigation revealed that the suspects were involved in a money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ to produce N200m within seven days.
“Oluwo Monday charged the duo of Agbai and Alioneitouria N800,000 to prepare the materials for the ritual.
“Oluwo Monday, in furtherance of his criminal intention, later contacted one Peter, who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18 and 20 years,” he added.
According to him, Peter was to deliver the lady’s mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breasts, vagina and two wrists that would be used for the ritual.
“However, on January 10, Sheriff and Osojieahen collected the ritual money from Oluwo and travelled back to their location in Edo State.
“Trouble started when Osojieahen used the ritual element as directed by Oluwo, and complained bitterly that it failed to yield the expected sum of 200 million in seven days.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Moses on Feb. 3 and 10, where female handbags, two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered,” he said.
Herbalists, Prophets Paraded By Police For Killing 35Yr Old Woman For Money Rituals In Ogun
Published: February 16, 2024 By: Onuigbo Felicia– Gistmania, Nigeria
Two herbalists, Moses Abidemi and Oluwo Samuel Monday, and two prophets of Cherubim and Seraphim Church, Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf, were on Thursday paraded by the police in Ogun State for killing a 35-year-old woman, Sulaimon Adijat, for money rituals.
Paraded alongside the priests were Akinwunmi Ifatosin, Sherifff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria.
Parading the suspects at the command headquarters in Eleweran, Abeokuta, the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, said the suspects were not only into ritual killings but also dealt in human parts trading on a large scale.
He said the operation that led to the arrest of the suspects started on January 9 when a report was lodged at the Onipanu divisional headquarters in Atan-Ota about the missing Adijat.
Adijat allegedly went missing after going for a date with one Adebayo Olawale Azeez of Ajegunle road, Atan Ota.
The commissioner said the victim’s family made frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts which all proved abortive while her mobile phone was also switched off.
Alamutu said that the command deployed its Anti Kidnapping Unit to unravel the mystery behind Adijat’s disappearance.
He added that a technical-based investigation embarked upon by the unit pointed towards the seven suspects.
Alamutu said:
Quote “The investigation revealed that on 19th November, 2023, one Sherifff Agbai ‘m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ contacted Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ a.k.a Oluwo Mandela to perform money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ that can produce Two Hundred Million naira within seven days.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday charged the duo of Sherifff Agbai ‘m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ the sum of Eight Hundred thousand naira (#800,000) and agreed to prepare the materials for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ in furtherance of his criminal intention later contacted one Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18yrs to 20yrs in order to deliver her mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two Bosom, virginal and her two wrists that will be used for money ritual.
“Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who is an acclaimed Prophet of a white garment church located in Ibadan, Oyo state, contacted another colleague of his, one Prophet Jamiu Yusuf ‘m’ a,k.a Eri Mose in Lagos state, who is notorious in the supply of human parts for ritual purpose.
“Prophet Jamiu Yusuf further contacted one Abidemi Moses ‘m’ a.k.a. Asela, who is a herbalist at Atan Ota, Ogun State. Abidemi Moses ‘m’ requested for the sum of Six Hundred thousand naira to get a lady that can be used for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ negotiated for the sum of three hundred thousand naira for the human body parts. Abidemi Moses ‘m’ is a herbalist and he serves as an apprentice to one Adebayo Olawale Azeez ‘m’, now at large, to harvest human parts for sale, a business he has enjoyed the proceeds for the past three years.
“Hence, on 9th January, 2024, Adebayo Olawale Azeez ‘m’ invited one Sulaiman Adijat ‘f’ on a date to Sunshine hotel, Atan Ota, and she was later taken to Abidemi Moses shrine at Igbo Olomi area of Atan Ota, Ogun State.
“She was killed by Abidemi Moses ‘m’ and others now at large, and her dismembered body parts were taken to Abidemi Moses’s house at Atan Ota to meet Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ and Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who were waiting for the arrival of the body parts.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ collected the head, two Bosoms, virginal, and two wrists and other body parts of the deceased. Oluwo Samuel Monday prepared the body parts in a local pot, and lighted firewood to burn it in Abidemi Moses’s house till the next day.
“Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ joined Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ to kill the ram that was used to appease the spirit of the deceased during the process of performing money ritual. Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf were also given some body parts of the deceased.
“On 10th January, 2024, Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ collected the money ritual from Oluwo Monday Samuel and travelled back to their location in Edo State.
“Trouble started when Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ used the money ritual element as directed by Oluwo Monday Samuel, and they both complained bitterly that the money ritual failed to yield the expected sum of Two hundred million (#200,000,000) in seven days despite having used if for three weeks.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Abidemi Moses on the 3rd February, 2024, and ten female handbags, two 25 litres gallons containing human parts, one axe, and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered from his shrine at Igbo Olomi, Atan Ota.
“The relative of the deceased later came to the police station and identified one of the ten bags that were recovered as the hand bag of their daughter Sulaimon Adijat.” Unquote
The commissioner disclosed that efforts were on to apprehend the fleeing suspects. He noted that the matter would be charged to court upon conclusion of investigations.
Prophet, six others arrested for ritual killing in Ogun
Published: February 17, 2024 By: Punch, Nigeria
The Ogun Police Command has arrested a seven-man gang suspected to be specialised in trading human parts and for money rituals.
The Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, disclosed that a human heart and two kegs filled with human body parts were parts of exhibits recovered from the suspects.
The men arrested on Thursday were identified by the police as Moses Abidemi, Oluwo Monday, Prophet Peter Akiwunmi Ifatosin, Jamiu Yusuf, Sheriff Agbai, and Osojieahen Alioneitoura.
Alamutu explained that the Divisional Police Office in Onipanu, received a report of a missing lady, Ms Sulaiimon Adijat, on January 9 who was invited out on a date by one Adebayo Azeez.
“Despite frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts, the mobile phone has been switched off since the day she was reported missing. Consequently, the anti-kidnapping unit of the command was drafted to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance, and a technical-based investigation was embarked on,” the CP said.
According to him, the investigation revealed that the suspects were involved in a money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ to produce N200m within seven days.
“Oluwo Monday charged the duo of Agbai and Alioneitouria N800,000 to prepare the materials for the ritual money. Oluwo Monday, in furtherance of his criminal intention, later contacted one Peter, who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the ages of 18 and 20 years.”
The CP said Peter was to deliver the lady’s mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breasts, vagina, and two wrists that would be used for the alleged ritual.
“However, on January 10, Sheriff and Osojieahen collected the ritual money from Oluwo and travelled back to their location in Edo State. Trouble started when Osojieahen used the ritual element as directed by Oluwo, and complained bitterly that it failed to yield the expected sum of N200m in seven days.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Moses on February 3 and 10, where female handbags and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered,” Alamutu added.
The CP noted that all the suspects confessed to the alleged crime and their roles, adding that an investigation was ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects.
Pictures: Prophets, Herbalists, Others Arrested For Killing 35-year-old Lady For Money Rituals
The victim, 35-year old Sulaimon Adijat
Published: February 16, 2024 By: Justina Otto – NaijaNews, Nigeria
The Ogun State Police Command has apprehended some suspects in connection to the murder of one Sulaimon Adijat for ritual purposes.
Those arrested include two herbalists, Moses Abidemi and Oluwo Samuel Monday as well as two alleged priests of Cherubim and Seraphim Church, Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf.
Three other suspects, Akinwunmi Ifatosin, Sherifff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria, who are both from Uromi in Esan West Local Government Area of Edo State, were also arrested for the murder.
Parading the suspects at the Command Headquarters, Eleweran, Abeokuta on Wednesday, February 14, 2024, the State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, described them as gang of hardened criminals who are not only involved in ritual killings but also deal in large sale of human parts.
According to Alamutu, on January 9, 2024, DPO of Onipanu Divisional headquarters of the Nigeria Police in Atan-Ota received the report of a missing 35-years-old Sulaimon Adijat.
The deceased was said to be invited on a date by one Adebayo Olawale Azeez of Ajegunle road, Atan Ota, (now at large).
It was gathered that Adijat, who worked as a security guard at Canaan Land, Sango Ota, received a call after she got back from work.
She said: “I ‘m coming” to the caller and then told her sister that she was going to Atan in Ota.
The CP revealed that consequently, a tactical team of the police, specifically the Anti Kidnapping Unit of the Command was drafted to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance.
According to the Commissioner, “The investigation revealed that on 19th November, 2023, one Sherifff Agbai ‘m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ contacted Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ a.k.a Oluwo Mandela to perform money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ that can produce Two Hundred Million naira within seven days,”
“Oluwo Samuel Monday charged the duo of Sherifff Agbai ‘m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ the sum of Eight Hundred thousand naira (#800,000) and agreed to prepare the materials for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ in furtherance of his criminal intention later contacted one Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18yrs to 20yrs in order to deliver her mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breast, virginal and her two wrists that will be used for money ritual.
“Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who is an acclaimed Prophet of a white garment church located in Ibadan, Oyo state, contacted another colleague of his, one Prophet Jamiu Yusuf ‘m’ a,k.a Eri Mose in Lagos state, who is notorious in the supply of human parts for ritual purpose.
“Prophet Jamiu Yusuf further contacted one Abidemi Moses ‘m’ a.k.a. Asela, who is a herbalist at Atan Ota, Ogun State. Abidemi Moses ‘m’ requested for the sum of Six Hundred thousand naira to get a lady that can be used for the money ritual
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ negotiated for the sum of three hundred thousand naira for the human body parts. Abidemi Moses ‘m’ is a herbalist and he serves as an apprentice to one Adebayo Olawale Azeez ‘m’, now at large, to harvest human parts for sale, a business he has enjoyed the proceeds for the past three years.
“Hence, on 9th January, 2024, Adebayo Olawale Azeez ‘m’ invited one Sulaiman Adijat ‘f’ on a date to Sunshine hotel, Atan Ota, and she was later taken to Abidemi Moses shrine at Igbo Olomi area of Atan Ota, Ogun State
“She was killed by Abidemi Moses ‘m’ and others now at large, and her dismembered body parts were taken to Abidemi Moses’ house at Atan Ota to meet Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ and Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who were waiting for the arrival of the body parts
The CP also disclosed that all the arrested suspects confessed to the alleged crime and their individual roles.
According to him, investigation is ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects and the case will be charged to court as soon as investigation is completed.
Commissioner of Police in Ogun State, Abiodun Alamutu, paraded four suspects, including two herbalists and two prophets, accused of the brutal killing of a 35-year-old woman, Sulaimon Adijat, for money ritual purposes.
The suspects identified as Moses Abidemi, Oluwo Samuel Monday, Prophet Peter Oluwalolese, and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf were presented before newsmen at the Ogun State Police Command’s headquarters in Eleweran, Abeokuta.
Commissioner Alamutu disclosed that the arrest followed the report of Sulaimon Adijat’s disappearance on January 9, after allegedly receiving a call from a friend, Adebayo Azeez, who invited her on a date. Despite efforts by her family to locate her, her phone was switched off, prompting the police’s anti-kidnapping team to intervene.
Investigations revealed a grim plot orchestrated by the duo of Sherifff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria, who contracted herbalist Oluwo Samuel Monday to perform a money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ promising a return of N200 million within seven days. The herbalist, in turn, enlisted the help of Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf to source a lady between 18 and 20 years for the ritual.
Adebayo Azeez, tasked with providing human parts for the syndicate, invited Adijat on a date to a hotel in the Atan area, where she was allegedly killed and her body dismembered in a shrine by Moses Abidemi. The herbalist later burned the body parts in a local pot, subsequently killing a ram to appease Adijat’s soul.
However, complications arose among the syndicate members when the anticipated N200 million from the ritual did not materialize, leading to complaints from Agbai and Alioneitouria.
The police, conducting a search at Abidemi Moses’ shrine, recovered incriminating evidence, including female handbags, gallons containing human parts, an axe, and bags filled with human bones.
Commissioner Alamutu assured the public of continuous updates as the investigation progresses, highlighting the recovered exhibits, including criminal charms, as crucial evidence. The suspects, having confessed to their roles in the crime, will face charges in court upon the completion of the investigation.
Police parade herbalists, prophets for killing 35-year-old woman for money rituals in Ogun
Published: February 16, 2024 By: John Ogunsemore – The Herald, Nigeria
Two herbalists, Moses Abidemi and Oluwo Samuel Monday, and two prophets of Cherubim and Seraphim Church, Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf, were on Thursday paraded by the police in Ogun State for killing a 35-year-old woman, Sulaimon Adijat, for money rituals.
Paraded alongside the priests were Akinwunmi Ifatosin, Sherifff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria.
Parading the suspects at the command headquarters in Eleweran, Abeokuta, the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, said the suspects were not only into ritual killings but also dealt in human parts trading on a large scale.
He said the operation that led to the arrest of the suspects started on January 9 when a report was lodged at the Onipanu divisional headquarters in Atan-Ota about the missing Adijat.
Adijat allegedly went missing after going for a date with one Adebayo Olawale Azeez of Ajegunle road, Atan Ota.
The commissioner said the victim’s family made frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts which all proved abortive while her mobile phone was also switched off.
Alamutu said that the command deployed its Anti Kidnapping Unit to unravel the mystery behind Adijat’s disappearance.
He added that a technical-based investigation embarked upon by the unit pointed towards the seven suspects.
Alamutu said, “The investigation revealed that on 19th November, 2023, one Sherifff Agbai ‘m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ contacted Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ a.k.a Oluwo Mandela to perform money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ that can produce Two Hundred Million naira within seven days.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday charged the duo of Sherifff Agbai ‘m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ the sum of Eight Hundred thousand naira (#800,000) and agreed to prepare the materials for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ in furtherance of his criminal intention later contacted one Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18yrs to 20yrs in order to deliver her mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breast, virginal and her two wrists that will be used for money ritual.
“Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who is an acclaimed Prophet of a white garment church located in Ibadan, Oyo state, contacted another colleague of his, one Prophet Jamiu Yusuf ‘m’ a,k.a Eri Mose in Lagos state, who is notorious in the supply of human parts for ritual purpose.
“Prophet Jamiu Yusuf further contacted one Abidemi Moses ‘m’ a.k.a. Asela, who is a herbalist at Atan Ota, Ogun State. Abidemi Moses ‘m’ requested for the sum of Six Hundred thousand naira to get a lady that can be used for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ negotiated for the sum of three hundred thousand naira for the human body parts. Abidemi Moses ‘m’ is a herbalist and he serves as an apprentice to one Adebayo Olawale Azeez ‘m’, now at large, to harvest human parts for sale, a business he has enjoyed the proceeds for the past three years.
“Hence, on 9th January, 2024, Adebayo Olawale Azeez ‘m’ invited one Sulaiman Adijat ‘f’ on a date to Sunshine hotel, Atan Ota, and she was later taken to Abidemi Moses shrine at Igbo Olomi area of Atan Ota, Ogun State.
“She was killed by Abidemi Moses ‘m’ and others now at large, and her dismembered body parts were taken to Abidemi Moses’s house at Atan Ota to meet Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ and Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who were waiting for the arrival of the body parts.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ collected the head, two breasts, virginal, and two wrists and other body parts of the deceased. Oluwo Samuel Monday prepared the body parts in a local pot, and lighted firewood to burn it in Abidemi Moses’s house till the next day.
“Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ joined Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ to kill the ram that was used to appease the spirit of the deceased during the process of performing money ritual. Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf were also given some body parts of the deceased.
“On 10th January, 2024, Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ collected the money ritual from Oluwo Monday Samuel and travelled back to their location in Edo State.
“Trouble started when Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ used the money ritual element as directed by Oluwo Monday Samuel, and they both complained bitterly that the money ritual failed to yield the expected sum of Two hundred million (#200,000,000) in seven days despite having used if for three weeks.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Abidemi Moses on the 3rd February, 2024, and ten female handbags, two 25 litres gallons containing human parts, one axe, and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered from his shrine at Igbo Olomi, Atan Ota.
“The relative of the deceased later came to the police station and identified one of the ten bags that were recovered as the hand bag of their daughter Sulaimon Adijat.”
The commissioner disclosed that efforts were on to apprehend the fleeing suspects.
He noted that the matter would be charged to court upon conclusion of investigations.
Police Arrest Prophet, Other Suspects Over Ritual Killing In Ogun While narrating how they were arrested, the command said it followed the “sudden disappearance” of the deceased which was reported to the DPO of Onipanu on the 9th of January, 2024.
In this file photo, a police officer hold bunch of handcuffs at SARS headqurters in Abuja on October 3rd, 2020 PHOTO: Sodiq Adelakun/Channels TV
Police authorities in Ogun State have arrested seven suspects including a prophet and herbalist over the killing of a lady for ritual purposes.
The Ogun Police Command said this in a late Thursday statement.
“The Commissioner of Police Ogun State Police Command, CP Abiodun Mustapha ALAMUTU today being 15th of February 2024, at the Headquarters in Eleweran Abeokuta paraded seven daredevil persons who were directly involved in the killing of one Sulaimon Aishat ‘f’ 35yrs for ritual purpose,” the statement read.
While narrating how they were arrested, the command said it followed the “sudden disappearance” of the deceased which was reported to the DPO of Onipanu on the 9th of January, 2024.
“Consequently upon the report, the CP gave a matching order to the officer in charge of Anti kidnapping Unit, to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance,” the police said.
“The efforts of the crack detectives from anti-kidnapping paid off as seven suspects who were directly involved in the killing of Sulaimon Adijat were arrested after a technical-based investigation.
“They are:- 1. Moses Abidemi ‘m’ 2. Oluwo Samuel ‘m’ 3. Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ 4. Akinwunmi Ifatosin ‘m’ 5. Prophet Jamiu Yusuf’s ‘m’ 6. Sherif Agbai ‘m’ 7. Osojieahen Alioneiouria ‘m’. The investigation further revealed that on the 19th of November 2023, Sherif Agbai and Osojeiahen Alioneouria ‘m’ contact Oluwo Samuel Moday to perform a money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ that can produce Two hundred million naira (#200,000,000) within 7 days, and Oluwo Samuel Moday charged them for the sum of Eight hundred thousand (#800,000) and agreed to prepare the materials for ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday in furtherance of his criminal intention later contacted one Peter Oluwalolese who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the ages of 18yrs to 20yrs in order to deliver her mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breast, private part and her two wrists that will be used for money ritual.
“Peter Oluwalolese who is acclaimed pastor of a white garment church located in Ibadan, Oyo State, also contacted another colleague of his, one Prophet Jamiu Yusuf ‘m’ a.k.a Eri Mose in Lagos State, who is notorious for the supply of human parts for ritual purposes. Prophet Jamiu Yusuf further contacted one Abidemi Moses ‘m’ a.k.a Asela, who is an herbalist at Ata Ota, Ogun State.
“Abidemi Moses requested the sum of six hundred thousand naira to get a lady that can be used for the money ritual. Oluwo Samuel Monday negotiated for the sum of three hundred thousand naira for the human body parts.
“Abidemi Moses is a herbalist and he serves as an apprentice to one Adebayo Olawale Azeez now at large, to harvest human parts for sale, a business he has enjoyed the proceeds for three years. Hence Adebayo Olawale Azeez surreptitiously invited Sulaimon Adijat to Sunshine Hotel, Atan Ota, and she was later taken to Abidemi Moses shrine at Igbi Olomi area of Atan Ota, Ogun State.
“She was killed by Abidemi Moses and others now at large, and her dismembered body parts were taken to Abidemi Moses house at Atan Ota to meet Oluwo Sameul Moday and Prophet Peter Oluwalolese who were waiting for the arrival of the body parts.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Abidemi Moses on the 3rd of February, 2024, and ten female handbags, two 25 liters gallons containing human parts, one axe, and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered from his shrine at Igbo Olomi, Atan Ota.
“Meanwhile, all the arrested suspects confessed to the alleged crime and their individual roles, investigation is ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects and the case will be charged to court as soon as the investigation is completed. Members of the public will be duly updated.”
Ogun police arrest prophets, herbalists over 35-years-old woman’s death
Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu
Published: February 15, 2024 By: Taiwo Bankole – Punch. Nigeria
The Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, on Thursday, paraded two herbalists, Moses Abidemi and Oluwo Samuel Monday as well as two alleged priests of Cherubim and Seraph Church, Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf, over the killing of one Sulaimon Adijat, aged 35, for money ritual purposes.
Also arrested and paraded for the act were Akinwunmi Ifatosin, Sherifff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria, who are both from Uromi in Esan West Local Government Area of Edo State.
Parading the suspects at the Command Headquarters, Eleweran, Abeokuta on Wednesday, the police boss described them as gang of hardened criminals who are not only involved in ritual killings but also deal in large sale of human parts.
Alamutu disclosed that their date with the long hand of the law started on January 9, 2024, when the DPO of Onipanu Divisional headquarters of the Nigeria Police in Atan-Ota received the report of a missing 35-years-old Sulaimon Adijat.
Adijat was said to have been invited out on a date by one Adebayo Olawale Azeez of Ajegunle road, Atan Ota, and since then Adijat has not been seen, despite frantic efforts to locate her whereabout while her mobile phone had been switched off.
The CP revealed that consequently, a tactical team of the police, specifically the Anti Kidnapping Unit of the Command was drafted to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance.
The team was said to have embarked on a technical based investigation, which led to the arrest of the seven suspects, who participated actively in the abduction and eventual murder of the missing Sulaimon Adijat.
Alamutu explained further that “the investigation revealed that on 19th November, 2023, one Sherifff Agbai ‘m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ contacted Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ a.k.a Oluwo Mandela to perform money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ that can produce Two Hundred Million naira within seven days.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday charged the duo of Sherifff Agbai ‘m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ the sum of Eight Hundred thousand naira (#800,000) and agreed to prepare the materials for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ in furtherance of his criminal intention later contacted one Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18yrs to 20yrs in order to deliver her mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breast, virginal and her two wrists that will be used for money ritual.
“Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who is an acclaimed Prophet of a white garment church located in Ibadan, Oyo state, contacted another colleague of his, one Prophet Jamiu Yusuf ‘m’ a,k.a Eri Mose in Lagos state, who is notorious in the supply of human parts for ritual purpose.
“Prophet Jamiu Yusuf further contacted one Abidemi Moses ‘m’ a.k.a. Asela, who is a herbalist at Atan Ota, Ogun State. Abidemi Moses ‘m’ requested for the sum of Six Hundred thousand naira to get a lady that can be used for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ negotiated for the sum of three hundred thousand naira for the human body parts. Abidemi Moses ‘m’ is a herbalist and he serves as an apprentice to one Adebayo Olawale Azeez ‘m’, now at large, to harvest human parts for sale, a business he has enjoyed the proceeds for the past three years.
“Hence, on 9th January, 2024, Adebayo Olawale Azeez ‘m’ invited one Sulaiman Adijat ‘f’ on a date to Sunshine hotel, Atan Ota, and she was later taken to Abidemi Moses shrine at Igbo Olomi area of Atan Ota, Ogun State.
“She was killed by Abidemi Moses ‘m’ and others now at large, and her dismembered body parts were taken to Abidemi Moses’s house at Atan Ota to meet Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ and Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who were waiting for the arrival of the body parts.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ collected the head, two breasts, virginal, and two wrists and other body parts of the deceased. Oluwo Samuel Monday prepared the body parts in a local pot, and lighted firewood to burn it in Abidemi Moses’s house till the next day.
“Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ joined Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ to kill the ram that was used to appease the spirit of the deceased during the process of performing money ritual. Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf were also given some body parts of the deceased.
“On 10th January, 2024, Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ collected the money ritual from Oluwo Monday Samuel and travelled back to their location in Edo State.
“Trouble started when Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ used the money ritual element as directed by Oluwo Monday Samuel, and they both complained bitterly that the money ritual failed to yield the expected sum of Two hundred million (#200,000,000) in seven days despite having used if for three weeks.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Abidemi Moses on the 3rd February, 2024, and ten female handbags, two 25 litres gallons containing human parts, one axe, and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered from his shrine at Igbo Olomi, Atan Ota.
“The relative of the deceased later came to the police station and identified one of the ten bags that were recovered as the hand bag of their daughter Sulaimon Adijat.”
Meanwhile, the CP has said that all the arrested suspects confessed to the alleged crime and their individual roles.
According to him, investigation is ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects and the case will be charged to court as soon as investigation is completed.
Police arrest two ‘prophets’, others for killing woman for money ritual in Ogun
Published: February 16, 2014 By: TG News, Nigeria
Police in Ogun State have arrested two self-acclaimed prophets of white garment churches and five other persons for allegedly killing and dismembering the body of a 35-year-old woman, Adijat Sulaimon, for money ritual in Atan-Ota.
The suspects who are: Moses Abidemi; Oluwo Samuel Monday; Prophet Peter Oluwalese; Akinwunmi Ifatosin; Prophet Jamiu Yusuf; Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alionetouria, were all paraded at the Police Headquarters, Eleweran, Abeokuta.
They were arrested following a report of a missing person on January 9, 2024 by the DPO of Onipanu Divisional Headquarters that one Adebayo Olawale Azeez invited the victim out on a date and since then she had yet to return as her mobile phone was switched off and her whereabouts remain unknown.
On receiving the information, a tactical team of the Anti Kidnapping Unit of the Command were sent out on a technical based investigation to unravel the mystery behind the cause of disappearance which led to the arrest of the seven (7) suspects that participated actively in the abduction and murder of the deceased.
Commissioner of Police, CP Abiodun Alamutu, while parading the suspects at the Police Headquarters, Eleweran, Abeokuta, said that the suspects killed and dismembered the body of the victim for ‘Oshole’ money ritual that can produce N200,000, 000 within a week.
Alamutu explained that the duo of Agabai and Alioneitouria contacted Oluwo to perform money ritual for them that could produce N200M within seven days and Oluwo charged both of the N800,000 for the ritual work and promise them he would also provide materials for the work.
He explained further that Oluwo later contacted Oluwalolese, to get him a woman between the age of 18 to 20 whose party of the body including the head, two breast, virginal and her two wrists which will be used for money ritual.
The CP went on that Oluwalolose from a white garment church in Ibadan, Oyo State, who later contacted Yusuf another white garment prophet from Lagos State popularly known as Eri Mose, asking him if he could help to get a woman whose party of her body would be use for the money ritual.
He said Yusuf contacted Abidemi, an herbalist from Atan-Ota, Ogun State, who demanded N600,000 before he could deliver a woman for the mutilated body parts and Yusuf negotiated the body materials to N300,000 which Abidemi agreed and called his apprentice Azeez to harvest human parts for him.
Alamutu said that Azeez, now at large, went ahead to do the harvest human parts which he uses as livelihood for the past three years and lured the victim out of her house on January 9 to an hotel at Atan-Ota, from where they headed to Abidemi shrine in Olomi area where she was killed by Abidemi and others now on the run and her dismembered body were taken to Oluwo.
He said “Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ collected the head, two breasts, virginal, and two wrists and other body parts of the deceased. Oluwo Samuel Monday prepared the body parts in a local pot, and lighted firewood to burn it in Abidemi Moses’s house till the next day. Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ joined Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ to kill the ram that was used to appease the spirit of the deceased during the process of performing money ritual. Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf were also given some body parts of the deceased. On 10th January, 2024, Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ collected the money ritual from Oluwo Monday Samuel and travelled back to their location in Edo State.
“Trouble started when Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ used the money ritual element as directed by Oluwo Monday Samuel, and they both complained bitterly that the money ritual failed to yield the expected sum of Two hundred million (#200,000,000) in seven days despite having used it for three weeks. A search was conducted in the shrine of Abidemi Moses on the 3rd February, 2024, and ten female handbags, two 25 litres gallons containing human parts, one axe, and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered from his shrine at Igbo Olomi, Atan Ota.
“The relative of the deceased later came to the police station and identified one of the ten bags that were recovered as the hand bag of their daughter Sulaimon Adijat.” he added
Meanwhile, all the arrested suspects confessed to the alleged crime and their individual roles. Investigation is ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects and the case will be charged to court as soon as investigation is completed.”
Exhibits recovered from them includes : One axe, ten female hand bags, local pots, one wooden box containing money ritual, two bags containing human bones and parts, two gallons containing human parts, and charms
Police nab ritualists for murdering lady to make N200m in 7 days in Ogun
Published: February 16, 2024 By: Kehinde Okeowo – The Niche, Nigeria
Police said the suspects were caught with a human heart and two kegs filled with human bodies.
ByKehindeOkeowo
A seven-man gang that specializes in killing and selling human parts for rituals have been arrested by the Ogun State Police Command.
This was revealed on Thursday by the State Police Commissioner, Abiodun Olamutu, who claimed the suspects were caught with a human heart and two kegs filled with human bodies.
The men in police custody include Moses Abidemi, Oluwo Monday, Prophet Peter Akiwunmi Ifatosin, Jamiu Yusuf, Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitoura.
According to the CP, it all started when the Divisional Police Office, Onipanu, received a report on January 9, that a lady identified as Ms Sulaiimon Adijat who was invited out on a date by one Adebayo Azeez was missing.
Olamutu added: “Despite frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts, her mobile phone has been switched off since the day she was reported missing.
“Consequently, the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the command was drafted to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance and a technical-based investigation was embarked on.”
He went on to say investigation revealed that the suspects were involved in a money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ to produce N200m within seven days.
“Oluwo Monday charged the duo of Agbai and Alioneitouria N800,000 to prepare the materials for the ritual.
“Oluwo Monday, in furtherance of his criminal intention, later contacted one Peter, who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18 and 20 years,” he added.
The Police boss further claimed that Peter was to deliver the lady’s mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breasts, vagina and two wrists that would be used for the ritual.
“However, on January 10, Sheriff and Osojieahen collected the ritual money from Oluwo and travelled back to their location in Edo State.
“Trouble started when Osojieahen used the ritual element as directed by Oluwo, and complained bitterly that it failed to yield the expected sum of 200 million in seven days.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Moses on Feb. 3 and 10, where female handbags, two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered,” he said.
Ogun: 2 Herbalists, Others Arrested For Killing 35-Year-Old Woman for Money Ritual
Published: February 16, 2024 By: New Telegraph, Nigeria
Operatives of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested two herbalists and two self- acclaimed priests of the Cherubim and Seraphim Church for allegedly killing a 35-year-old woman, Sulaimon Adijat for money ritual purposes. The suspects: Moses Abidemi, Oluwo Samuel Mon- day, Peter Oluwalolese and Jamiu Yusuf allegedly killed Adijat and dismembered her body.
The suspects were paraded before journalists by the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, at the command’s headquarters in Eleweran, Abeokuta on Wednesday. Also arrested and paraded for crime were: Akinwunmi Ifatosin, Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria who are both from Uromi in Esan West Local Government Area of Edo State.
Parading the suspects, Alamutu described them as gang of hardened criminals who are not only involved in ritual killings, but also deal in large sale of human parts. Alamutu disclosed that the suspects were arrested following a missing person report of the victim lodged at Onipanu Divisional headquarters of the Nigeria Police in Atan-Ota on January 9.
The deceased was said to have been invited out on a date by one of them and since then Adijat has not been seen, despite frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts, while her mobile phone had been switched off. The police boss revealed that consequently, a tactical team of the police, specifically the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Command was drafted to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance.
The team was said to have embarked on a technical based investigation, which led to the arrest of the seven suspects who participated actively in the abduction and eventual murder of the missing Sulaimon Adijat. Alamutu explained further that: “The investigation revealed that on 19th November, 2023, one Sherifff Agbai, and Osojieahen Alionei- touria contacted Oluwo Samuel Monday a.k.a Oluwo Mandela to perform money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ that can produce Two Hundred Million naira within seven days.”
Ogun: Two Herbalists, Others Arrested For Killing 35-Year-Old Woman For Money Ritual
Suspects
Published: February 15, 2024 By: Olufemi Adediran – New Telegraph, Nigeria
The operatives of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested two herbalists and two self-acclaimed priests of Cherubim and Seraph Church for allegedly killing a 35-year-old woman, Sulaimon Adijat for a money ritual.
The suspects: Moses Abidemi, Oluwo Samuel Monday, Peter Oluwalolese and Jamiu Yusuf allegedly killed Adijat and dismembered her body parts.
The suspects were paraded before journalists by the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu at the command’s headquarters in Eleweran, Abeokuta on Wednesday.
Also arrested and paraded for crime were: Akinwunmi Ifatosin, Sherifff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria who are both from Uromi in Esan West Local Government Area of Edo State.
Parading the suspects, Alamutu described them as a gang of hardened criminals who are not only involved in ritual killings but also deal in large sales of human parts.
Alamutu disclosed that the suspects were arrested following a missing person report of the victim lodged at Onipanu Divisional headquarters of the Nigeria Police in Atan-Ota on January 9.
The deceased was said to have been invited out on a date by one and since then Adijat has not been seen, despite frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts while her mobile phone had been switched off.
The police boss revealed that consequently, a tactical team of the police, specifically the Anti Kidnapping Unit of the Command was drafted to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance.
The team was said to have embarked on a technical-based investigation, which led to the arrest of the seven suspects who participated actively in the abduction and eventual murder of the missing Sulaimon Adijat.
Alamutu explained further that “the investigation revealed that on 19th November 2023, one Sheriff Agbai, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria contacted Oluwo Samuel Monday a.k.a Oluwo Mandela to perform money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ that can produce Two Hundred Million naira within seven days.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday charged the duo of Sherifff Agbai ‘m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ the sum of Eight Hundred thousand naira (N800,000) and agreed to prepare the materials for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday in furtherance of his criminal intention later contacted one Peter Oluwalolese who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18yrs to 20 years in order to deliver her mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breast, virginal and her two wrists that will be used for money ritual.
“Peter Oluwalolese who is an acclaimed Prophet of a white garment church located in Ibadan, Oyo state, contacted another colleague of his, one Prophet Jamiu Yusuf a.k.a Eri Mose in Lagos state, who is notorious in the supply of human parts for ritual purpose.
“Prophet Jamiu Yusuf further contacted one Abidemi Moses a.k.a. Asela, who is a herbalist at Atan Ota, Ogun State. Abidemi Moses requested for the sum of Six Hundred thousand naira to get a lady that can be used for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday negotiated for the sum of three hundred thousand naira for the human body parts. Abidemi Moses ‘m’ is a herbalist and he serves as an apprentice to one Adebayo Olawale Azeez, now at large, to harvest human parts for sale, a business he has enjoyed the proceeds for the past three years.
“Hence, on 9th January 2024, Adebayo Olawale Azeez invited one Sulaiman Adijat on a date to Sunshine Hotel, Atan Ota, and she was later taken to Abidemi Moses shrine at Igbo Olomi area of Atan Ota, Ogun State.
“She was killed by Abidemi Moses and others now at large, and her dismembered body parts were taken to Abidemi Moses’s house at Atan Ota to meet Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ and Prophet Peter Oluwalolese ‘m’ who were waiting for the arrival of the body parts.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday collected the head, two breasts, virginal, and two wrists and other body parts of the deceased. Oluwo Samuel Monday prepared the body parts in a local pot, and lighted firewood to burn it in Abidemi Moses’s house till the next day.
“Prophet Peter Oluwalolese joined Oluwo Samuel Monday ‘m’ to kill the ram that was used to appease the spirit of the deceased during the process of performing money ritual. Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf were also given some body parts of the deceased.
“On 10th January, 2024, Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria ‘m’ collected the money ritual from Oluwo Monday Samuel and travelled back to their location in Edo State.
“Trouble started when Osojieahen Alioneitouri used the money ritual element as directed by Oluwo Monday Samuel, and they both complained bitterly that the money ritual failed to yield the expected sum of Two hundred million (N200,000,000) in seven days despite having used if for three weeks.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Abidemi Moses on the 3rd February 2024, and ten female handbags, two 25 litres gallons containing human parts, one axe, and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered from his shrine at Igbo Olomi, Atan Ota.
“The relative of the deceased later came to the police station and identified one of the ten bags that were recovered as the handbag of their daughter Sulaimon Adijat”
Meanwhile, Alamutu has said that all the arrested suspects confessed to the alleged crime and their roles. The investigation is ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects and the case will be charged to court as soon as the investigation is completed.
Ritualists Nabbed For Allegedly Killing Lady To Make N200m
Published: February 16, 2024 By: Peace Oladapo – New Telegraph, Nigeria
The Ogun State Police Command on Friday said its operatives have busted a seven-man gang that sells human parts for rituals in the state.
Abiodun Olamutu, the State Police Commissioner who confirmed the development claimed that evidence retrieved from the suspects included a human heart and two kegs filled with human parts.
The suspects arrested in connection to the unfortunate incident include Mooses Abidemi, Oluwo Monday, Prophet Peter Akiwunmi Ifatosin, Jamiu Yusuf, Sheriff Agbai, and Osojieahen Alioneitoura.
The police image maker added that on January 9, the Divisional Police Office in Onipanu got a report of a missing lady, Ms Sulaiimon Adijat, who was asked out on a date by one Adebayo Azeez.
He said, “Despite frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts, her mobile phone has been switched off since the day she was reported missing.
“Consequently, the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the command was drafted to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance and a technical-based investigation was embarked on,” the CP said.
The police chief stated that an investigation found that the suspects were engaging in a money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ in order to generate N200 million within seven days.
“Oluwo Monday charged the duo of Agbai and Alioneitouria N800,000 to prepare the materials for the ritual.
“Oluwo Monday, in furtherance of his criminal intention, later contacted one Peter, who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18 and 20 years,” he added.
According to him, Peter was to send the lady’s mutilated body parts, namely the head, two breasts, vagina, and two wrists, for use in the ceremony
“However, on January 10, Sheriff and Osojieahen collected the ritual money from Oluwo and travelled back to their location in Edo State.
“Trouble started when Osojieahen used the ritual element as directed by Oluwo, and complained bitterly that it failed to yield the expected sum of 200 million in seven days.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Moses on Feb. 3 and 10, where female handbags, and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered,” he said.
Police arrest prophets, herbalists over abduction, killing
Published: February 16, 2024 By: Vincent Osuwo – Chronicle, Nigeria
Two herbalists, Moses Abidemi and Oluwo Samuel Monday, as well as two alleged prophets of Cherubim and Seraph Church, Prophet Peter Oluwalolese and Prophet Jamiu Yusuf, have been paraded by the police over the brutal killing of one Sulaimon Adijat, aged 35, for money ritual purposes.
The Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, disclosed this while parading the suspects before newsmen at the command’s headquarters in Eleweran, Abeokuta, the state’s capital, on Thursday.
The police chief stated that the arrest of the suspects came after a lady, Sulaiman Adijat, was reported missing to the Onipanu Division of the police on January 9 after she allegedly received a call from a friend, Adebayo Azeez, who invited her on a date.
The police chief revealed that her family’s desperate efforts to trace her whereabouts have failed since her phone was turned off. When the police received the information, they dispatched an anti-kidnapping unit to investigate Adijat’s disappearance.
He stated that after a probe into the incident, the police learned that she was reportedly killed by a ritual syndicate hired by Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitouria to execute a money ritual for N200 million.
Alamutu said, “Investigation revealed that on November 19, 2023, one Sherifff Agbai,’m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria,’m’, contacted Oluwo Samuel Monday,’m’, a.k.a. Oluwo Mandela, to perform a money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ that can produce N200m within seven days, and Oluwo Samuel Monday charged the duo of Sherifff Agbai,’m’, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria,’m’, the sum of N800,000 and agreed to prepare the materials for the money ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday,’m’, in furtherance of his criminal intention, later contacted one Peter Oluwalolese,’m’, who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the ages of 18 and 20 years to deliver her mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breasts, virginal, and her two wrists that will be used for money ritual.
“Peter Oluwalolese’m’, who is an acclaimed prophet of a white garment church located in Ibadan, Oyo State, contacted another colleague of his, one Prophet Jamiu Yusuf’m’, a.k.a. Eri Moses, in Lagos State, who is notorious for the supply of human parts for ritual purposes. Prophet Jamiu Yusuf further contacted one Abidemi Moses’m’ a.k.a. Asela, an herbalist at Atan Ota, Ogun State.”
Azeez was claimed to have invited Adijat on a date to a hotel in the Atan area after negotiating a payment of N300,000 to provide human parts for the syndicate. However, he was supposed to have taken Adijat to Moses’ shrine, where she was allegedly killed and her body dismembered, before moving to Moses’ residence, where the severed parts were purportedly waiting to be collected.
According to Alamutu, Oluwo took Adihjat’s bodily parts and burned them in a local pot before killing a ram to placate his soul.
However, conflict was said to have broken out among the syndicates when Agbai and Alioneitouria began grumbling that the ritual did not produce the desired results after they had completed the herbalists’ prescribed sacrifices. They were alleged to have regretted that the N200 million they intended to get from the ritual did not materialise.
The CP added, “A search was conducted in the shrine of Abidemi Moses on February 3, 2024, and ten female handbags, two 25-litre gallons containing human parts, one axe, and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered from his shrine at Igbo Olomi, Atan Ota. The relative of the deceased later came to the police station and identified one of the 10 bags that were recovered as the handbag of their daughter, Sulaimon Adijat.”
The police commissioner stated that the apprehended suspects, Moses Abidemi, Oluwo Samuel Monday, Peter Oluwalolese, Akinwunmi Ifatosin, Prophet Jamiu Yusuf, Sheriff Agbai, and Osojieahen Alioneitouria, admitted to their roles in the crime.
“Meanwhile, all the arrested suspects confessed to the alleged crime and their roles. The investigation is ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects, and the case will be charged to court as soon as the investigation is completed. Members of the public will be duly updated.
The exhibits recovered from the suspects are one axe, ten female handbags, three local pots, one wooden box containing money rituals, two Bagco bags containing human bones and human parts, two gallons containing human parts, criminal charms, the crown and staff of Oba Isegun Zone 1, Atan Ota, Ogun State, and the crown and staff of Oluwo Masote of Ifo Zone, Ogun State,” Alamutu said.
Police authorities in Ogun State on Thursday, arrested a seven-man gang that allegedly specialised in trading inhuman parts for rituals.
Mr Abiodun Olamutu, the commissioner of police said that a human heart and two kegs filled with human bodies were parts of exhibits recovered from the suspects.
The suspects include Moses Abidemi, Oluwo Monday, Prophet Peter Akiwunmi Ifatosin, Jamiu Yusuf, Sheriff Agbai and Osojieahen Alioneitoura, Alamutu said.
Alamutu said the Divisional Police Office, Onipanu, received a report of a missing lady, Ms Sulaiimon Adijat on Jan. 9 who was invited out on a date by one Adebayo Azeez.
“Despite frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts, the mobile phone has been switched off since the day she was reported missing.
“Consequently, the Anti Kidnapping Unit of the command was drafted to unravel the mystery behind her disappearance and a technical based investigation was embarked on,” the CP said.
According to him, the investigation revealed that the suspects were involved in money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ to produce N200m within seven days.
“Oluwo Monday charged the duo of Agbai and Alioneitouria N800,000 to prepare the materials for the ritual money.
“Oluwo Monday, in furtherance of his criminal intention, later contacted one Peter, who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18 and 20 years.
The CP said Peter was to deliver the lady’s mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breasts, virginal and two wrists that would be used for the ritual.
“However, on Jan. 10, Sheriff and Osojieahen collected the ritual money from Oluwo and travelled back to their location in Edo State.
“Trouble started when Osojieahen used the ritual element as directed by Oluwo, and complained bitterly that it failed to yield the expected sum of 200 million in seven days.
”A search was conducted in the shrine of Moses on Feb. 3 and 10, where female handbags, two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered.”
The CP said that all the suspects confessed to the alleged crime and their individual roles.
He said that investigation was ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects.
Police arrest 2 pastors, 5 others with human parts in Ogun
Published: February 16, 2024 By: Según Ojo – The Star, Nigeria
The operatives of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested two pastors and five other suspects who specialised in trading human parts for rituals in the state.
The Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, on Thursday, February 15, 2024, disclosed that a human heart and two kegs filled with human bodies were parts of exhibits recovered from the suspects.
The suspects arrested were Moses Abidemi, Oluwo Samuel, Prophet Peter Oluwalolese, Akinwunmi Ifatosin, Prophet Jamiu Yusuf, Sherif Agbai, and Osojieahen Alioneiouria.
Parading the arrested suspects at the police headquarters in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, Alamutu said they were involved in the killing of a 35-year-old woman, Sulaimon Adijat, for a ritual purpose.
He said the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Onipanu, on January 9, received a report about the sudden disappearance of Adijat who was invited out on a date by one Adebayo Azeez in the Atan Ota area of Ogun State.
The police commissioner stated that since then Adijat had not been seen despite frantic efforts to locate her whereabouts, adding that her mobile phone had been switched off since the day she was reported missing.
Alamutu said upon the report, he gave a matching order to the officer in charge of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit to unravel the mystery behind the woman’s disappearance.
He added: “The efforts of the crack detectives from Anti-Kidnapping paid off as seven suspects who were directly involved in the killing of Sulaimon Adijat were arrested after a technical-based investigation.
“Investigation further revealed that on the 19th November 2023, Sherif Agbai and Osojeiahen Alioneouria ‘m’ contacted Oluwo Samuel Monday to perform a money ritual known as ‘Oshole’ that can produce N2 million within seven days, and Oluwo Samuel Monday charged them for the sum of N800,000 and agreed to prepare the materials for ritual.
“Oluwo Samuel Monday in furtherance of his criminal intention later contacted one Peter Oluwalolese who was not new in the trade of human parts, to source for a lady between the age of 18 years to 20 years in order to deliver her mutilated body parts, specifically the head, two breast, private part and her two wrists that will be used for money ritual.
“Peter Oluwalolese who is acclaimed pastor of a white garment church located in Ibadan, Oyo State, also contacted another colleague of his, one Prophet Jamiu Yusuf a.k.a Eri Mose in Lagos State, who is notorious for the supply of human parts for ritual purpose.
“Prophet Jamiu Yusuf further contacted one Abidemi Moses a.k.a Asela, who is an herbalist at Ata Ota, Ogun State.
“Abidemi Moses requested the sum of N600,000 to get a lady that can be used for the money ritual. Oluwo Samuel Monday negotiated for the sum of N300,000 for the human body parts. Abidemi Moses is a herbalist and he serves as an apprentice to one Adebayo Olawale Azeez now at large, to harvest human parts for sale, a business he has enjoyed the proceeds for three years.
“Hence Adebayo Olawale Azeez surreptitiously invited Sulaimon Adijat to Sunshine Hotel, Atan Ota, and she was later taken to Abidemi Moses shrine at Igbi Olomi area of Atan Ota, Ogun State. She was killed by Abidemi Moses and others now at large, and her dismembered body parts were taken to Abidemi Moses’ house at Atan Ota to meet Oluwo Sameul Moday and Prophet Peter Oluwalolese who were waiting for the arrival of the body parts.
“A search was conducted in the shrine of Abidemi Moses on the 3rd of February, 2024, and ten female handbags, two 25 litres gallons containing human parts, one axe, and two cement sacks containing human bones were recovered from his shrine at Igbo Olomi, Atan Ota.”
The police commissioner disclosed that all the arrested suspects confessed to the alleged crime and their individual roles, noting that an investigation was ongoing to arrest other fleeing suspects.
Alamutu said the case will be charged to court upon the conclusion of the investigation.
The Commissioner of Police in Ogun State, Abiodun Alamutu, had a clear message in his New Year Speech when he described ritual killings as the most disturbing trend of criminal activity in the small southwestern state.
I have drawn attention to the precarious situation in Ogun State in previous posts – see my December 31 (2023) and January 1 and January 2 (2024) postings. I have estimated that ritualistic murders have claimed more than 500 lives in Ogun State in the past year. One of the state’s most notorious ritual murder cases was the killing of a 18-year-old 100-level Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) student, Quadri Salami, for rituals in November 2023. Early December the police arrested two persons, Akeem Usman and Niyi Ifadowo, for allegedly killing the student for rituals (‘money rituals’). It was a gruesome murder. See the second article below.
Nigeria faces many challenges, not only in Ogun State. The population in the northwest is being terrorized by banditry and terrorism. In the northeast an insurgency looms, spilling over to the north-central part of the country. In the southeast separatist militants have become active again, and ritual killing and cultism are rife in the southwest and south-south. The Federal Government (FG) in the person of President Bola Tinubu has promised to end all forms of insecurity in the country in 2024.
We’ll monitor the achievements in 2024…. (webmaster FVDK)
Ritual Killings: Police lament over disturbing trend in Ogun
Published: January 2, 2024 By: Opalim Lifted – Chronicle, Nigeria
The Commissioner of Police in Ogun State, Abiodun Alamutu, has described ritual killings as the most disturbing trend of criminal activity in the state.
He said it is more worrying because ritual killings by nature “are never done in the open except through credible intelligence before the act is committed.”
Alamutu disclosed this to Abeokuta in his New Year message with crime reporters.
To address this, he said the command would embark on advocacy against the menace in the new year.
Alamutu noted that the state remains the safest in the country, but the command is confronted with peculiar challenges, especially the new trend of ritual killings.
He warned parents to caution their children to desist from any social vices, saying the police would not condone any form of criminality in the state in the new year.
“2023 has been a challenging year because we have crime across the country. But I still insist that, based on available records, the state remains one of the safest cities in the country as of today. Be that as it may, we have our own peculiar challenges.
“We are trying to level up; we are trying to be at least a step ahead of them, and the most disturbing trend now is the issue of ritual killings, which by its nature is never done in the open except through credible intelligence before the act is committed,” he said.
Warning: the following article contains graphic contents which may upset readers (FVDK)
Ogun police arrest two over killing of OAU student for ritual
Published: December 6, 2023 By: Mayor – Chronicle, Nigeria
The police command in Ogun says it has arrested two persons, Akeem Usman and Niyi Ifadowo, for allegedly killing 18-year-old 100-level Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) student Quadri Salami for rituals.
SP Omolola Odutola, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), disclosed this in a statement issued in Abeokuta on Wednesday.
Ms Odutola stated that Mr Salami’s father, on November 14, reported at Kemta Police station, Abeokuta, that his son had been missing since November 8.
She quoted the father as saying he had not set his eyes on his son and all efforts to locate him proved abortive.
The PPRO said that the Commissioner of Police in Ogun, Abiodun Alamutu, on Wednesday, personally led a team of Tactical Squad to Mile 6 in the Ajebo area of Abeokuta.
“The commissioner went with the team to a shallow grave to exhume the decomposing body parts of the deceased after a tracking clue beamed at Usman, who was arrested in possession of the victim’s phone.
“He implicated Ifadowo that both of them committed the heinous crime by slaughtering the victim and dismembering his vital parts for ritual purposes.
“Ifadowo went away with the deceased head and his two wrists and paid the sum of N100,000 into Usman’s account as proceeds from the sale of Salami’s other body parts.
“The suspects thereafter continued to sell the victim’s other body parts on demand to Internet fraudsters.
“They buried the heart, two legs, and flesh inside a plastic rubber for rituals and used the remaining parts for a crime against humanity,” the PPRO said.
Ms Odutola explained that in their confessional statement, the duo admitted that they had used four other human heads for money rituals.
She added that the suspects were now in Eleweran at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for the continuation of discreet investigation, saying that they would be prosecuted.
The police spokesperson said that the CP remained committed to ensuring that justice was served and would continue to investigate further to bring all perpetrators to face the full extent of the law.
She said that such criminal involvement endangered innocent lives, urging parents to collectively work together with the police by volunteering information to eradicate such nefarious practices.
I posted a few articles on the evil of ritual murders in Ogun State, Nigeria on December 31 and January 1.
The first one (the day before yesterday) was triggered by the ritual murder of Ayomide Agunbiade, a 12-year old boy, by his uncle who subsequently was killed in a mob action, jungle justice, in December.
The second posting, yesterday, was a kind of overview of ritualistic murders and related activities in this small southwestern state where in 2023 at least 15 people were murdered for ritualistic purposes. Among these 15 innocent victims was another 12-year old boy, John Soyinka, from Abeokuta, the state capital, whose dead body was found mutilated flive days after he got missing in November – see the article presented below.
The state Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, now promises to do his best to fight this evil which, unfortunately, is not unique in Nigeria. The number of ritual killings in Nigeria (‘money rituals’) is frightening. I estimate that every week at least ten ritual murders are committed in Africa’s most populated country. Ten innocent lives cut short among whom children, the country’s future. On a yearly basis this amounts to more than 500 victims of ‘money rituals’.
I hope that in 2024 this evil will successfully be fought, reduced and, if possible, eliminated. (webmaster FVDK).
Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu
Published: December 31, 2023 By: Taiwo Bankole – Punch, Nigeria
As part of its efforts to stem the rising cases of ritual killings in the society, the Ogun State Police Command said it would embark on advocacy against the menace in the new year.
The state Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, disclosed this while speaking with journalists on Sunday in Abeokuta.
Alamutu noted that the state remains the safest in the country, but the command is confronted with peculiar challenges especially the new trend of ritual killings.
He warned parents to caution their children to desist from any social vices, saying the police would not condone any form of criminality in the state in the new year.
Ogun State has had a fair share of frequent cult clashes in the outgoing year, especially in the Sagamu township, leading to the loss of at least 15 souls in the outgoing year.
PUNCH Online reports cases of ritual killings, the recent being the case of a missing 12-year-old boy, John Soyemi, whose mutilated body was found after five days at a community within Asero Estate.
Alamutu said, “2023 has been a challenging year because we have crime across the country. But I still insist based on available records that Ogun State remains one of the safest cities in the country as of today. Be that as it may, we have our own peculiar challenges.
“We are trying to level up. We are trying to be at least a step ahead of them, and the most disturbing trend now is the issue of ritual killings, which by its nature, is never done in the open except through credible intelligence before the act is committed.
“Unfortunately, the trend had continued to rise. So in the coming year, we are going to concentrate more on advocacy so that people will be aware of the fact that there is nothing like a money ritual.”
The CP continued, “You cannot make money by killing people, it is an agelong myth, it is a total fallacy. There’s really nothing like money rituals, they are just vicious, they are only being deceived to bring things they know it’s impossible to get like human head and all those stuff. By the end of the day, in their desperation, they go out for the eyeball, but then, there’s nothing like a money-making ritual.
“But our efforts in the coming year will be more sensitisation of members of the public. We will continue to place more emphasis on advocacy.”
“Cultism too is actually a serious menace, but the truth is that we are arresting them on a daily basis. But I’m happy the government is looking towards that direction and they need to put in place stiffer punishment for these people because it’s becoming a pastime, but the most disturbing news is that they are neither students nor artisans. They are just out there to take advantage of innocent people,” Alamutu noted.
Missing Ogun 12-year-old found dead after five days
Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Omolola Odutola
Published: November 23, 2023 By: Taiwo Bankole – Punch. Nigeria
The corpse of a missing 12-year-old John Soyinka was reportedly found at Kotogbo community inside Asero Estate, Abeokuta, Ogun State on Monday morning with his eyes removed while his wrists were also said to have been cut off.
Our correspondent gathered that Soyinka was declared missing about a week ago and the incident was reported at the Obantoko Police Station, Abeokuta.
A resident of the area who pleaded anonymity told our correspondent that the young school boy was said to have vanished into the thin air after trying to check on a customer who did PoS transactions in a shop where the deceased usually assisted them but never came back.
The source said, “I know the boy very well, he is about 12 years old and he lived alone with his mother whom I guessed is no longer with her husband. His mother is into menial jobs like helping people to sweep and the rest.
“The boy too was going to school but I also usually saw him at a business centre where they do PoS operations and barbing. I think he must be assisting them there. What we heard was that, last week Thursday, he said he wanted to check on a customer who did PoS transactions, apparently maybe, there was something to sort out about the transaction but the boy never came back.
“The boy and his mother lived at Olasunkanmi community and so the Community Development Association reported the matter to the District Police Officer at Obantoko Station.
“The DPO informed the police at Adigbe and Lafenwa but it was the boy’s corpse that was seen at Kotogbo community just beside Olasunkanmi on Monday. The two communities are inside Asero Estate, Abeokuta. It is suspected to be a case of ritual killing because the boy’s eyes were removed while his wrists were also cut off. It’s an incident that has really thrown all the residents into mourning”.
When contacted for a reaction, the spokesperson of Ogun State Police Command, SP Omolola Odutola, described the incident as very pathetic saying that it was painful to note that despite the fact that the police swung into action when the boy’s case was brought to their attention, it was his mutilated body that was found days later inside the bush.
Odutola said, “The case is so pathetic. The DPO vigorously searched for this boy only to find his mutilated body inside the bush. The body has been released to the family for burial.”
The following article is highly recommended reading, excellent work by Victor Ayeni!
In Nigeria, nearly every day ‘money rituals’ are reported, maybe not surprising in view of the country’s large population of well over 200 million people – Africa’s largest – even though just one ritual murder is already one too much. However, on the other hand, it could well be that the cases known and reported are only the tip of an iceberg.
But what do we know about ‘money rituals’, as ritual murders are being called in this part of the African continent? Most articles reporting on these crimes, which are driven by greed – for power, prestige or wealth – and based on superstition, are superficial. It is hard to find an article which treats this phenomenon in depth and in a serious way. The Nigerian journalist Victor Ayeni has done a great job and he’s to be commended for this achievement.
The traditional history of ritualistic killings and human sacrifices point to protection of the community’s interest by sacrificing one of its members. Cruel as this might be in our eyes nowadays, in the 21st century, back then relatives of the victim may have been proud of their family member’s contribution to the community. We see nowadays in many parts of the African continent that the ritualistic act which demands the death of the victim is for the (pretended, aimed) benefit of one person only who thus wants to increase his or her power, wealth or health. Moreover, the victim is often picked at random. Involuntary, the victim is attacked and tortured, what results is a gruesome, a wicked crime. Sometimes, specific groups are targeted, e.g. people with albinism, hunchbacks or bald people.
In some countries ambitious politicians tend to resort to these practices in the hope of increasing their political chances and success, resulting an increase in ritual murders during election campaigns. It’s a shocking reality – even though we don’t known the full scale of it.
‘Money rituals’ in Nigeria show another characteristic: some people consider it a business model, which enables them to ‘earn’ money from superstitious people who believe that by using another man’s organs or other body parts, ‘juju’ will be created, to their personal benefit.
Victor Ayeni explains well how this works in Nigeria. A very informative article which ends with the question ‘Are money rituals real or a fiction?’
The reader may answer this question for him- or herself after reading Ayeni’s valuable article. (webmaster FVDK)
Money ritual seekers’ dark walk into deceit, misery
Published: March 18, 2023 By: Victor Ayeni, Punch – Nigeria
VICTOR AYENI explores the subject of money ritual in popular culture, religious houses, and Nollywood movies, why the purveyors of the belief succeed in deceiving youths, and its implications on the public
The apprehension in the air was so thick that one could cut through it with a knife as Olajide (surname withheld) narrated his journey through a maze of confusion.
The 27-year-old graduate was helping a friend manage a pig farm in Osogbo, Osun State, when another friend introduced him to Internet scam, which in Nigerian lingo is called Yahoo Yahoo.
But his experience shocked the wits out of him.
“I was being paid N10,000 per month at the farm, but the money couldn’t meet my needs as time went on, so a friend of mine bought me an iPhone and from there, I was introduced to Yahoo Yahoo.
“I started off on a neutral ground and I was getting little money from my clients (victims), but after like three months into it, things became so tough that I couldn’t fend for myself again. I explained my situation to a friend and he took me to an Alfa (cleric),” Olajide recalls, shaking his head in disbelief.
This Alfa was known in Yahoo boys’ circles to be adept in the art of money magic – an occult economy that involves the performance of rituals to supernaturally conjure money.
Abode of fear
When Olajide described his financial difficulties to the Alfa, he was given two options.
“Alfa said he would help me out with small osole. I asked what he meant by that and he explained that osole (spiritual assistance) is different from oso (human body parts).
“Alfa told me oso required the use of human parts for material wealth with repercussions such as untimely death or insanity, whereas osole required the use of plants and animals for the same purpose but with lesser repercussions like being poor. I opted for osole,” he added.
Olajide was instructed to pay a sum of N12,000 into the cleric’s bank account for the materials and return in four days.
Five days later, when Olajide put a call through to the Alfa, he was asked to return for the materials.
He said, “When I got there, he gave me a small black soap and told me to find small palm oil and go to a flowing river to bathe that I had to cleanse myself first before I would use the materials.
“He explained to me that the soap was made with pepper mixed with some herbs and directed me to rub the palm oil on my body first before bathing with the soap. He warned that if I didn’t use the palm oil first, I was going to disappear and I would not be seen again. So, I did as I was told.”
Olajide said he complied with all the instructions.
“When I went back to him, he gave me three different materials: a soap to bath with every morning by 4am, a potion which I must swallow daily after taking my bath, and a powdery mixture to be licked every night before I go to bed.
“He said the herbal concoction was made from animals like crow, chameleon, cat, pigeon, and some leaves. He also told me that I would experience more hardship during the first two or three months of using the ritual materials, but I should endure it because after that, the tide will turn and money will be flowing in from my clients,” he added.
The idea of recipients conjuring money through magic is a familiar theme in many Nigerian films and religious houses.
Whether through animal sacrifices or trafficking in human parts, it is erroneously believed that these rites bring stupendous wealth to those who practice them.
When our correspondent inquired from Olajide if the magic worked, and in what specific ways the money came to him, he was silent.
When he spoke, he recalled faithfully following all the instructions given to him, but for the next two months, as the cleric predicted, he experienced serious financial hardship.
At this point, he said his friend introduced him to a client (victim), who had been defrauded several times.
Olajide then began to siphon money from the victim.
The inexplicable ease with which his ‘client’ gave him money implied that he (client) had been hypnotised.
“I ended up getting plenty money from this client. The cleric had assured me of having lots of money from osole, but he advised me to return to him for an upgrade of the ritual by paying N450,000, saying I would be making millions of naira after using the alleged ‘upgraded’ soap.
“But I didn’t go back because I asked my friend who took me there about what the new upgrade entails since that was what he did, and he warned me sternly against it because of the repercussions behind it.
“He said once I bathe with the ‘upgraded’ soap the cleric would prescribe, I could only wear the clothes and shoes I had and I must not change them for the next two years,” he added.
Four months after he dabbled in osole, Olajide realised that his fortunes began to dwindle as reality pulled the plug on his gravy train.
He said, “Things suddenly turned sour after four months. The client I was getting money from was arrested and ended up in jail and I no longer had any financial link. I ended up becoming more broke than before.
“My friend found me another client but I ended up wasting money rather than gaining some. Then, I was taken to another voodoo practitioner. This one said he would perform a ritual for me but one of its conditions was that I must never have sex with more than one girlfriend for the next three years and if I did otherwise, I would run mad.
“It was then I decided to withdraw from this stuff and went back into teaching for some time. Later on, I was introduced to the crypto business that I now do.”
The poverty factor
The belief in gaining wealth through mystical practices has gained much appeal over the decades in Nigeria with the exponential rise in poverty and lack of equal economic opportunities, especially for young people.
According to the 2022 Multidimensional Poverty Index Survey released by the National Bureau of Statistics, 63 per cent of Nigerians, which account for 133 million citizens, are multi-dimensionally poor due to a lack of access to health, education, living standards, employment, and security.
The unemployment rate in Nigeria has not only increased constantly in the past years, the Nigerian Economic Summit Group has also projected that the country’s unemployment rate will hit 37 per cent in 2023.
However, investigations by Saturday PUNCH showed that many Nigerians fervently believe that they can make a lot of money regardless of the dire economic situations in the country through a supernatural supply of money.
Ritual killings
In Nigeria, there are various tales around wealth creation that foster the concept of one becoming rich through the manipulation of metaphysical forces in nature.
Among the Yoruba, South-West Nigeria, there is the aworo phenomenon that is believed to draw large patronage to a trader in a marketplace.
There is also awure (wealth booster) which can be prepared as a traditional soap or concoction.
Research shows that many Nigerians plank their belief in money rituals on mostly unverified reports.
This has drawn many into desperate measures, including taking the lives of close family members and friends.
In December 2021, a suspected Internet fraudster from Edo State, identified only as Osas, allegedly murdered his girlfriend, Elohor Oniorosa, for ritual purposes.
In November 2022, another Yahoo boy, alongside his herbalist, one Ike, aka Ogenesu, was arrested after policemen recovered suspected human parts at the herbalist’s place in Obiaruku, in the Ukwuani Local Government Area of Delta State.
But Ogun State appeared to have the highest number of reported incidents of such killings.
For instance, the state recorded at least 15 cases of ritual killings between January 2022 and 2023.
In January, the Ogun State Police Command arrested a 36-year-old herbalist, Taiwo Ajalorun, who reportedly confessed to the gruesome killing of a 26-year-old mother of two and two others in the Ijebu Ode area of the state.
On December 28, 2022, in the Ijebu-Ode area of the state, a gang reportedly killed three women, including a girlfriend of one of them, after sleeping with her.
In February 2022, two suspected criminals who were alleged to be ritualists were set ablaze by an angry mob for being in possession of human parts in Oja-Odan in the Yewa-North Local Government Area of the state.
Also, in October 2022, two suspected Internet fraudsters allegedly killed a 40-year-old man, Abdullahi Azeez, in Owode-Egba.
But probably the most pathetic was that of some teenagers who were caught burning the head of a female, Sofia, whom they killed for money ritual in the Oke Aregba area of Abeokuta.
One of the teenagers, Soliu Majekodunmi, who was Sofia’s boyfriend, said in January 2022 that he learnt the practice through Facebook.
Majekodunmi said he typed, ‘How to make money ritual’ on Facebook and got the details, adding that the link instructed him to behead and burn a female skull in a local pot.
Shaman or sham man?
Our correspondent found many Facebook accounts and groups created for seekers of money rituals.
Most of the social media pages had photographs of new naira notes placed in African traditional pots, calabashes, and cowrie-strewn bags, and some showed animal blood splattered on the ground around them.
Posing as a school teacher, our correspondent reached out to one of the acclaimed shamans, Babatunde (surname withheld), who resided in Ijebu Igbo, Ogun State.
In his response, he introduced his shrine as the ‘Arab Money Family’ and sent his phone number to our correspondent.
In a rather confident tone, Babatunde said, “If you are ready, even if it is this night, you will pay me and I will get the materials ready to start the ritual work for you. Most of my ritual work is done overnight and by tomorrow, it will be completed and your money will come out.
“You will send me your bank account, photograph, and full name, and you will be receiving money in your account. You will be receiving cash thrice every two weeks.”
When our correspondent inquired whether it is spirits that would be sending the money, he interjected in a mildly exasperated tone, “Listen, I will prepare the money here in my shrine and the money will be entering your account.”
He sent his ritual material price list and asked our correspondent to select the amount of money he wishes to receive in his bank account.
The list says, “N15,500 for N200,000; N20,000 for N300,000; N30,500 for N500,000; N50,000 for N1million; N75,000 for N5million; N90,000 for N20million; and N120,000 for N50 million.”
When our correspondent selected “N20,000 for N300,000,” he reiterated that his brand of ‘money magic’ utilises native materials instead of human blood.
“I make money without human blood and I only make use of native materials. I only make use of materials called ‘Cash of Hope’ and the ‘Money Drawer Oil.’
“Mind you, my work does not require any side effects or human being blood for sacrifice or repercussions, okay? Never say never to the high spirit.
“You don’t need to travel down for the ritual; I will just send them to you and you will get your money, but you must come down to my shrine with a token of appreciation for my work, any amount your heart chooses,” Babatunde added.
When the reporter complained about being unable to afford the cost of the ritual material, the magician urged him to find the money by any means possible and contact him when ready.
Babatunde was also observed to regularly post videos on his Facebook and WhatsApp statuses featuring ‘clients’ who claim to have acquired money through his rituals but the veracity of their claims could not be confirmed.
The second acclaimed money magician, who resides in Ogbomoso, Oyo State, goes by the Facebook name, Iya Ifa Bomi.
In this case, our correspondent posed as a greenhorn ‘Yahoo boy’ and asked her for spiritual assistance in order to obtain money from his ‘clients.’
She said, “You mean you are talking to your clients and they are not giving you money? I can perform a ritual for you and it will involve the use of big Titus fish, pepper, and some fresh leaves, but it will cost you N25,000.
“When you have the money, you can come to Ogbomoso and pick up the materials. I will prepare them for you. I have done this for many Yahoo boys like you and they all come back to testify that their clients are cooperating although some of them are ingrates. We also have some of us who do this work who are scammers and have made people not trust our works.”
Another cleric contacted by our correspondent, Alfa Abdulmumeen Aremu, advertised himself as a practitioner of “money rituals for engineers, contractors, business owners and ‘Yahooboys.’”
He first demanded a sum of N2,000 and told our correspondent to send his full name and his mother’s name for spiritual consultation before he could recommend osole to him.
In a voice note, he explained, “There are different types of osole and I perform them for people like you, so don’t worry, I am adept in this work. Send me those things first and I will do some consultations to know your destiny in five minutes and I will revert to you.”
Our correspondent sent him a pseudonym along with the name of his late grandmother.
After some minutes, Aremu sent a voice note saying, “I can see you have a very bright destiny but you have some enemies. They are divided into two: some from your family and others from your workplace.
“You will cook ritual meals like rice and semo with tasty stew and give them to the children in your community. They will eat it with relish, and some of them will go to sleep. After you do that, you will be spiritually clean and we can proceed to the next stage.”
Divergent beliefs
A student of Business Administration, Kazeem Akinpelu, says money rituals are real.
“If they have not been working, people will no longer be practicing them. I grew up in Ibadan, Oyo State, and I know of a market where they sell human parts at night.
“The people selling in this particular market practice voodoo and they are patronised by those who perform money rituals. There was also one time the body parts of a lynched motorcyclist here in Ibadan were used by ritualists,” he added.
However, a civil servant, Nnamdi Okeke, dismissed money rituals as a fantasy that existed only in the realm of make-believe.
“Well, I have not come across any money rituals and I haven’t thought of doing such either. I don’t believe there is anything like ‘blood money.’
“Someone can watch a film and tell you the story, but no cult will tell you what to bring if you have not passed through their ranks, and that is if such things exist, because I don’t believe in them. The question is, the person who wants to make you rich, why is he poor and even why are their children not rich?” he asked.
Similarly, a medical scientist, Mike Okechukwu, said the whole concept of ritual killing boiled down to superstition.
“People would believe what they want to believe to obtain money. Desperate people will employ desperate measures. For me though, I don’t think ritual killings are effective; I have not seen any proof to make me believe so. It all boils down to superstition,” he stated.
But a sales representative, who gave her name as Judith for security reasons, said she once dated a man whom she believed was involved in such rituals.
She said, “I was dating this Yahoo-Yahoo guy and one day, I visited him unannounced and found that he didn’t want me to go inside his room. He was just acting weird that day.
“But while I stood at the door, he didn’t know I saw a native pot placed on the floor. From that day on, I began to suspect him and that was what made me leave him eventually because I don’t want anybody to use me for money rituals.”
Money ritual mirage
Commenting on popular beliefs about money rituals, a Professor of Philosophy of Religion at the Lagos State University, Danoye Oguntola-Laguda, said herbalists appeal to Internet scammers for pecuniary gain.
He said, “My experience is that there is nothing called money rituals. What many people mistake for money rituals is the prayer for getting rich. That could definitely involve some sacrifices of animals or birds or cooking for the whole community (saara) which brings the blessing of feeding multitudes and people may not be able to determine how you become rich.
“I don’t want to say that those who believe in osole or perform oso are wrong because there are a lot of myths that point in that direction, but if you ask many of them to tell you or show you the real thing, you will see that they have nothing to show.
“I want to say that most of these traditionalists do not even know that those who consult them are ‘Yahoo boys.’ They just see them as people seeking a way to be rich and they do a ritual, pray for them and tell them to go and kill one goat. The babalawos are also human beings who have families to feed so when they see a victim with such a proposal, they grab it with both hands.”
Oguntola-Laguda also explained the difference between religious practice and occultism.
“Religion is experiential; it is about your experience. If I tell you that prayer doesn’t work, it’s because I tried it and it didn’t work and if I tell you that it works, it’s because I tried it and it worked for me.
“There is a need to separate occultism from religious practices. Occultism is the appropriation of spiritual agents, who in most cases are negative, and it’s not limited to African traditional religion; it is something that cuts across the board.
“Many religious people appropriate these negative spiritual agents for these money rituals and power to be able to do things that are extraordinary, like the power to be able to tell the sun to go down or to tell the rain to stop.
“So, it is occult people that will tell you that they will make you rich and invite a spiritual agent to do that for you but they always come with a price and that is what many people have come to call oso or osole.
“In the past, in Yoruba traditional society, the wizard who is called oso doesn’t mean he is rich but has power appropriated through spiritual agents that he deploys for good or evil of society,” he added.
Nollywood magical realism
The scenarios of materially wealthy people enmeshed in sinister rituals and pacts with spirits, is a recurring theme in Nollywood plots.
Findings by Saturday PUNCH revealed that whether in the predominantly Muslim North or the largely Christian South, many religious Nigerians believe in the reality of an unseen world, and the fictive representations from Nollywood plots have heavily shaped their perceptions of reality.
A Nollywood screenwriter, Mr Abiola Omolokun, argued that the depictions of money rituals in films are a true representation of Yoruba culture.
He said, “First, I don’t write such stories, but they are true representations of reality. Money rituals are real and are reflected in our cultural beliefs; they are not fiction.
“We tell a story just to teach morals and make people see things differently. Our stories make them know that for every action, there are consequences.
“Through our movies, we teach that patience is a virtue that youths need to walk on the right path, and in due time, with hard work and perseverance, everything will lead to success.”
However, a researcher in African Studies, Akin Faleye, contended that such stories lack historical precedent and are fraudulent.
“As a student of global history, I will say that there is no evidence that the Yoruba practised money rituals in the pre-colonial time. All these stories of money rituals are fraudulent and emanated from psychopaths rather than people with some actual spiritual knowledge of how to make money,” he stated.
Money rituals in other cultures
In some other cultures, what could be termed as money rituals are often symbolic acts or dramas that appeal to psychological and cosmic powers through an application of symbolic structures.
In Ireland, there is a tradition of taking a piece of straw from the nativity scene/crib in the church at Christmas and keeping it in your purse or wallet, which is believed to bring financial prosperity throughout the year.
An Indian author, Suresh Padmanabhan, in his work, I Love Money, devoted a chapter to ‘Money rituals’ and wrote, “Take a currency note in your hand and wish it ‘Good morning.’ “Express gratitude to your wallet, accounts book, cash box, bank passbook, or any other tools connected directly to money. Smile at yourself in the mirror and pat yourself when you perform a task well.”
Some practitioners in western traditions also perform what they define as money spells/rites, which involve the invocation of spirits and archangels, drawing ritual circles, erecting a temple and an altar, and presenting offerings to ancient deities.
However, these rituals are often believed and practiced by religious groups on the fringes and are based on cultural paradigms that only allow clearly defined routes of financial access through hard work, lucrative business, and clever exploitation of market gaps.
Lamenting the lack of profitable skills available to Nigerian youths, a United Kingdom-based personal development coach, Mr Toyyib Adelodun, highlighted the need for popular magical ideas about money to be refuted.
“Nigerian youths need to understand that money is a unit of account to measure, therefore the more value you produce for the community, the richer you are supposed to be. So, the first thing a young person should seek is education and skills to earn money.
“Money is always circulating in an economy. It is the Central Bank of Nigeria that prints money, it doesn’t come from anywhere else. We saw a practical example of this recently when the CBN embarked on the naira redesign and there wasn’t enough money in circulation. So, there is no magic that is going to bring money from anywhere unless you offer your skills as a person of value.
“I have been to several countries in the world and I can see that money only comes from value creation. Unfortunately, Nigerian youths are not equipped with the relevant skills; we just go to religious houses to pray and sit back at home and don’t market skills or deliver an excellent service in order to generate wealth. We don’t have to resort to crimes,” he said.
Clerics urge re-orientation
A Senior Pastor at Christ Life Church, Ibadan, Prof. Wale Coker, told Saturday PUNCH the youth need a re-orientation that would see them embrace a new value system other than the present mad rush to become wealthy overnight.
“The scriptures state that ‘wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished, but he that gathers by labour shall increase’. Youths should be encouraged to walk in the fear of God which is the beginning of wisdom,” he added.
The National Missioner of the Ansar-ud-Deen Society of Nigeria, Shiekh, Abdur-Rahman Ahmad, stated, “All those who claim to be Muslims and Alfas that are involved in money rituals know within their hearts that they are doing something wrong and deceiving people.
“The reality is that there is no money ritual. It is not only against the letter and spirit of the laws of Islam but also against human conscience. Islam recognises only three sources of legitimate wealth: direct labour or hard work, inheritance, and a legitimate gift and this doesn’t mean a Greek gift or bribe or something induced.”
On her part, a traditionalist, Omitonade Ifawemimo, said, “There is no shortcut in Isese (traditional spirituality). If you don’t work, you won’t be wealthy. Nollywood and the fantasy it creates bears responsibility for the concept of money rituals.
“Human sacrifice for money rituals does not exist in Isese. It is fake, madness, and a scam! It’s tragic that Yoruba movies have messed up people’s thinking into believing all these lies.”
The article below contains a number of interesting views – from various points of view – which throw light on the why and how of ritualistic murders and associated activities in Nigeria, commonly referred to as ‘money rituals’. It also mentions a number of recent ritual murder cases, some of them have been included in previous posts.
Personally I find the statement of a Catholic priest, Fr. Oluoma, perhaps the most convincing, simple as it was. He said that, had killing for money rituals been proven to have any form of potency, juju priests would have been on the World’s Richest Peoples list. Hilarious, simple, and convincing.
But another expert spoken to, the Chief Priest of Aroh Deity in Abagana community, Njikoka Local Government Area, Dr Paul Anieto, said that logic alone cannot explain the whole of life, including the accumulation of wealth.
Without mincing his words he stated that money rituals work. Nevertheless, he was quick to point out that there are various kinds of rituals for wealth.
According to the Aroh Deity Priest, some rituals involve the use of human body parts while others don’t. (…)
The native doctor clearly stated that he does not engage in the kind of money ritual that involves human body parts or blood, because it is criminal. Moreover, he said, it has deadly consequences for everyone involved: the instigator, the perpetrator, and the juju priest who executes the ritual.
Let’s hope he was sincere. (webmaster FVDK)
What we know about ritual killings for money, Juju priests, Imams, Pastors, others speak
• Money ritual real but there are consequences —Aroh Deity Priest • If money rituals have potency, juju priests would be on Forbes’ rich list —Fr. Oluoma … •Faulty parenting, poor education, bad governance driving youths to money rituals —Rev. Hayab … •Money rituals promoted by materialistic clerics – Sheikh Nuru Khalid … •Killing for money rituals, haram in Islam —Shi’ite cleric
These days, reports of certain killings in Nigeria, where the human body is decapitated and sensitive parts harvested are believed to be for ritual purposes. In some instances, especially, if the motive remains unclear, some people assume they must have been about money-making.
However, other people, including Christian and Muslim clerics, don’t believe in the efficacy of money rituals. By that, they mean there is nowhere in the history of humankind where anybody has made real cash appear through the means of magic. They simply describe such an idea as a mirage.
But the belief in the efficacy of money ritual killings continues to be rife, especially in a society like the Nigerian context where religion and the supernatural appear to be the opium of the people due to bewildering economic hardship and widespread poverty.
Investigations reveal that the ritual killings heighten around December and the year before general elections, because people need money to spend during the annual yuletide celebrations and other financially draining pre-election meetings and rallies.
As the gap between the rich and the poor; the haves and the have-nots widen across the country, the desperation to overcome the expanding class divide propel many citizens, particularly the youth demography to turn to the dark sides of the supernatural with the hope there will be a wealth redistribution in their favour through unseen support.
Recall the recent tragic drama in Ogun State where a 20-year-old lady, Sofiat Kehinde, was gruesomely murdered and her head severed for money ritual by four teenager suspects; Soliu Majekodunmi; 18, Wariz Oladehinde, 18; Abdulgafar Lukman, 19, and Balogun Mustaqeem, 20.
They conspired to kill Kehinde and played different roles in her murder. Her skull was severed in her lover’s( Majekodunmi) room after a passionate round of love-making.
Fortunately, the teenagers were apprehended by security men after they got wind that the boys were engaging in something sinister in a building located at Isale-Ijade, Oke-Aregba area of the State.
That is the nature of the Nigerian society where people, including kids who should be minding their studies and dreaming of a glorious future for themselves are pre-occupied with looking for metaphysical explanations to clarify otherwise simple phenomena of pervasive poverty in the land.
However, while some traditional religion practitioners speak of some fetish rituals some embark on for money-making, religious leaders, especially in Christendom and Islam agree to an extent that although life in general is guided by faith in the invisible, those who pursue wealth through the execution of any form of violent homicide are under an illusion, from a spiritual standpoint, that genuine help will come to them.
One of such clerics is Rev. Fr. Oluoma Chinenye John, a priest of the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja who commands a following of 689,903 people on Facebook alone.
If money rituals have potency, juju priests would be on Forbes’ rich list — Fr. Oluoma
According to the Catholic priest, had killing for money rituals been proven to have any form of potency, juju priests would have been on the World’s Richest Peoples list.
In an exclusive chat with Saturday Vanguard, he blamed society’s emphasis on material prosperity for the pressure felt by those, particularly youths who resort to voodoo to make money.
Fr. Oluoma also chided fellow preachers who promote the perception that financial “seed-sowing” in religious houses would translate into miracle wealth.
“Two things I want to say are: First, ritual killing for money is an illusion, it doesn’t work. If it did, the Babalawo (juju priest) who is paid to do the rituals would have done it for himself and be living large. Even the governments would have been using prisoners condemned to death for money rituals instead of wasting their blood by hanging or firing squads. It (money rituals) is an illusion like magic.
“Secondly, preachers of the gospel should stop the prosperity gospel, they should teach people the values of honesty, diligence, generosity and hard work. The emphasis on material prosperity puts pressure on people who resort to any means to make it,” Fr. Oluoma, who shepherds a congregation at St. John Mary Vianney Catholic Church, Trademore Estate, Lugbe Abuja, said.
Faulty parenting, poor education, bad governance leading youths to money rituals —Rev. Hayab
For Rev. John Hayab, the Vice Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in the 19 Northern States and the FCT, nowadays many people including minors seek supernatural solutions to basic economic issues that could be resolved through education and logic partly because of bad leadership and the faulty upbringing of children.
Speaking with Saturday Vanguard, the vocal preacher who is also the Country Director of Global Peace Foundation in Nigeria, also said people who traffic in stories of how supernatural power has prospered certain people do so largely to further mislead those who find it hard to accept that someone else can succeed through the ethics of hard work, prudence, and sheer ingenuity.
He said, “The way and manner many of our youths are deviating from moral values and embracing evil just to make money are dangerous for a peaceful future. There are many factors responsible for their going into ritual killings to make money instead of pursuing education that will lead them into researching and investing in science and technology.
“Other nations are doing well in these regard because they have laid a good solid foundation for both the educational, moral and spiritual growth of their nation and children.
“The Bible has admonished us to train a child in the way he should go so that when he grows old he will not depart from it (Prov 22: 6). So, what type of training and upbringing are many Nigerian children getting from parents, neighbors, and even leaders?
“Our society celebrates rich people without questioning the source of their wealth. Churches recognise the best-dressed worshippers and members with big cars not minding the source of all they flaunt around.
How will poorly brought-up children not think that money is everything and go after money anyhow just to be recognised and celebrated?
“Our society and our youths will reject the temptation of killing for money when parents bring them up in the fear of God and love for fellow human beings. Everyone should therefore take parenting seriously by helping to raised godly and responsible children.
“Also, the government must help to make sure our teeming youths have an equal opportunity like their counterparts around the world. A country where basic services are not available can make the youths who are not patient want to make money by all means just to afford some basic human needs.
“When you (government) give your youths poor education, they will use their half-baked knowledge to do wrong things. We should lead our youth by example.
“Likewise, faith leaders should preach sermons that will guide the young people right not misleading some of them with wrong definitions of prosperity. Prosperity is not just about having money. A healthy man, contented, and happy doing what he knows best for the glory of God and the good of all humanity even if he has not much cash in his account or pocket is a prosperous person.”
While there appears to be no logical link between wealth and rituals, the rising incidences of gory killings in our society by suspects who got into trouble with the law, because of their desperation for money are worrying and the society must be held to account for the phenomenon.
Money rituals promoted by materialistic clerics —Sheikh Nuru Khalid
The immediate past Chief Imam of the National Assembly Legislative Quarters’s Jum’mat Mosque, Apo, Abuja, Sheikh Muhammad Nuru Khalid who spoke to Saturday Vanguard from his location in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, where he is currently observing the lesser Hajj, said the society has lost its sense of value; thereby, placing materialism above spirituality.
He also said that the ultimate goal of some people who engage in gruesome murders for money was the acquisition of political power in the country; stressing that greed also forms the basis of such gory killings.
Sheikh Khalid maintained that greed was condemnable not only in Islam, but in other religions.
The Islamic scholar, who also commands a mass following of 138,266 people on Facebook, stated: “We have to acknowledge that our society is in trouble. Values are lost. Gradually, we are becoming a valueless society. We glorify money and other forms of materialism above spirituality which is increasingly becoming absent in the mosques and churches.
“Materialism is taking the place of spiritualism in our preaching and actions, because the Imams and Pastors are less concerned about spiritual things. If you have a lot of money, you can garner a lot of respect in the society.
“Other issues responsible for the mad rush for money rituals are corruption and the get-rich-quick deceit. Our political system is also one of the factors fueling criminality in the form of money rituals, because without money, you don’t have power. People want money to acquire power. So, they are desperate in search money to reach the political position of power.
“But, if you put all these things together, they will tell you why all the religions are against greed. There are many verses of the Qu’ran and Hadiths of the Holy Prophet, cautioning people to desist from greed. That is why Islam is against inhuman activities that endanger lives, dignity, and the wealth of the common man.
“Above all, we need to do more to bring back the society to its normal sense, because abnormalities are becoming norms in our society.”
There is a telling example of this odd trend of abnormality becoming the norm in the story of 33-year-old suspected ritualist, Afeez Odusanya, who was arrested by operatives of the Osun State Security Network, codenamed ‘Amotekun’ for extracting teeth of dead bodies at a burial ground.
Odusanya, who said he did it for a money ritual when he was paraded at Amotekun command, Sabo area, Osogbo, disclosed he started his quest for money ritual in 2016 but it failed twice after extracting teeth from two different bodies in Sagamu, Ogun State.
Rather than accept that what he set out to achieve is impossible, the suspected money ritualist doubled down on his exhumation of buried corpse believing it would ultimately succeed if he added this and that to the process.
People like Odusanya have never seen the rituals translate into money or success, but they still attempt it anyway. By killing people, they get drawn into the relatively profitable trade in human body parts. They do not need to see it work; they just need to believe and start relating to the phenomenon as true.
Killing for money rituals, haram in Islam —Shi’ite cleric
But, a leading Muslim cleric of the Shi’ite sect in Sokoto caliphate, Sheikh Sidi Munir, maintains that tampering with the human body for ritual purposes whether efficacious or not is inglorious in Islam.
He, however, noted that the more killing for money ritual is hyped, the more people believe that others participate in it because it is perceived to be efficacious, and the more those who benefit in the trading of human parts oil the demand and supply chain.
In an exclusive interview with Saturday Vanguard, the Islamic cleric said: “In Islam, human dignity is a right given by God to all humans, who are referred to in the Qur’ân as God’s vicegerents on earth.
“Islam grants certain rights to humans before they are even born and others after their death. Whether dead or alive, the human body, created by God in the perfect shape, must be given dignity and respect.
“So, money ritual is condemnable in Islam, and the use of human body parts for making medicine, charms and amulet for any reason is haram (forbidden). It is unlawful in Islam to tamper with a human body, and a Muslim who persists in committing these kinds of rituals will find himself on a path that will eventually lead him into becoming a non-Muslim.”
On how to turn the minds of people, especially the youths from killings for money rituals, Sheikh Munir alluded to one of the Hadiths (traditions) to buttress the need for clerics to keep preaching repentance messages from the pulpits.
He said, “In one of the Hadiths of the Prophet Mohammad (SAW), a man was in the habit of digging up graves to harvest human body parts.
One day, he met a woman in a grave and had sexual intercourse with her. Afterwards, a great calamity befell him. He went to a Mallam who told him he would burn in hell fire, because his predicament was a result of his evil deeds.
“The distressed man seized the Mallam and killed him. Then, he went to another Mallam who told him that if he would repent of his sins, the Almighty God will forgive him and take away his reproach. The evil man turned away from his evil ways and became a good Muslim. So, as clerics, we need to keep preaching repentance always.”
Money ritual is real, but… —Aroh Deity Priest
Meanwhile, the Chief Priest of Aroh Deity in Abagana community, Njikoka Local Government Area, Dr Paul Anieto, told Saturday Vanguard that logic alone cannot explain the whole of life, including the accumulation of wealth.
According to him, to say there is nothing like money rituals is to say there is nothing like mysticism in life. He said that to stretch the logic of that denial, implies that there is nothing like God, because many believe that there is a mystical side to the nature of God.
He explained that there are Christians who believe in the transubstantiation of substances i.e. the transformation of forms, for instance, of the water and the wine into the body and the blood of Jesus Christ once they are consumed in the Holy Communion.
Chief Anieto without mincing his words stated that money rituals work. Nevertheless, he was quick to point out that there are various kinds of rituals for wealth.
According to him, some rituals involve the use of human body parts while others don’t. However, the blood of certain animals like rams, bulls, and birds are required.
The native doctor clearly stated that he does not engage in the kind of money ritual that involves human body parts or blood, because it is not only criminal, but also has deadly repercussions for all the parties – the wealth seeker, his collaborators, and the juju priest who executed the ritual – involved.
Dr Anieto said: “Some ignorant juju priest make use of human beings as sacrificial materials for money rituals and lucky charms. But this is not what the African culture teaches.
“Rituals are basically an intercession between the mundane and the spiritual. It is unfortunate that what we see today are so many committing various forms of dangerous and inhuman acts in the name of money rituals.
“I don’t engage in human money rituals and you can never see any real adherent of Odinnani (Igbo traditional religion) engage in money ritual, because “Ani” forbids the shedding of human blood. Violating this taboo comes with devastating consequences, because all deities in Igbo culture requires tooth-for-tooth and blood-for-blood.
“To accumulate wealth requires hardwork and business acumen. This is what Odinaani teaches but it is unfortunate that today’s youths lack this important virtue. They want to succeed at all costs, not minding who gets hurt in the process. They are ready to kill and sacrifice human beings for money rituals without considering the consequences of their action.
“There is prosperity charm which does not require the use of human beings or human parts but you must first have a mundane source of income to make it work. Do not be deceived into believing that there is a spirit that brings money for anyone out of thin air without a mundane source of income even in odious money rituals where human blood and body parts are involved.”
Psychologist speaks
Above all, a professor of psychology at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Oni Fagboungbe, said rituals for both money and success exist only in the perception of the people.
He explained that for those who do money ritual, it is their faith that makes the ritual for money work for them and not the incantation or the ritual itself.
To him, it is the law of perception that is at work in cases of successful money rituals. If you perceive a situation as real, it becomes real. That is it. It is not the ritual that brings money, it is their mind and the attachment they give to it.
Fagboungbe decried the spate of ritual killings for money among the youths, and said there are several psychological laws that explain these behaviours.
According to him, “There is the Destalk psychology that says the part can never be better than the whole. The children cannot do something that is not rampant in their country.
“There is also what is called observational learning. This is the most active form of learning. These youths observe what goes on and imbibe it.
“Additionally, the law of effect says any stimulus that brings pleasure will be maximised and the one that brings pain will be minimised. These youth see the society. They see politicians commit crimes and they also see them get out of them and all sort of things. They see how the society eulogise and applaud dubious characters.
“So, there are no deterrent variables available. People do as they like and get away with it. You will hear Yahoo boys say that if they give money to the police, they will be let off the hook.”
While Christian and Muslim religious leaders attempt to undermine the phenomenon of money rituals by appealing to reason and by pointing out how illogical such a belief is, some analysts say that both logic and the law are powerless to serve as the basis of dissuading those who would not be dissuaded from their culturally perception of life and their place in it, because the irrational often trumps the rational in the real world.
Legal prosecution of suspect may have the power to nip in the bud any attempt at senseless killing in the name of seeking wealth, but people will keep believing what they want to believe about the efficacy of money rituals.
Therefore, to effectively tackle the obnoxious practice of money rituals in the society, the government must entrench the practice of good governance and do all it would take to pull the economy out of the doldrums that has widened the gulf between the rich and the poor in the country.
Ritual killing is real, herbalist speaks too
Additional report
By Evelyn Usman
According to him: ‘ I inherited this trade from my late father. Before he died, he warned me never to indulge in any rituals that involves human blood. He told me that some of his professional colleagues died miserably because they practiced money rituals.
“He also told me one of them lost seven of his children after killing a virgin for money rituals. My job is to prepare concoctions with herbs and soap for cure of diseases that are planted into individuals by wicked people.
“Unfortunately, some of us who do legitimate business in this profession are not rich, when compared to those who are into money rituals. While they could be paid between N500,000 and N2 million naira depending on the outcome of the rituals, the legitimate herbalists may die without having N100,000 in bulk .
“Blood is potent for money ritual making. It has several types . But the only thing those patronizing herbalists who practice money rituals don’t know, is that one killing may never be enough. Killing of one person is just the introductory part. As long as the person wants to be rich, he would be sacrificing human beings to renew that evil covenant because the demon in charge of money always requires blood.
“Unfortunately, most people who patronize these herbalists don’t also know they are destined to be rich. These herbalists only demand human blood to fast track their predestined wealth”.
Some recent ritual killings —Lagos
A vivid instance was the murder of 24-year-old Precious Okeke, who just concluded her National Youth Service Corp. The unsuspecting lady had paid a visit to her fiancé ,Maxwell Njoku, at his Ajah , Lagos abode, only for her decomposing remains to be discovered in the apartment three weeks ago.
Report had it that her supposed fiancé allegedly killed her for money rituals, with an instruction by his herbalist to keep her body in the apartment for seven days, after which he would transform into a multimillionaire. Unfortunately, a curious neighbour traced the disturbing stench to the apartment before the expiration of the seven days .Another bizarre incident occurred at Araromi Street in the densely populated Oshodi area of Lagos, following the alleged killing of a mother of five by her husband for money rituals.
In this case, the suspect Sogei Jafairu, who hails from Etsako Central Local Government Area of Edo state, was suspected to have poisoned his wife’s food and mistakenly ate it. While his wife did not survive it, he did and reportedly opened up on his deed.
Again in Lagos, One Sherifat Bello was arrested by the Police after he confessed to killing his wife and burying her remains in a shallow grave, for money rituals .
Rivers state
This barbaric act assumed a cannibalistic dimension following the arrest of a suspected kidnapper alleged to have killed one of his victims and used his intestines to prepare pepper soup in River State.
The suspect, Roland Peter, according to the Police in River State , abducted his victim from his house and was at the verge of eating pepper soup and yam porridge prepared with parts of the body of his victim’s when the police swooped on him and some accomplices.
Ogun State
Ogun State seems to be taking the lead in the report on killings for money rituals. Recently, three teenagers were allegedly caught burning the head of a girl they killed for money ritual purposes at the Oke Aregba area of Abeokuta in Ogun State.
The teenagers: Wariz Oladehinde, 17, and Abdul Gafar Lukman, 19, and the 20-year-old, Mustakeem Balogun, confessed during interrogation that the victim identified simply as Rofiat, was the girlfriend of one of them who was lured into their apartment, where they cut off their heads .
On why teenagers engage in money rituals remains a riddle to unravel.
Other arrests made by the Police in Ogun State involved Pastors and Islamic clerics allegedly involved in killings for money rituals.
There had been several other cases of killings for money rituals in the state .
Enugu
In Enugu, the south-east region of Nigeria, the story is the same. A housewife, Mrs Ifebuchukwu Onyeishi narrated recently, how her husband, Chidi Onyeishi, a tricycle operator , in connivance with a nonagenarian Pastor, allegedly killed their seven-year-old son for a money ritual.
The list is endless, with the introduction of different devices to achieving the devilish act.
Clergyman speaks
Speaking with Saturday Vanguard, the General Overseer, Apply Praise Ministry International and Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria, Jakande /Bungalow district of Ejigbo, Pastor Segun Olatunde , said killings for money ritual did not just begin today, adding that he met the ugly phenomenon while growing up as a child.
Asked if it worked , he replied affirmatively . According to him: “Yes, it works for them. Because if it isn’t, people will not be indulging it in the practice . It has been for a long time . I recall as a growing child , our parents warned us never to accept anything from strangers, especially when going to school.
Today, there are different versions of it. Some use human parts to prepare charms , while others use the parts to enhance their business. For some, it is to attract money and favour, to them. It is mysterious, just as money is mysterious and answers to blood.
“Recently some persons were arrested while they were burning some human parts to prepare charms for money rituals. I don’t know how they do it but those arrested said they were burning the human hand for money rituals. For some, the money must be spent in a day, for new ones to come and failure to finish it that day attracts dire consequences.
Killing humans does not guarantee being rich — Ifa Priest, Araba Ifayemi Elebuibon
By Shina Abubakar, Osogbo
A foremost traditionalist and Ifa priest, Araba Ifayemi Elebuibon has said that killing human does not guarantee being rich stressing that many spiritualists that embark on it are actually living a miserable life.
According to the renown Ifa Priest, “money ritual is in two ways, first, the popular gruesome killing of human with a view to using their body parts for money is more of magical than ritual. Over the years of my being a priest, I have never seen or heard any Ifa corpus about killing human for money rituals. It is not a certainty but magical. Many of the spiritualists involved in the illegality are themselves poor.
“If it is certain that once you kill someone and severe body part, mix it with certain things you start getting money, why are the herbalists still poor? Many of those caught after perpetrating the killings and used the body parts still complained that it didn’t work for them. So, it is not ritual but magic. Ritual is what you do regularly to sustain a level of flow of spirituality. In Yoruba tradition, the money ritual does not involve killing humans. It is called ‘Awure’, ‘Osole’. It involves mixing natural materials to enhance business and getting favours, it does not involve killing humans, it may involve using goats, pigeon etc. Those who are responsible for the act are mostly Muslim and Christian clerics. The records are always clear, most of those arrested by police and even paraded are either pastors of Church or Muslim clerics. “To stop the menace, parents must be responsible and train their children in the way of God. We must return to our values, placing integrity above materialism. Parents must be responsible for their children’s welfare and they should not be expecting their children to pay house rent and feed the family. Also, religious leaders must stop giving respect or title to those with questionable wealth. We must collectively eliminate the menace in our society. Killing humans does not guarantee being rich.
Unfortunately, the list of proven and suspected ritual killing cases in Nigeria is – so-to-speak – endless. Ritualistic murders and related activities are know in Nigeria and neighboring (anglophone) countries, such as Ghana, as ‘money rituals’. Everyday, new murders are being discovered and/or reported. I’ve mentioned it earlier on this site: it is not possible to report here or to give comments on every single ‘money ritual’ in Nigeria, Africa’s most populated countries with an estimated population of about 200 million people.
Some of the reported ritual murder cases exposed below have been included in previous posts, some are not. With the help of the ‘search’ button on this page one may easily find previous posts with (more) details of the respective murder cases. (webmaster FVDK)
7 Ritual Killing Cases That Shocked Nigerians
Kehinde Oladimeji and his wife Adejumoke were arrested in Abeokuta, Ogun State, for being in possession of fresh human parts. See below.
Published: April 23, 2022 By: KOKO TV Nigeria
The rise in the rate of people who have been killed for money ritual is alarming and everyone is crying out for this evil trend to come to an end.
Money ritual can be said to be the act of using ritual to get money, now the trick here is the ingredients used in doing the ritual are what makes this act a deadly and terrible option. Most people who indulge in this ritual always want what people call ‘fast money’ because they can’t wait for their time according to the plan of God. There have been several cases of youths caught with one human part or the other or in the process of killing someone whom they want to harvest the body part and use for money ritual. So here 7 ritual killing cases that shocked Nigerians.
Sofiat Kehinde On the 4th of February, 2022, four Nigerian men were charged with the murder of a 20-year-old woman in a suspected ritual killing case. The men, who are aged between 18 to 20 years, were arrested on the last Saturday of January for allegedly killing Sofiat Kehinde and burning her head for money ritual purposes at Oke Aregba area of Abeokuta, Ogun State. According to reports, the deceased was dating one of the killers. She was lured by her boyfriend, Soliu, to his room where she was overpowered and killed.
Jennifer Anthony In the case of Jennifer Anthony; a 20-year-old Moses Oko was been apprehended by the police for allegedly killing her for ritual purposes. Jennifer, who was a student of the University of Jos, was found lifeless at a hotel in Jos, along Zaria Road, on New Year’s Day. Some of her body parts were also missing. Moses was arrested in Benue State after he fled from Jos for committing the crime.
Oluwabamise Ayanwola The 22-year-old fashion designer, Bamise, was found dead in Lagos after boarding a BRT bus heading to Oshodi from Chevron bus stop, Lekki. She was said to have been raped before being killed. Her corpse was later found on the Carter Bridge. The police have since arrested Andrew Nice Omininikoron, the driver of the BRT bus, who is the prime suspect. It was reported that young Bamise was raped, and had parts of her body removed which confirmed the suspicion that she may have been killed for ritual purposes. The bereaved family has demanded justice for her.
Timothy Odeniyi On February 1st, 2022, a suspected ritual killer, Timothy Odeniyi, was arrested by men of the Amotekun Corps in Ondo State, Nigeria. The 35-year-old man confessed to newsmen that he was promised N30m if he could produce and deliver human parts to Lagos. He revealed that the human parts were to be delivered to one of his bosses living in Lagos. Timothy confessed that he went to burial grounds to harvest the body parts from corpses buried claiming that he did not murder anyone.
Kehinde Oladimeji and Adejumoke Nigerian couple Kehinde Oladimeji, 43, and his 35-year-old wife, Adejumoke, were paraded before newsmen at the police command headquarters, Eleweran, Abeokuta. The suspects were arrested in Abeokuta for being in possession of fresh human parts. The couple, who resided on 72, MKO Abiola Way, Leme, Abeokuta, in the Abeokuta South Local Government Area of Ogun State, were arrested with human hands and breasts. It was reported that they killed and severed the body of a lady who was Adejumoke’s friend and sold the head to a merchant, identified as Omo Baale, a resident of Ibadan, Oyo State.
Timothy Adegoke Timothy Adegoke checked into a hotel in Ile-Ife to write his Post Graduate examinations but he never came out alive as he was murdered overnight and buried some metres away from the hotel. The proprietor of the hotel, Mr Adedoyin is currently standing trial. A lot of people reported contrary to what the police said that some of his body parts were missing and had been used for money ritual.
Afeez Olalere Another case is that of 32-year-old Afeez Olalere, who is a suspected internet fraudster. Afeez confessed to killing his younger brother for money ritual purposes. He was arrested during a stop and search operation along Itamaga, Ikorodu road in Lagos State by operatives of the Lagos State Police Command. Afeez confessed during interrogation that his mother encouraged him to kill his younger brother after a herbalist she took him to had told him to sacrifice one life which must be his sibling. He had planned with his mother to poison his 21-year-old brother to death. They harvested the required body parts and took his remains to the mortuary.
Ritualistic murders are no exception in Ogun State, Nigeria. That’s a mild way of saying that ritual murders are rife in this southwestern part of Africa’s most populated country. I have repeatedly drawn attention on reported cases of ‘money rituals’ which demand a human sacrifice, see my postings of murder cases in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and the current year 2022.
I have no doubt that many more ritual murders have been committed in Ogun State but, first of all, not all murders are being reported and investigated and, secondly, not all ritual killings are detected.
Recently, there have been increasing protests against these cruel crimes. On Sunday April 3, a preacher at the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Onikoko, Abeokuta, Chief Francis Oluwole Ogunnusi raised his voice against ritual killings, lashing out at ‘money rituals’. Suddenly he slumped and he died on the spot causing consternation and confusion in the church.
It is not known whether deacon Francis Ogunnusi was suffering from any health related problem.
I haven’t run across a newspaper article mentioning the following suspicion, but I won’t be surprised if quite a large number of churchgoers and other ordinary people reacted on the news of the deacon’s sudden demise – albeit silently – with awe and conviction that a terrifying and powerful person who possessed an extra-ordinary strong ‘juju’ was responsible for the death of Chief Francis Oluwole Ogunnusi (webmaster FVDK).
Deacon dies while preaching against ritual killings in Ogun State
Deacon Francis Ogunnusi
Published: April 5, 2022 By: Adekunle Dada – Within Nigeria
A deacon at the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Onikoko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Francis Ogunnusi, reportedly slumped and died while against the ‘get-rich-quick’ syndrome during a Sunday service.
The church was thrown into confusion when the Deacon, also said to be the Baale of Onikoko, a community, near the Panseke area suddenly slumped with a microphone in his hand.
According to Daily Trust, a viral video showed the Deacon alongside an interpreter, warning against the rising cases of money-making rituals.
Delivering his sermon in Yoruba, Ogunnusi said “The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood; when death comes, it will belong to another person.”
However, when the interpreter was still trying to present the words in the English language, the man slumped and threw the church into commotion.
He was reportedly rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
The aforementioned publication reported that a congregant said, “The man was not the pastor of that church, he was just an elder. He was the Baale of Onikoko. But he was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday.
“He was talking about death and people who make money by killing other people. All of a sudden, he collapsed. He was rushed to the FMC, but he died. We don’t know what happened. I was very scared. Everything was disrupted. We just shared the grace and went home.”
The source could not confirm whether the deceased was battling any health challenges.
Deacon dies on pulpit while preaching against ritual killings + Video
Screenshot – To access the video, please click here
Published: April 5, 2022 By: The Eagle Online, Nigeria
A Deacon of the Evangelical Church Winning All, Onikoko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Francis Ogunnusi, has been confirmed dead after slumping while preaching during a service.
The incident occurred during the Sunday service on April 3 as the Deacon preached against “get-rich-quick” syndrome.
The church was thrown into confusion after the Deacon, who is also the Baale of Onikoko, a community near Panseke area in Abeokuta metropolis, suddenly slumped with a microphone in his hand.
Delivering his sermon in Yoruba, Ogunnusi said: “The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood, when death comes, it will belong to another person.”
The interpreter was still trying to present the words in the English language when the Deacon slumped.
According to Daily Trust, the Deacon was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
A congregant told the publication: “The man was not the pastor of that church, he was just an elder.
“He was the Baale of Onikoko.
“But he was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday.
“He was talking about death and people who make money by killing other people.
“All of a sudden, he collapsed.
“He was rushed to the FMC, but he died.
“We don’t know what happened.
“I was very scared.
“Everything was disrupted.
“We just shared the grace and went home.”
It was however not clear if he had any health challenges.
The corpse of Chief Ogunnusi has been deposited in the mortuary.
Confusion as deacon dies while preaching against ritual killings in Ogun
Published: April 5, 2022 By: Peter Moses – Daily Trust, Nigeria
There was a commotion at the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Onikoko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, when a Deacon, Francis Ogunnusi, reportedly slumped and died…
Our correspondent gathered that the incident occurred on Sunday when Ogunnusi was preaching against the ‘get-rich-quick’ syndrome.
There have been worrying cases of ritual killings in Ogun State and other parts of the country. No less than three cases of killings for money rituals were recorded in different parts of the state last month.
A viral video sighted by our correspondent showed the deacon alongside an interpreter, warning against the rising cases of money rituals.
Ogunnusi was also said to be the Baale of Onikoko, a community near the Panseke area in Abeokuta metropolis.
The church was thrown into confusion when the deacon suddenly slumped with a microphone in his hand.
Delivering his sermon in Yoruba, Ogunnusi said, “The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood; when death comes, it will belong to another person.”
However, when the interpreter was still trying to present the words in the English language, the man slumped and threw the church into a commotion.
He was reportedly rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
A congregant said, “The man was not the pastor of that church, he was just an elder. He was the Baale of Onikoko. But he was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday.
“He was talking about death and people who make money by killing other people. All of a sudden, he collapsed. He was rushed to the FMC, but he died. We don’t know what happened. I was very scared. Everything was disrupted. We just shared the grace and went home.”
The source could not confirm whether the deceased was battling any health challenges.
It was gathered that the lifeless body of Ogunnusi had been deposited in the mortuary.
Ogun: ECWA ‘Pastor’ slumps, dies on pulpit while preaching against ‘Money Rituals’
Published: April 6, 2022 By: Olufemi Adediran, Abeokuta – New Telegraph, Nigeria
A Deacon at the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Onikoko area of Abeokuta, Ogun State, has slumped and died while preaching in the church on Sunday.
The Deacon, identified as Chief Francis Oluwole Ogunnusi, was the Baale of Onikoko community, near Panseke area of Abeokuta.
It was gathered that, Ogunnusi was in the pulpit on Sunday preaching against the ‘get-rich-quick’ syndrome that has become rampant, especially among Nigerian youths when he suddenly slumped.
In a video sighted by our correspondent, the Deacon warned those killing people and drinking human blood to get rich, saying when they die, the money would be taken by another person. In the video that had since gone viral on Social Media, the community leader who was preaching in Yoruba said,
“The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood; when death comes, it will belong to another person.” However, when the interpreter was still trying to present the words in English language, the man suddenly fell heavily with the microphone in his hand.
This led to commotion in the church hall as people ran to carry him to the hospital. A member of the church, who did not want to be mentioned, said the man was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
“The man was not the pastor of that church, he was just an elder. He was the Baale of Onikoko. But he was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday. “He was talking about death and people who make money by killing other people. All of a sudden, he collapsed. He was rushed to the FMC, but he died. We don’t know what happened. I was very scared.
Everything was disrupted. We just shared the grace and went home,” the worshipper said. The source said he would not know whether or not the man had any health challenge before his sudden death on Sunday, adding that the deceased preacher may be between age 60 and 70 years.
It was gathered that the church at Onikoko is the headquarters of ECWA in the state. The lifeless body of Chief Ogunnusi has been deposited in the mortuary, it was gathered.
Ogun Church Scatters As Preacher Dies During Sermon Against Ritualists
Published: April 6, 2022 By: Daud Olatunji – Punch, Nigeria
A deacon at the Evangelical Church Winning All, Onikoko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Francis Ogunnusi, has died while preaching in the church on Sunday.
The late deacon was the Baale of Onikoko community, near the Panseke area of Abeokuta.
Our correspondent gathered that Ogunnusi was on the pulpit on Sunday preaching against the get-rich-quick syndrome that had become the order of the day in different parts of the country.
Our correspondent saw a video where the deceased was heard warning those killing others to get rich, saying when they died, the money would be taken by other people.
Ogunnusi, while preaching in Yoruba, said, “The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood, when death comes, it will belong to another person.”
However, as his interpreter was about presenting the words in English language, Ogunnusi fell with the microphone in his hand.
This led to commotion in the church hall, as people rushed him to a hospital.
A member of the church, who did not want to be identified, said the victim was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
The source said, “The man was not the pastor of that church; he was just an elder. He was the Baale of Onikoko. He was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday.
“He was talking about death and people who made money by killing other people. All of a sudden, he collapsed. He was rushed to the FMC, where he died. We don’t know what happened. I was very scared. Everything was disrupted. We just said the grace and went home.”
The source could not tell if Ogunnusi had any health challenge before the incident, adding that the deceased was between 60 and 70 years old.
It was gathered that the church at Onikoko is the headquarters of ECWA in Ogun State.
The corpse was said to have been deposited in a mortuary.
Nigeria is in shock. Professor Wole Soyinka, the famous Nigerian playwright, novelist, poet, and essayist in the English language is in shock too. This is not a small thing. Wole Soyinka was born into a Yoruba family in Abeokuta, nowadays the state capital of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria. The now 87-year old Wole Soyinka was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize for Literature, the first sub-Saharan African to be honored in that category.
Read below what this famous Nigerian has to tell, how he feels about his government, the state of the nation, in particular the widespread and at random killing for ritual purposes: ‘money rituals’.
I have nothing to add (FVDK).
Wole Soyinka: State of the Nation: I have been under shock over kidnappings, ritual killings
Professor Wole Soyinka, Nigerian novelist, poet and in 1986 winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature
Published: March 25, 2022 By: The Citizen, Nigeria
Nigerian playwright, Professor Wole Soyinka said that he has been under a state of shock for the kidnapping of Nigerian students and also described the state of the country as an unconcerned attitude of people and deliberation of the government.
Soyinka said this at a lecture, titled; ‘The Politics of Black Intellection and Creativity, at the University of Pennsylvania, United States on Tuesday.
The poet was asked some questions about the rate of banditry, kidnappings of Nigerian Students, and the current situation in Nigeria by Prof. Wale Adebamwi of the Department of African Studies, University of Pennsylvania.
Also speaking, Prof. Adebamwi said the people and the government have not given enough on the current challenges and he blamed both for the quagmire.
Soyinka said, “I have been under a state of shock for a couple of decades. So it was time I took my revenge and hopefully shock our people just for exchange.”
Soyinka also criticized the protests in Ile Ife about the appointment of the newly Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Prof. Adebayo Bamire who is not an indigene of the town.
In his words, he urged the government to deal with the people behind the protest at OAU and also stated that he never thought of what is happening in Nigeria.
“Things have been happening I never thought I would witness. Take for instance the kidnapping of those children under the guise of religion. More than 300 school pupils were kidnapped from a school, where we put them there to take their examination, going about our business, raise their school fees and they disappeared completely.
“People saw them going. They saw them being kidnapped. The lackadaisical response of the government at the time was a shocker. But it wasn’t just Boko Haram alone. It isn’t just ISWAP (Islamic State in West Africa Province, a splinter of Boko Haram – webmaster FVDK). It is what has been happening just among the generality of people – killing for ritual purposes.
He said, “you wake up, somebody has disappeared, the body is found, the vital organs removed. People kidnapping for ransom every day. Pick up the papers. This has been going on for decades. So, It’s been going on for a very long time. And we are pretending that this is not happening.” (italics mine – webmaster FVDK)
”I stated one time that anytime anybody is kidnapped in any state, let us shut down that state immediately until that person is recovered. It has reached that point that abnormal measures are imperative. It is no longer a choice. And yet the government continues to roll on.
He also asked that “what exactly is ideology all about? It is about humans. The human is at the basis of all ideologies. So this has been going on for a long time. It is overwhelmingly making one feel impotent useless, staining what one thinks one has been able to achieve in terms of contribution to humanity
“We have now to tackle that painful question: What is human? Somebody capable of taking another being, slaughtering that person because you want to make money, whatever the circumstances are. Is that human? (italics mine – webmaster FVDK)
“Let’s consider those who brutalize children, those who take children and sell them into slavery, which is what Boko Haram, ISWAP, and the others have been doing. Are these human? Isn’t it about time we taught all those souls about the human race?
“We better start investigating thoroughly that question: Just what is human? Once upon a time of course people tried to define it along with race, color, religion, gender, etc. No. Now we must really get down to basics and then when we have a sort of lowest common denominator of what constitutes humanity, we must be brave enough to know how to deal with those I have so identified If they are in a position of power,” Soyinka said.
Recently, I posted on this site a large number of ritual murder cases in Nigeria. For this reason I wished to draw the readers’s attention to other African countries where similar crimes are being committed. However, these days Nigeria is making headlines which one cannot ignore. The number of ritual murders in Africa’s most populated country can no longer be counted – if that ever was the case. In my research and reporting on ‘money rituals’ in Nigeria – as ritualistic killings are commonly called in this West African country – I already experienced that I could hardly cope with the fast rising number of reported ritualistic murders committed by Yahoo boys, Yahoo Plus boys and whatever the names are that are given to these criminals who have no respect for a human life.
The below article by Hakim Jamiu is a cry to end these gruesome practices. She offers a grim insight in the recent spate in ritual murder cases in Nigeria, a devastating picture, and sketches a possible explanation for these practices which are based on superstition and fed by greed. I recognize a number of cases she mentions, some are notorious cases, whereas I am always unpleasantly surprised to learn about more ritual murder cases hitherto unknown. She does not have to dig deep to unveil ritual murder cases in nine states: Akwa Ibom, Ekiti, Kwara, Lagos, Plateau, Rivers, Ogun, Ondo, Osun. I can without much effort add nine more states. Also see my previous posts on Nigeria (click on the category African countries in the top bar and select Nigeria in the drop down menu thus appearing).
I have repeatedly mentioned on this site that Nigeria ranks Number One in ritual murder cases in Africa. The following article confirms this sad conclusion. (FVDK)
Nigeria: a harvest of ritual deaths
Published: March 17, 2022 By: Hakim Jamiu – The Cable, Nigeria
Nigeria is fast gaining notoriety as a country of ritualists with stories of ritual killings daily reported in the traditional and social media. The latest of this cannibalistic atrocity is the gruesome murder of 22-year-old Oluwabamise Ayankole who was abducted after boarding a Lagos state government-owned Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) bus and was later murdered and had parts of her body removed which confirmed the suspicion that she may have been killed for ritual purposes. Bamise, who was on her way home from work, was thereafter tossed out of the BRT Bus at Ebute Ero. Bamise, according to eyewitnesses, was still alive after she was tossed out of the vehicle at the Ebute Ero bridge but she gave up the ghost because she did not get help on time. Social media was awash with her last chat and video expressing fears for her safety inside the desolate BRT bus in which she and another lady and three men were the only occupants. As if she knew, her instinct warned her of the danger ahead but she was helpless. Murder in a BRT bus which is expected to be one of the safest means of transportation owned by the government of Lagos state is a sacrilege.
Bamise’s gruesome murder is only an addition to the harvest of deaths by ritualists in the last few weeks across Nigeria. While many Nigerians are yet to grapple with the shock of the gruesome beheading of Sofiat Kehinde, a 17-year-old girl in Abeokuta by four ritualists between ages 18 and 20, the murder of Bamise sent shock waves to all as anybody’s child, relative or friend could be the next victim. Late last year in Ado Ekiti, a seven-year-old girl, Demilade was sent on an errand by her mother four houses away but the little girl disappeared immediately and all efforts to find her proved abortive until her corpse was found in a pastor’s house the following day! Timothy Adegoke checked into a hotel in Ile-Ife to write his postgraduate examinations but he never came out alive as he was murdered overnight and buried some metres away from the hotel. The proprietor of the hotel is currently standing trial!
In Ogun state, a woman connived with her husband to kill her visiting friend and dismembered her. The remains of the victim were later found in a bucket in the couple’s room. A ritual killer, Timothy Odeniyi who was arrested by Amotekun Corps in Ondo state confessed that he used to harvest human parts at burial grounds which he sells to his clients. In Jos, 20-year-old Moses Oko killed Jennifer, a student of the University of Jos and removed some of her body parts. In Ikorodu, Lagos state, a suspected internet fraudster (Yahoo+), 32-year-old Afeez Olalore killed his younger brother for ritual purposes. In Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, Uduak Akpan, a serial ritual killer killed 20-year-old Iniobong Umoren, a job seeker and buried her in a shallow grave. In Ilorin, Kwara state, a next-door neighbour allegedly murdered a groom-to-be for ritual purposes.
In 2019, Nigerians were alarmed about the arrest of one of Nigeria’s notorious ritual killers called Gracious David West in Port Harcourt who confessed to having killed at least 15 women for ritual purposes. In November 2019, one-year-old boy Eniola Kolawole was declared missing at Sotitobire Miracle Centre, Akure, Ondo state and has not been found till today. Irate youths set the church ablaze but the pastor who had been on trial has since been discharged and acquitted. One Shakirat was murdered in Iwo, Osun state and her body was dumped behind her mother’s shop with some of her parts missing!
It is an understatement to say that Satan has taken over our affairs completely as cases of ritual killings keep rising by the day! The question now is, are rituals for money-making real? Perhaps this is why the Nigerian-American media scholar, newspaper columnist and activist, Farooq Kperogi while bemoaning the unending spate of ritual murders in Nigeria argued, “the only solution lies in the liberation of Nigerians from stupid, backward, unproductive and murderous superstitions. The witch doctors who tell people to bring the body parts of murdered people to make them rich are often one of the most wretched people you can find on earth. If money rituals were real, they would be wealthy and won’t let anybody in on the secret”. Not many people agree with the view of Kperogi because if money-making rituals do not exist, why is ritual killing on the increase across the country? There have been many unverifiable variants and anecdotes concerning how money rituals work especially among yahoo boys which is called Yahoo plus. There is a type whereby ebora (a spirit) will bring the money to the yahoo boy after necessary sacrifices with human parts have been done. There is another type that will make the victim, usually, a foreigner obey whatever the yahoo boy says including sending millions of dollars on request. There is yet another type that involves using the pant of a woman. The pant, as they say, will fetch the ritualist a lot of money. It is not only yahoo boys that are into the ritual killing but they may have influenced others who are not into internet fraudsters to kill for rituals because of the belief that it is working for them. Some yahoo boys even go to the extent of eating human faeces, having spiritual baths in broad daylight at a public place, appearing only in pants in broad daylight to withdraw money from ATMs and so many bizarre and silly things!
The question remains, how much is ritual killing giving those involved in it that is worth the desperation of taking the life of a fellow human being? Definitely, it cannot give billions because many of the Yahoo plus boys even get broke after about three to six months while some go mad! So what’s the need for ritual killing? Apart from Yahoo boys, there are reports of a well-organised clientele of ritual killers which means that not all who are involved in ritual killing directly use the human parts but they are agents of some powerful personalities who buy the parts from them. There are reports that human parts markets exist in some areas of Lagos. It is also ridiculous that human life has been so reduced to nothingness that a human head is sold for as low as N20,000. Research also shows that many people who seek power and wealth like politicians and businessmen also use human parts for charms for good fortune and for fortification against real and perceived enemies! I wish to remind this group of politicians and businessmen that the greatest fortification and blessings come from God who is the custodian of power and fortune.
The underlying factor responsible for the present malaise is desperation on the part of our young ones who are eager to get rich quick. There is unprecedented moral bankruptcy and total collapse of family values of hard work, honesty and integrity. We should go beyond lamentations and take drastic actions. We must dig into the root cause of this barbaric act and approach it from there. What we are seeing are symptoms rather than cause. Our society has been sold to the dogs and many souls sold to the devil, the result is what is confronting us. A 17-year-old wanting to ride the latest automobile sold for millions of naira, not through any work but by any means. Society celebrating any rich person not minding the source of his or her wealth is responsible for the present madness. Images of boys displaying wealth on social media and messages that all that matter is money and the message is sinking fast and spreading like wildfire!
In one of the videos that circulated on the social media, a boy was asked if he could use her mother for rituals, he didn’t hesitate before saying yes as long as he will be rich! That’s what our society has turned to! We are breeding monsters and heartless beings who would not mind going to any length just to be rich! A child who would not blink an eyelid before killing his own mother for rituals would kill anybody without thinking about it! It is such a pity! It is common these days to find human head in a cellophane bag carried by a teenager sitting next to you in a bus! Human parts have become very common like animal parts ! It is such a shame that we have become a cannibalistic society! It is now normal to suspect the man or woman sitting next to you in a public place as a ritualist! It is that bad!
Beyond lamentations that have not helped, we must all resolve to end this monster that is threatening to consume all of us. Nobody is immune from ritual death. Bamise and other victims of ritual killings must not die in vain. Now that the driver of the BRT bus and his cohorts have been apprehended, their trial must be swift and transparent. Cameras must be installed in all BRT buses that would be monitored at a base station and on no account must this be switched off by any BRT driver.
The national and state houses of assembly should begin to work on laws to empower special courts to try ritual murder cases with stiffer penalties. Everybody must be vigilant and we must de-emphasise material wealth in our society while the source of wealth of emergency millionaires and new kids on the block must be questioned and such characters ostracized by the rest of the society as it was the practice on the days of yore when there was sanity.
We must say no to ritual killings! We are neither animals nor vampires! Even animals don’t kill themselves senselessly as we are witnessing presently!
