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Zimbabwe: High Court to deliver ruling in the Tapiwa Makore ritual murder case on June 29

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Much has already been said and written about the notorious Tapiwa Makore ritual murder case which shocked Zimbabwe in 2020 and 2021. I have extensively reported on the brutal ritual murder of the 7-year old boy, Tapiwa Makore. See for a succinct overview my postings dated October 26, 2020 and April 25, 2021.

I ceased reporting on this murder case on October 26, 2021 but promised to continue to follow this case and to come back on this place with more news once it will have become available.

In October 2022 the two accused – Tafadzwa Shamba and the late boy’s uncle and namesake Tapiwa Makore Senior – were acquitted in a surprising turn of events. The State withdrew the charges against the two for lack of incriminating evidence.

On June 29, the High Court of Zimbabwe is set to deliver judgement on Tapiwa Makore’s alleged ritual killers. Thereafter the case wil be closed. Hence, read the following report.

For the reader who is less familiar with this notorious ritual murder case I may refer to my two postings mentioned above and to the link included in the article which follows below and which can be accessed separately here as well as after the first article below.

Warning: some readers may be upset because of the graphic description of the Tapiwa Makore ritual murder and following events (webmaster FVDK).

The slain Tapiwa Makore

High Court To Deliver Ruling On Tapiwa Makore’s Alleged Killers On 29 June

Published: June 26, 2023
By: Pindula News, Zimbabwe

The High Court is set to deliver judgement on Tapiwa Makore’s suspected killers on Thursday, reported ZBC News.

Justice Munamato Mutevedzi, who presided over the trial, is expected to hand down the long-awaited judgment, bringing the matter to finality.

The prime suspect in the matter, Tafadzwa Shamba and his accomplice, the late boy’s uncle and namesake, Tapiwa Makore Senior, allegedly killed the boy in 2020 for ritual purposes.

They allegedly killed and mutilated the then seven-year-old boy to boost Tapiwa Snr’s cabbage business.

Tapiwa was a Grade One learner at Nyamutumbu Primary School and his teacher, Keresia Makamure, described him as an intelligent, obedient child whose future was bright.

The boy was sent by his parents to look after the garden on the morning of 17 September 2020.

Later that day, Tapiwa’s parents went to the garden to do some watering and found that their son was missing.

His parents and some villagers started searching for him and the search was conducted until midnight but they could not find him.

On the following day, 18 September, in the morning, a neighbour reportedly woke up and discovered his dog and its puppies feasting on human body parts in his yard.

He then informed Tapiwa’s parents and a report was made to the police. The body’s head was missing.

Several arrests people were arrested in connection with the murder, including Thanks Makore, Tapiwa’s uncle amid allegations that he was given the boy’s head and arms.

Thanks was said to be a twin brother of Tapiwa Makore Snr, and a cousin of Munyaradzi Makore, Tapiwa Makore Jnr’s father.

On 13 October 2022, Justice Mutevedzi formally acquitted Thanks Makore and another suspect Moud Hunidzarira of the murder of Tapiwa Makore Jnr at the close of the prosecution case.

Hunidzarira of Budiriro, Harare, was arrested during the weekend of 31 October and 01 November 2020 following a tip-off by the public.

It was alleged that she was in Murewa when the murder occurred and a few days later was seen by some neighbours in Harare, cleaning an item that had blood.

However, the State withdrew the charges against the two for lack of incriminating evidence.

As the charges were withdrawn after plea, the two can never be retried using any of the evidence led during their trial.

Source: High Court To Deliver Ruling On Tapiwa Makore’s Alleged Killers On 29 June

An important background document on the Tapiwa Makore ritual murder case is the following:

Tapiwa Makore was a 7-year-old boy from Makore Village under Chief Mangwende in Murewa District, Mashonaland East Province who was brutally murdered on 17 September 2020 in a suspected ritual killing. He was the son of Linda Munyori and Munyaradzi Makore. 

He was a Grade One learner at Nyamutumbu Primary School and his teacher was Keresia Makamure who described him as an intelligent, obedient child whose future was bright.[1]

Contents

Background

Tapiwa Makore Junior was sent by his parents to look after the garden on the morning of 17 September 2020.[2]

Later that day, Tapiwa’s parents went to the garden to do some watering and found that their son was missing.

His parents and some villagers started searching for him and the search was conducted until midnight but they could not find him.

On the following day, 18 September, in the morning, a neighbour reportedly woke up and discovered his dog and its puppies feasting on human body parts in his yard.

He then informed Tapiwa’s parents and a report was made to the police. The body’s head was missing.

Arrests

Herdboy, Tafadzwa Shamba

On 24 September 2020, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) arrested Tafadzwa Shamba (40), on kidnap and murder charges in connection with Tapiwa’s disappearance and murder.[3]

Shamba, a herdboy, was alleged to have connived with two other people to kill Tapiwa, harvest his body parts, and sold them for US$1 500. ZRP spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said:

It is alleged that Tafadzwa Shamba, a herd boy in the same village as the victim, worked with the other suspects to waylay the victim in a garden. They took him to a mountain where they kept him for the whole day. They then killed him at night and one of the other suspects, who is from Juru Growth Point, took away the head leaving the herd boy with the other body parts after promising to give him US$1 500 on coming back.

Police said they recovered the blood-stained clothes Shamba wore on the day he allegedly committed the crime.

Uncle, Tapiwa Makore

Tapiwa’s uncle and namesake, Tapiwa Makore was arrested by the police on 27 September 2020 in connection with the boy’s murder.[4]

Tapiwa Senior was alleged to have worked with Shamba and a witch doctor to murder Tapiwa Junior and harvest his body parts.

Moud Hunidzarira

Moud Hunidzarira of Budiriro, Harare, was arrested during the weekend of 31 October and 01 November 2020 following a tip-off by the public.[5]

It was alleged that Hunidzarira was in Murewa when the murder occurred and a few days later was seen by some neighbours in Harare, cleaning an item that had blood.

She initially appeared before a Murewa magistrate on 02 November 2022 and was remanded in custody.

Two Murewa Villagers

Two Murewa villagers only identified as Mai Mungandire and Mai Katsande were arrested after information gathered revealed they bought human flesh from Shamba.[6]

Another report identified the two women as Joina Tangirire, who sold beer at her homestead, and a relative, Enia Tangirire.

Beulah Makore, the family spokesperson was reported as saying the two women were picked up by the police on 01 November and they both admitted that they bought meat from the alleged killer but had no idea that it was human flesh.

The two women reportedly cooked the meat and ate and were taken to Murewa police station for further questioning and were also ordered to carry the pots that they used to cook the meat.

11-year-old Boy

An 11-year-old boy from Nyamutumbu Village was allegedly paid US$5 to lure Tapiwa from the garden to his uncle’s homestead.[7]

Tapiwa Makore (Snr) allegedly gave the boy $5 plus a T-shirt for his role and warned him against disclosing the matter to other villagers.

The boy is said to have handed over the money to his mother who kept the secret.

The mother is said to have used the money to buy chicken.

He was expected to testify as a witness in the murder trial.

Uncle, Thanks Makore

Thanks Makore (56) was arrested on 10 November 2020 in connection with the ritual murder of his nephew, Tapiwa, amid allegations that he was given the boy’s head and arms.[8]

Thanks was said to be a twin brother of Tapiwa Makore Snr, and a cousin of Munyaradzi Makore, Tapiwa Makore Jnr’s father.

Tafadzwa Shamba’s Confession

On 29 September 2020, Shamba reportedly told detectives he killed the boy by cutting off the head with a knife in the dead of the night, while the boy’s uncle, Tapiwa Senior was holding a torch.[9]

He said after the murder, he carried a black plastic bag containing the head and the dismembered body while his employer, Tapiwa Makore Senior, carried another bag containing the arms and legs.

Shamba also revealed that he kidnapped the boy, took him to his employer’s house, fed him and then drugged him with kachasu and locked him up in a room for hours.

He said around midnight, he carried the boy to a mountain in the village where they killed him.

Shamba said after killing the boy, they went down the mountain and along the way, he dumped the torso near Summer Murwira’s homestead.

He said they took the head to Makore’s homestead where they put it in one of the rooms.

The following day, Shamba said he dumped the arms and legs at a nearby grave.

Tafadzwa Shamba’s Retraction

During his court appearance, Shamba disowned the confession he had allegedly made to the police soon after his arrest.[10]

He claimed that he made indications under duress on how he killed Tapiwa, adding the police had crafted the narration to suit what they wanted.

But High Court Judge Justice Munamato Mutevedzi on 10 October 2022 ruled it was clear that Shamba was not forced into giving his account of events. Ruled the judge:

He (Shamba) gave indications under the belief that the second accused wanted him to go to prison so that he could enjoy the benefits of the cabbage deals they intended to benefit from after killing the minor for rituals.

It is the court’s view that his story is preposterous, he wanted to show the court that his indications were rehearsed, but positive results came out from the confessions as it led to the recovery of the body parts. If it was rehearsed the police would not have recovered the body parts.

His explanation that he wanted to exonerate himself by incriminating the second accused does not make sense.

Thinking he was exonerating himself by confessing is stupidity in the highest order, the daftness he tried to show in court was not believable.

Tapiwa’s Burial

Tapiwa was buried on 27 March 2021, about six months after his gruesome murder. He was buried without his head after the police failed to locate it.[11]

His funeral was attended by scores of people who included politicians from ZANU PF, among them Mashonaland East Minister Apollonia Munzverengwi, Housing Minister Daniel Garwe, Chief Mangwende and Murewa senator and ZANU PF Politburo member, David Parirenyatwa.

His father, Munyaradzi, was the MDC Alliance branch chairperson in Murewa North.

Thanks Makore, Moud Hunidzarira Acquittal

On 13 October 2022, High Court judge Justice Munamato Mutevedzi formally acquitted Moud Hunidzarira and Thanks Makore of the murder of Tapiwa Makore Jnr at the close of the prosecution case.[12]

The State withdrew the charges against the two for lack of incriminating evidence.

As the charges were withdrawn after plea, the two can never be retried using any of the evidence led during their trial.

However, the prime suspects, who allegedly did the actual killing, Tafadzwa Shamba and Tapiwa Makore Snr, were placed on their defence after the court found there was overwhelming evidence linking them with the murder.

Further Reading

  1. ↑ , Kudzai Chingwe, Boy with United Methodist ties dies in ritual killing, Published 15 October 2020, Retrieved 28 November 2022
  2. ↑ , Victor Maphosa, JUST IN: Boy (7) murdered, body parts missing, Published 21 September 2020, Retrieved 28 November 2022
  3. ↑ , Herald Reporter, Herdboy arrested over Murehwa murder, Published 25 September 2020, Retrieved 28 November 2022
  4. ↑ , Victor Maphosa, JUST IN: Murewa murder: deceased’s uncle picked, Published 28 September 2020, Retrieved 28 November 2022
  5. ↑ , Crime Reporter, Murehwa murder: Woman in court, Published 03 November 2020, Retrieved 28 November 2022
  6. ↑ , Robert Tapfumaneyi, Murewa Villagers Arrested After Buying, Eating Flesh Of Murdered Boy, Published 03 November 2020, Retrieved 28 November 2022
  7. ↑ , Crime Reporter, Boy (11) implicated in Murehwa murder, Published 12 November 2020, Retrieved 28 November 2022
  8. ↑ Another Makore brother arrested over boy’s murder, Crime Reporter, Published: 13 November 2020, Retrieved: 13 December 2022
  9. ↑ , Daniel Nemukuyu, Murehwa boy’s killer describes grisly murder, Published 30 September 2020, Retrieved 28 November 2022
  10. ↑ Tapiwa Makore murder trial: Judge trashes prime suspects’ defence, Staff Reporter, Published: 11 October 2022, Retrieved: 13 December 2022
  11. ↑ , Robert Tapfumaneyi, Tapiwa Makore’s Burial Unites Zanu PF, MDC Alliance Politicians, Published 28 March 2021, Retrieved 28 November 2022
  12. ↑ Makore murder: 2 acquitted, 2 face judgment, Fidelis Munyoro, Published: 14 October 2022, Retrieved: 13 December 2022
Administrative Divisions of Zimbabwe

Namibia: Kavango’s Winter Ritual Murders

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There’s not much reporting on ritual murders in Namibia, yet this ugly phenomenon also exists in this southern African country. Petrus Muronga and Puyeipawa Nakashole are to be commended for their investigative journalism leading to this revealing article about a wave of ritual murders in the upper north-eastern part of the country, in Kavango East. A striking characteristic of the more than 20 ritual murders is that they’re all committed during the winter.

In some murder cases the police have arrested some suspects but the frightened villagers want more action of the government. In the absence of effective and satisfying government action jungle justice threatens. Enough is enough. Who are the culprits? Why is government so slow in responding to this wave of ritual murders?

Warning: the following article contains graphic description of ritual murders,. Readers may be upset reading the shocking details (webmaster FVDK).

Regions of Namibia. Kavango East is situated in the north-eastern part off the country.

Winter time – ritual killing time in Kavango, Namibia

… missing body parts include lips, skin, fingers, toes, eyeballs, internal organs and private parts

RITUAL KILLING … Riaan Mukuve’s mother, Regina Mashodhi Mukuve, says she believes her son was mur- dered for ritual pur-poses as his body was found frozen with missing body parts. About 21 people have gone missing in north- eastern Namibia. Photo: James Jamu

Published: June 11, 2023
By: Petrus Muronga and Puyeipawa Nakashole

n Namibia, as winter dawns, the north-eastern part of the country is about to be shaken by shocking news.

Again.

One more body is found mutilated, much to the horror and heartbreak of the people of the Rudhiva and Shadikongoro villages in the Mukwe constituency.

The villages are situated on the south-eastern banks of the Okavango River in Kavango East.

In this part of the country, people draw their breath beneath the dark clouds of what is believed to be ritual killings. And they all seem to take place in winter.

The unsolved deaths all have one thing in common: missing body parts like lips, skin, fingers, toes, eyeballs, internal organs and private parts.

SHATTERED DREAMS

In 2021, on a trip meant to accompany his friends to the memorial service of a loved one, young Riaan Mukuve (22) did not know this would be his last.

Mukuve was found dead at Rudhiva village with his body mutilated and floating in the Okavango River, north of Divundu, in the Mukwe constituency.

As horrific as it is, Mukuve’s story was nothing new to the villagers in the area.

Regina Mukuve says this image of her son is one she will never forget.

“His lips were cut off, he had no nose, no eyeballs, no organs, and his private parts were missing,” she says.

She describes her son as an ambitious individual who dreamed of completing his studies at the University of Namibia at Rundu and becoming a teacher, like her.

The young Mukuve was a second-year student at the Rundu campus and the family’s only son.

“Something of this kind has never happened before in my family, and nobody understands the pain I am going through. Therefore I want justice to be served for my son.

“His body was frozen, and I believe that he was refrigerated before they disposed of his body in the river,” Regina says.

According to her, eight people were believed to have been the last to be in contact with Mukuve.

They were fined N$20 000 each by the Hambukushu Traditional Authority for their alleged involvement in the young man’s disappearance and death.

However, the police say they are still investigating his case.

“Until today, I have not received anything from them, and they all claim not to have a hand in his disappearance. Until today there is no closure on my son’s death,” Regina says.

MOURNING … Felix Thikundeko’s father, Basilius Thikundeko, holding his son’s trousers. He says his son loved playing soccer and cultural dance.

21 MISSING IN SIX YEARS

A year later, also in June, at the same village, another mutilated body is discovered.

This time that of Felix Thikundenko (17).

Over the past six years, close to 21 people have disappeared at Mukwe.
Some are discovered after a few days, with their bodies dismembered.
Only a few cases have been reported on by the media due to the relationship the local police allegedly has with some media outlets, as well as the constraints of bureaucracy within the police.

Investigations into some of these cases take ages to complete, leading to the family members of the dead losing hope.

A FATHER’S AGONY

Thikundenko’s mutilated body was discovered in a swamp adjacent to the Okavango River near Rudhiva.

The Diyana Combined School pupil had everyone frantic with his mysterious disappearance.

His uncle, Basilius Mbamba, discovered his body in the same area where Mukuve’s body was discovered a year ago.

Mbamba, who was also part of the search team, said the search for Thikudenko started when he did not return home.

He was allegedly last seen at a bar opposite the family’s house.

The area where his body was found was searched a day before he was discovered.

“I miss him. Whenever I see other boys in the village playing soccer, I yearn to see him, but he is gone,” says Thikudenko’s father, Basilius Thikundenko.

He says his son loved sport.

“He used to play soccer, and he was good with our cultural dance group, he even used to do athletics. My son was really talented,” Basilius says.

He was robbed of his closest son, who always used to help him with house chores, he says.

The natural beauty of Kavango East…. but villagers on the south-eastern banks of the Okavango River in Kavango East mourn the loss of their slain dear ones and live in constant fear.

‘NO FREEDOM’

Residents of Rudhiva and Shadikongoro say they live in constant fear.
They claim to have lost their freedom, fearing one of them will become the next body to be found floating in the Okavango River, butchered.
So far, two people have been arrested and charged with Thikudenko’s death, and a third suspect was recently identified.

They are Steven Dengwe (22), Kandere Kavanga (36) and Thidjukwe Muduva (32).

Dengwe and Kavanga have been charged with murder and obstructing the course of justice for allegedly dumping Thikudenko’s body in the river.
They remained in custody after their first court appearance in the Mukwe Periodic Court in July last year, and their case was postponed to 5 October this year for further police investigations.

Muduva made his first court appearance on 5 October last year and was kept in police custody pending laboratory test results.

However, in the accused latest court appearance on 8 December 2022, they were granted bail of N$6 000 each.

WITHOUT A TRACE

Cecilia Kaveto (40) says her mother left their homestead on 30 June 2022 and never returned.

Alfonsine Kamwanga (76) went missing when she went to the river.

Kaveto, a resident of Korokoko village in the Ndonga Linena constituency, says her mother sometimes leaves the house to visit her brother or to collect mangetti fruit or thatched grass.

She says the day Kamwanga left the house was the last day she saw her.

“When we traced her footprints, it looks like she went until the field towards the road leading to the river, and up to the riverbank,” Kaveto says.

At first, she says they thought her mother had fallen into the stream, but they noticed she had proceeded towards the main river, where her prints disappeared.

“We alerted the police on the same day. They only came three days later with a boat and searched the area, but they did not find anything.

“We have been asking ourselves a lot of questions. If she had been killed or snatched by a crocodile, we would have found a piece of evidence. I still don’t know what happened to my mother,” Kaveto says.

SYNDICATE

Mukwe constituency councillor Damian Maghambayi says although there is no evidence that people are being murdered in ritual killings, people are losing lives in his constituency.

He says the issue has been ongoing, especially in the vicinity of Kapako, Rudhiva and Shadikongoro. Maghambayi says more than 21 people have gone missing in mysterious circumstances.

“It is now so serious that community members wanted to take the law into their own hands,” he says.

Maghambayi says there have been several demonstrations by community members petitioning the government on the killings.

Although there are about three police stations and substations in his constituency, the councillor suggests a robust police presence in the area and the need to open up a substation at Shadikongoro.

Affected families and community members are pointing fingers at the police in the area for not doing enough to bring the culprits to book.

Some claim that police officers in the area have been bribed and that they are part of a syndicate.

Thitjo Dinyando, a community activist in the area, believes the killings are spearheaded by business owners, especially shebeen owners, who recruit people to harvest organs to boost their business.

Dinyando also pointed fingers at police officers at Rundu and those working at Mukwe.

No significant investigations are carried out to bring the culprits to book, he says. The police in the region are not keen to talk about the issue.

They say they do not believe the killings are ritual-related.

“Ritual killings at Mukwe are not a joke, and I don’t want to comment on that, because I don’t want people to panic.

“ . . . unless one has to come to us with clear information to give us evidence to follow up and link it to ritual killings,” says Kavango East crime onvestigations coordinator deputy commissioner Bonifasius Kanyetu.

*This article was produced by The Namibian’s investigative unit. Email us news tips from your secure email: investigations@namibian.com.na

Source: Kavango’s Winter Murders

South Africa: Limpopo courts to hear several cases including the 2006 muti murder of Ronnie Makgatho 

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‘Justice delayed is justice denied’ but: the High Court in Polokwane will continue the trial of four businessmen and a woman who are suspected of killing Ronnie Makgatho for ritual purposes in 2006.

An amazing aspect of this murder case is that there is no dead body. The body of the victim, Ronnie Makgatho, was never found. Therefor it is to be seen if this trial wil end in a guilty verdict. How can you find someone guilty of murder when there’s no dead body?

Two of the five accused share the family name of the victim, Ronnie Makgatho. It is not uncommon that relatives are involved in ritualistic murders.

The first article presented below is silent on the background of the murder and also lacks many details. However, it seems obvious that this is a case of ‘muti’ murder, a ritualistic murder, based on superstition and motivated by greed.

The second article, published by Polokwane Weekly and shared on Facebook, contains more information. Warning: Some readers may find this story disturbing because of its explicit graphic content (webmaster FVDK).

Limpopo courts to hear several cases this week

High Court in Polokwane, Limpopo – Image: Twitter@SECTION27news

Published:May 28, 2023
By:  Mahlatse Phaladi – SABC News

Several high-profile criminal cases will be heard in the High Court in Polokwane and other courts in Limpopo, starting from Monday.

(….)

(….)

Ritual killing

Another trial of four businessmen and a woman arrested for allegedly killing Ronnie Makgatho in 2006 will continue in the High Court in Polokwane.

The accused, Marcus Makgatho, Joshua Hlako, Hlako Mohafe, Khumbelo Mabirimisa and co-accused Amanda Makgatho allegedly killed Makgatho for ritual purposes.

Makgatho was reported missing in Soshanguve, north of Pretoria.

The remains of Makgatho were never found.

Source: Limpopo courts to hear several cases this week

More background information pertaining to this case:

EXCLUSIVE | HOW RONNY MAKGATHO WAS MURDERED

WARNING: NOT FOR SENSITIVE READERS

Published: May 12, 2022
By: Polokwane Weekly / Facebook

SESHEGO: A state witness in the murder case of Ronny Makgatho has detailed a chilling confession of the victim was killed.

The witness was testifying at the Seshego Magistrate’s Court during a bail application of the murder accused on Wednesday.

According to the witness, Marcus Makgatho traveled to Soshanguve Extension 4 where the victim was staying.

The witness says that Amanda Makgato alongside their accomplices forced the victim into the car and drove from Soshanguve to Seshego, where he was locked up in a shack.

The state witness said that Hlako and Makgato were both holding Ronnie Makgato’s hands and legs before he was brutally murdered for alleged business related rituals.

The witness has also told the court that the accused number 4 Khumbelo Mabirimisa was also present with an unknown woman.

He also told the court that the accused indicated that it was time to start with the job, before beginning with the murder process.

The witness said that Hlako said the victim should die a slow death when they were cutting him with a knife, so that they can get a lot of his blood. The witness also said that there were a bucket that was used to collect his blood.

The state witness also told the court that Ronnie Makgato’s body parts were cut by the accused.

The head was taken to Hlako’s Tarven, hands were taken to Makgato’s lodge. Other body parts were also taken to Hlako’s farm.

The court also heard that after taking the body parts of the victim to the accused’s businesses, the remaining part was buried at the same house.

The murder accused were all denied bail on Wednesday.

Source: EXCLUSIVE | HOW RONNY MAKGATHO WAS MURDERED

Also read: Muti murder confession sends police on wild goose chase
Published: April 28, 2022
By: Kamogelo Olaitan – Scrolla

Screenshot – excerpt from original article. Read the full article here

and:

‘Muthi’ killing, shallow grave, relative bust

It has emerged that Ronald Makgato, who went missing in 2006, was killed for muthi-related purpose.

Published: April 19, 2022
By: Daily Sun

THE Makgato family was left shocked when a family member and his friend were arrested on Wednesday, 13 April.

They were bust by Seshego cops in Limpopo for the kidnapping and murder of Ronald Makgato, who went missing 16 years ago.

Ronald (27) from Mamehlabe Village, Ga-Matlala disappeared in 2006 while staying in Soshanguve, Tshwane.

A witness tipped off his family and the police in 2020.

It’s believed that one of Ronald’s relatives and his friend allegedly killed the victim for muthi purposes, and they apparently buried his body in a shallow grave.

Ronald’s sister, Granny Makgato-Leboho, said it has been hard for the family not knowing their brother’s whereabouts. “When the police arrested my relative and his friend, we knew we were close to getting the truth about what happened to my brother.” 

She said the witness told them that Ronald was given a drug before he was taken to Zone 4 in Seshego, where he was murdered.

“We were told he was dismembered and his body parts were taken for muthi purposes. It’s so painful that my own relative saw it fit to kill his own for his evil intentions.”

Limpopo police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mamphaswa Seabi confirmed that two suspects, both aged 64, were bust and charged with kidnapping, conspiracy to commit murder and murder.

“They briefly appeared in the Seshego Magistrates Court last Thursday, and their matter was postponed to 28 April for formal bail application while the police investigations continues. The body of Ronald has not yet been recovered,” Seabi said.

Source: ‘Muthi’ killing, shallow grave, relative bust

Abuja, Nigeria: Missing 4 year old found dead with missing body parts

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Warning: the following article contains graphic details and may shock readers
(webmaster FVDK)

Missing 4 Year Old Found Dead With Missing Body Parts

Published: March 9, 2023
By: UniqueGracee – Opera News, Nigeria  

The dead body of a 4 year old boy identified as Eleazar Ishiya, was found in a Manhole in Jabi area, Abuja. It was reported that he was declared missing three days ago at Filing Ball, Jabi Daki Biyu.

According to an eye witness identified as Joel Joseph, Eleazar’s grandmother attempted to jump into the hole when she found out her grandson’s body was inside. Luckily she was held and pushed out of the hole, it was Joseph that jumped into the hole and brought out the boys corpse.

When the little boy was brought out of the hole, his body was already rotten. It was also discovered that he was missing some vital organs, his genitals and tongue were cut off while his eyes were plugged out.

From the state of the young boy’s body, it was evident that it was a ritual killing and the killers had dumped his body in the pit after killing him at night.

Mrs Precious Ishaya who is the boy’s Mother described the little boy as being smart, he was also the only child of his parents. She explained that the day he went missing, he was about to bath but instead he decided to go out to by sweets from their neighbors shop and he went missing.

The Mother explained that it was not the death of her son that hurt her the most, but it was the horrible way he died that hurt her the most. She said that she doesn’t know who did such a thing to her child but she rests the case to God. 

She also said she did not have the courage to look at the body of her son when he was found dead, it was later that she managed to look at his dead body in pictures.

Source: Daily Trust

Content created and supplied by: UniqueGracee (via Opera News )

Source: Missing 4 Year Old Found Dead With Missing Body Parts

Witchcraft killer decapitates five-year-old albino boy and hacks off his legs in Congo (DRC)

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It’s again a sad (and cruel) story. The reader is warned: the following article contains graphic details of a barbaric crime. This time it occurred in an eastern region of the vast Central African country Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Two tiny Central African countries Rwanda and Burundi are nearby. Is there a relationship with these countries where people with albinism are also often targeted by unscrupulous individuals? Who is responsible for this horrific act which left a young boy dead, a crime which was based on superstition and motived by greed? As soon as more will be known I will share it with you. Meanwhile we hope that the authorities are swift in their reaction, effective in their investigations, and without mercy to bring the perpetrator(s) to court to account for their ruthless and disgusting deed.
(webmaster FVDK)

Witchcraft killer decapitates five-year-old albino boy and hacks off his legs in Congo

Albinos in the DRC are sometimes targeted due to the belief that their body parts can be used in magic rituals (file image of a boy with albinism in Kenya)

Published: February 2, 2023
By: Jack Newman – Mail Online, UK

  • Some believe people with albinism have magical powers in sub-Saharan Africa
  • Their body parts are often sold for thousands on the black market 

A five-year-old albino boy has been decapitated and had his legs cut off by a witchcraft killer in the DR Congo.

Occult believers in sub-Saharan Africa believe the body parts of people with albinism carry magical powers and are regularly sold on the black market. 

The young boy’s body was found in eastern DR Congo’s South Kivu province in the Kalehe area of South Kivu – a province that borders Rwanda and Burundi.

Only the arms and torso remained of the boy when he was discovered on Wednesday, and police are hunting for the killer.

Archimedes Karhebwa, assistant administrator of Kalehe territory said: ‘We condemn and deplore this new case of the murder of a 5-year-old albino, who was kidnapped by armed bandits for ulterior motives.’

Juvenal Lushule, who works for an albino association in South Kivu, said that 18 albinos had been killed in similar circumstances in the province since 2009.

He said: ‘This recent case disgusts us and does not surprise us, because we have always been victims of these barbarisms.’ 

Ten albino graves had also been profaned during that period, according to Lushule, and there were 22 kidnapping attempts.

As in several other African countries, albinos in the DRC are sometimes targeted due to the belief that their body parts can be used in magic rituals to bring fame and fortune.

Because of the superstition, their body parts can be sold for thousands of dollars and they are often targeted in ritual killings. 

Some believe that having sex with an albino woman can also cure AIDS. 

Albinism, caused by a lack of melanin, the pigment that colours skin, hair and eyes, is a genetic condition that affects hundreds of thousands of people worldwide, especially in Africa.

Source: Witchcraft killer decapitates five-year-old albino boy and hacks off his legs in Congo

The young boy’s body was found in eastern DR Congo’s South Kivu province in the Kalehe area of South Kivu – a province that borders Rwanda and Burundi

Nigeria: villagers protest ritual killings in Imo State 

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On Wednesday, January 11, the people of Arondizuogu in Imo State, In Nigeria’s delta region, took to the streets to protest over a number of unexplained killings in their communities. The killings were described as ‘strange happenings’ and linked to politics. One does not need much imagination to associate these killings with ritualistic murders.

Imo State is located in the country’s south-east, is the third smallest in area of Nigeria’s 36 states and has a population of about 6 – 7 million people. It is not the first time the people in Imo State are confronted with deadly ritualistic activities in their communities. In 2009, a large group of women from Ndiakunwata and Arondizuogu, Ideato North, a Local Government Area of Imo State, stormed the state capital Owerri to stage a peaceful protest over a wave of ritual killings in their area. See the second article presented below for more details.

The third article below describes another horrible ritual murder which occurred in 2009. The mentioning of Otokoto in the 2009 article refers to the 1996 Otokoto riots which happened in the aftermath of another ritual murder in Imo State in that year (of an 11-year-old schoolboy boy, Anthony Ikechukwu Okoronkwo, though the uprising was also caused by the rampant corruption in the state).
Readers are warned that the described murder cases contain graphic details.

Finally, for shortness sake I refer to my previous postings for more ritual murder cases in Imo State. To access these postings, click on ‘African countries’ in the dropdown menu and select: Nigeria (webmaster FVDK).

Villagers protest ritual killings, burning of vehicles in Imo State

Published: January 11, 2023
By: Chinonso Alozie – Vanguard, Nigeria

Elderly men, women and Youths of Arondizugo, Ideato North Local Government Area of Imo state, on Wednesday continued to protest over the alleged killings and burning of vehicles by suspected hoodlums in their communities.

The youths were seen on a video that went viral on social media, they marched around the Ideato North communities demanding no further delay for government to intervene in their situation.

At the time of filing this report, some of the villagers who could not give reasons for the attacks described some of the killings as “strange happenings” and linked to politics.

The latest was the alleged killing of a young man and a tricycle rider whose names were withheld. It happened Tuesday night at Ndiejezie Izuogu in Ideato’s local government area of Imo State.

They lamented the burning of about three vehicles one of the vehicle’s plate numbers was given as a YAB-225DY Range rover vehicle.

One of the villagers who preferred not to mention his name said: “My brother these killings have been happening for some time. We have cried for help nothing is happening. Even sometime last year, our royal fathers from Arondizugo came out and protested. I saw you were among the journalists that they addressed and pleaded for government intervention because this is too much.

“We want the government to come and save us. We don’t need much delay again. We are in pain now. We want an end to these killings and burning of vehicles.

“Many of roads are not safe now. this is bad we want help. let us end this killings. We are tired. Why the killings? why these troubles. We want government to end it.”

However, at the time of filing this report, the elders in the various villages were still having strategic meetings to see how to end the reported killings and burning of vehicles.

When the Imo state Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Micheal Abattam, was contacted he was yet to respond.

Source: Villagers protest killings, burning of vehicles in Imo

Also:

Women protest ritual killings in Imo State

Published: November 12, 2009
By: Chidi Nkwopara – Vanguard, Nigeria

OWERRI – Scores of women from Ndiakunwata, Arondizuogu, Ideato North Local Government Area of Imo State, stormed Owerri to stage a peaceful protest over recent ritual killings in their area.

Vanguard gathered that unidentified ritualists killed an octogenarian, Mrs. Beatrice Asoanya, and her granddaughter, Miss Chinaza Okereke, while they were sleeping in their home.

The women displayed placards with varying inscriptions, which included “Our lives are in serious danger”, “We are no longer safe in our community”, “We need government’s intervention” and “Ohakim save us”.

Speaking to newsmen amidst sobs, Lady Patricia Okereke, the mother of the slain Chinaza, said the suspected ritualists cut off the breast of her mother, Mrs. Asoanya, and drained her blood.

Lady Okereke said the women were angered that the suspected killer of the two citizens have been released, adding that the released suspects had since been moved to Abuja by his masters.

Okereke wondered why her daughter and mother would be murdered in such a gruesome manner, while the alleged culprits were left off the hook because of alleged influence of those backing him.

I demand that the perpetrators be brought to face the full weight of the law with a view to serving as a deterrence to others, she pleaded.

Source: Women protest ritual killings in Imo

Also:

Otokoto again in Imo! Girl, 18, beheaded for rituals

Published: November 5, 2009 (headlines: August 19, 2009)
By: Chidi Nkwopara – Nairaland, Nigeria

Residents of Owerri were Wednesday morning treated to a morbid spectacle as the police command paraded four suspects and the decomposing head of an 18-year old Chinwe Doris Perpetua Obieri, who was murdered for ritual purposes.

The bizarre scene, which was a replica of the infamous Otokoto saga of September 1996, had the prime suspect, 24-year old Emeka Uwakwe, from Ndiakunwata, Arondizuogu, Ideato North local government area of the state, clutching the decapitated head of his girl friend, Chinwe.

Speaking to newsmen, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Aloy Okorie, gave the names of the other suspects as Chigamezu Anyaoha from Orodo, Mbaitoli local council area, Anthony Obioha from Lude, Ahiazu Mbaise local government area, and the medicine man, Damian Joseph from Obot Akara, Akwa Ibom State.

Mr. Okorie gave a graphic account of how the sordid crime was committed and the efforts made by the state police command to apprehend the suspects in far away Lagos State.

“You can see we have a case of murder for ritual murder. What happened was that on Sunday, July 26, 2009, the young lady whose head you are seeing (pointing at the decapitated head of Chinwe) left her Akokwa home, Ideato North local government area of Imo State. You can see the head without the body.

Late Chinwe before her death
“The young man, Emeka Uwakwe, is the boy friend of this girl and he came all the way from Lagos and lured her to his house in the village. He murdered the girl, cut off her head for ritual purpose and dumped the headless body in a bush. Apparently, the girl had told her parents that she was going to visit her maternal uncle in another village.

“As at 7.04pm on that same Sunday, she called her parents and informed them she was already in her maternal uncle’s compound and they believed her. Later, her parents made a call to her and the call was not pulling through up till the next morning and by Monday when it was obvious that she was not coming back, they made a report to the police that their daughter was missing.

“The names of the parents are Mr. Nicholas and Mrs. Theresa Obieri from Umuezeala, Umueziama Kindred in Akokwa. It was after they made the report to the police that some vigilante people on the same date, came around and said they saw a headless body in the bush. The police invited the girl’s parents and they identified the headless body to be that of their daughter.

“It was at that point that the police swung into action and started making investigations. From information, we got to know that she had a boy friend who is resident in Lagos and who was seen around home within that period. So, we went to Lagos and we were able to arrest Emeka Uwakwe. You can see him now with the head of the slain girl (pointing at Emeka).

“When we now got him, he made a confession that Mr. Damian Joseph of Obot Akara in Akwa Ibom State, though he is based in Lagos also, was the one who made the charm with which, if he got the head of this girl, mix it with the charm and bury it, money will start flowing, he will start plucking money as if he was plucking fruits from the tree. That was exactly what the man did. He (Emeka) got the concoction, mixed it with the head and buried it in his room.

“We also went for the Native Doctor and got him. Meanwhile, Emeka made a confession too that it was his friends, Chigaemezu Anyaoha and Anthony Obioha, that introduced him to the Native Doctor and that he was capable of making medicine for money. They also confirmed that they had done such a medicine before with human scrotum. We do not know whether it their own scrotum or other people’s scrotum. We will surely find out in due.

“You can see the pretty 18-year old girl (displaying her photograph). I am sure if you had seen this girl when she was alive, you will weep. You will certainly weep because I have never seen a thing like that in my life. I just imagine my own daughter of that age being slaughtered for ritual purposes.

“Well, in an era where we talking about people going to live in the moon, that is the age we are in, 21st century, and people are still being fooled that they can use human head to make money. It is very unfortunate.

“Emeka Uwakwe was arrested on Wednesday last week (August 12, 2009) and when he gave us the information on how he got about the whole show, our men left for Lagos on Sunday and we were able to arrest both the Native Doctor and the other two boys. The next line of action is that they will pay the price prescribed by the laws of the land. We all know the price for somebody who has committed murder. He will pay with his own life. There is no duplicate for life. If he had the courage to kill somebody, he should also be prepared to face the consequence. He should be in a position to say if he killed her with a knife or first strangulated her before he cut off the neck.

“It is very clear that the girl deceived her parents. My advice is simple. I have a daughter of that age. I know how we monitor her. Most times, especially in this era, if she has to go out, we must let go with somebody because you never can tell. That age is a critical period in the training of children. Parents should monitor their daughters closely. It is easy to make contacts in this GSM era. I am sure that if the parents had raised alarm that very night they did not see her, may be things would have come out differently.

Source: Otokoto Again In Imo! Girl, 18, Beheaded For Rituals

Nigeria: on the rising incidents of ritual killings

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I’ve repeatedly drawn attention to the many ritual murders, or killings for ritual purposes, in Nigeria, Africa’s most populated country with a population exceeding 200 million souls. These ritualistic crimes are locally known as ‘money rituals‘. (Warning: the preceding link leads to a video with graphic details of ritual killings).

The following post is about the published worries of an individual, Safiyanu Ladan. He was so emotional about the spate of ritual murders in his country that when the new year 2023 was approaching he decided to write an open article which was first published by a leading Nigerian newspaper, the Daily Trust.

Safiyanu Ladan writes from Zaria, Kaduna State, and openly associates ritualistic murders to prominent businessmen and politicians. In the article he dwells on a ritual murder committed by a prominent businessman in Gusau, the capital of Zamfara State, in the north of the country.

It’s a well-known fact that in Nigeria and other countries ritual murders and elections are linked, with the number of alleged and confirmed cases of ritual murder increasing during election campaigns. Nigeria faces national elections in February this year (next month) when the people of Nigeria go to the polls to elect a new president and National Assembly.
(webmaster FVDK).

On The Rising Incidents Of Ritual Killings

Published: January 3, 2023
By: Safiyanu Ladan – Daily Trust, Nigeria

I feel compelled to register my concern on the rising spate of killings across the country supposedly by ritualists as the 2023 elections draw closer. Some politicians who are desperate to win the election have always resorted to these uncanny acts in a bid to attain power at all costs. Unfortunately, the perpetrators of these […]

The post On the rising incidents of ritual killings
appeared first on Daily Trust

I feel compelled to register my concern on the rising spate of killings across the country supposedly by ritualists as the 2023 elections draw closer. Some politicians who are desperate to win the election have always resorted to these uncanny acts in a bid to attain power at all costs.

Unfortunately, the perpetrators of these devilish acts have always gone free. It’s only on rare occasions that some arrests are made and after the suspects are ceremoniously paraded by the police one will never hear about the case again.

In January last year, Aminu Baba, a prominent businessman selling vehicles at Aminchi Motors, Gusau Zamfara State, after his arrest by the police, confessed to have eaten and sold human parts to some unknown persons.

In a video footage, the visibly unapologetic Aminu’s accomplice who was arrested alongside him had admitted the gruesome killing of a 9-year-old boy whose body parts were removed and sold to Aminu for N500,000.

It has been one year since such an unfortunate incident occurred, and the suspects and the police have promised to take them to court at the end of their investigation. The outcome of the court’s judgment on this heinous act is not yet available in the public domain.

Incidents such as this are being reported by the media and after initial reactions, the matter will just die off.

The unrelenting act of ritualists inflicting harm on unsuspecting members of society is of great concern, hence the need for security agencies to double their efforts in order to restore people’s confidence.

It is pertinent to note that the life of a human being is sacred, and as such, nobody should feel threatened that their life might be taken away in whatever form except according to laid down processes.

Safiyanu Ladan wrote from Zaria via uncledoctor24@gmail.com

The post On the rising incidents of ritual killings appeared first on Daily Trust

Source: On The Rising Incidents Of Ritual Killings

Countless Centuries of Human Sacrifice

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As stated elsewhere on this site, human sacrifices are of all ages and all places. In principle, this site focuses on ritualistic activities including killings and murders on the African continent but without pretending that these cruel and superstitious acts are only happening or being committed by Africans in African countries.

The article presented below amply illustrates the foregoing. It goes without saying that a topic such as ‘human sacrifices in historical perspective’ covers a vast area and cannot be treated in one short and simple article. Nevertheless, I have thought it useful and informative to include the following article on this site.

Warning: some readers may find the following text shocking because of its graphic contents.
(webmaster FVDK).

Countless Centuries of Human Sacrifice

Live Science recently published a list of 25 cultures that employed human sacrifice “from prehistory to the 21st century.”

Published: December 25, 2022
By: James A. Haught – ‘The Good Men Project’

In the history of religion, uncountable centuries of human sacrifice present a gory stunner.

It’s astounding that parents around the world sent their children and unwed daughters to be stabbed, burned, skinned, strangled, beheaded, drowned, crushed, clubbed or otherwise killed to please absurd gods and goddesses now known to be imaginary. Men – especially prisoners of war – also were sacrificed.

Live Science recently published a list of 25 cultures that employed human sacrifice “from prehistory to the 21stcentury.” It included China, the city of Ur (in today’s Iraq), Mound 72 near St. Louis, the Incas of Peru, the Mayas of Mexico, the Philistines of the Mideast, Aztecs of Mexico, ancient Egypt, Stonehenge, medieval Japan, Hawaii, early Romans, ancient Greeks, the Moche tribe of Peru, the Dahomey of Africa, Celts of Europe, Nazca of Peru, Vikings, Carthage, Mongols, hunter-gatherers of early Europe, the Indus Valley, ancient Korea, India, Tanzania.

Encyclopedia Britannica says:

“Sacrifice is not a phenomenon that can be reduced to rational terms; it is fundamentally a religious act that has been of profound significance to individuals and social groups throughout history, a symbolic act that establishes a relationship between man and the sacred order. For many peoples of the world, throughout time, sacrifice has been the very heart of their religious life.”

Here’s a section from my book, Holy Horrors, reprinted with permission from Prometheus Books and Rowman & Littlefield:

Over the centuries, sacrifice had many varieties. In ancient Phoenicia, boys were burned to satisfy Adonis and other gods – and the fall of Carthage was blamed on the faithlessness of nobles who substituted children of slaves for their own on the altars. In ancient Gaul, the Druids allegedly put victims into large wicker figures of men and set them afire. In Tibet, Bon shamans performed ritual killing. In Africa, the Ashanti offered about 100 victims each September to assure a good yam harvest. In Borneo, builders of pile-houses drove the first pile through the body of a maiden to satisfy the earth goddess.

The golden age of sacrifice came with the highly organized theocracies of Central America. After the Mayans amalgamated with fierce neighbor tribes in the 11th century, ritual killings proliferated to appease the plumed serpent Kukulcan (later called Quetzacoatl by the Aztecs) and sundry other gods. Maidens were drowned in sacred wells, and other victims were beheaded, shot with arrows, or had their hearts cut out.

In Peru, pre-Inca tribes killed children in “houses of the moon.” Beginning in the 1200s, the Incas built a complex theocracy dominated by priests who read daily magical signs and offered sacrifices to many gods. At major ceremonies, up to 200 children were burned as offerings. Mothers brought their darlings dressed in finery and flowers to be put to death. Special “chosen women” – comely virgins without blemish – sometimes were removed from their temple duties and strangled. Local rulers sent choice daughters to the capital at Cuzco as chosen women. Later they were sent back to be buried alive.

The ultimate murder religion was that of the Aztecs, which demanded about 20,000 victims per year. The chief deity was the sun, which might disappear, priests warned, without daily sustenance of hearts and blood. Multitudes of victims, mostly prisoners of war, were held on stone altars by clergy who ripped out their hearts with obsidian knives. Flesh from their arms was eaten ritually, and their skulls were preserved on racks holding as many as 10,000 heads. Raids called “wars of the flowers” were conducted to seize plentiful sacrifice candidates.

Priests also killed many Aztecs. Weeping children were sacrificed so that their tears might induce the rain god to water the crops. To please the maize goddess, dancing virgins were seized, decapitated, and skinned – and their skins were worn by priests in continued dancing.

In 1487, when the great Aztec temple in Tenochtitlan was dedicated, eight teams of priests worked four days sacrificing 20,000 prisoners, the entire manpower of three captured tribes….

In the Far East, five different types of human sacrifice were halted by British rulers in the 1800s. One was the yearly meriah by the Khonds of Bengal, who cut a victim into small pieces and buried the fragments in many fields to assure a good harvest. Another was a weekly rite by certain followers of the bloodthirsty Hindu goddess Kali who sacrificed a male child every Friday evening at a shrine in Tanjore, India.

A third was the Hindu code of suttee, which required a widow to leap onto her dead husband’s funeral pyre, willingly or unwillingly. The British banned it in 1829, but it persisted. (When Brahmans of Sind protested that suttee was their holy custom, Governor Charles Napier replied: “My nation also has a custom When men burn women alive, we hang them. Let us all act according to national customs.”)

In Burma, the Buddhist king moved the capital to Mandalay in 1854 and sanctified the new city walls by burying scores of “spotless” men alive in vats under the gates and bastions. In 1861, two of the vats were discovered to be empty – whereupon royal astrologers declared that 500 men, women, boys and girls must be killed and buried at once, or the capital must be abandoned. About 100 actually were buried before British authorities stopped the ceremonies.

The worst holy slaughter halted by the British was the infamous Thuggee strangling in India. For generations, certain secretive followers of Kali, the goddess of destruction, had been ritually dispatching an estimated 20,000 victims a year. The toll since the 1500s was estimated as high as two million. Thug theology held that Brahma the Creator produced lives faster than Shiva the Destroyer could end them, so Shiva’s wife Kali commanded believers to hunt humans and garrote them with sashes.

Thugs usually preyed upon travelers in unpopulated places. Victims were seized, strangled, ceremonially gashed, and buried, then the Thugs ate a ritual meal over the burial spot. (They also plundered the victim’s possessions – another motive for their religious fervor.) British officers finally broke Thuggee by ferreting out 3,689 cultists and hanging or imprisoning them, or branding them with “Thug” as a public warning. At a trial in 1840, one Thug was accused of strangling 931 people.

Other sacrifices lingered. In the 1800s an Ashanti king in Africa, wishing to make his new palace impregnable, sacrificed 200 girls and mixed their blood in the mortar of the walls. In 1838 a Pawnee American Indian girl was cut to pieces to fertilize newly sown crops. During the late 1800s, bodies of sacrificed children occasionally were found at Kali shrines in India.

***

Among those thousands of priests, I wonder if any realized that their gods were purely imaginary. Whether they did or not, their careers consisted of senseless, pointless, horrifying murder.

Source: Countless Centuries of Human Sacrifice

Bauchi State, Nigeria: police arrest 3 in connection with removing boy’s eyes for suspected ritual

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Warning: The following may upset the reader because of its graphic contents.

Yesterday I posted an article on the cruel attack on a 3 year old baby boy who became blind for the rest of his life as a result of the unscrupulous act of his cousin who gouged out his eyes for ritualistic purposes. The gory and cruel crime happened in East Africa, in Kenya.

The case presented below happened in Nigeria, West Africa, in June of this year. A similar horror story as what happened in Kenya. The reader is warned that the article contains a graphic description of the crime. It’s good that police has arrested three suspects. Nevertheless, the question remains: what makes people do such cruel acts? Are these people insane or just unscrupulous in their unstoppable desire for wealth and/or power based on superstition and fed by witchdoctors?
(webmaster FVDK)

Nigeria, Bauchi State:
Police arrest 3 in connection with removing boy’s eyes for suspected ritual

Published: June 27, 2022
By: Paul Orude, The Sun, Nigeria

Three suspects have been arrested by the Bauchi State Command for allegedly gouging out the eyes of a boy.

The Commissioner of Police Umar Sanda, disclosed this while parading the suspects at the command’s headquarters in Bauchi.

Sanda reassured of the public of the Command’s commitment to bursting ritualists and other criminal activities and urged residents to be supportive.

He explained that the command has made adequate use of intelligence gathering to arrest the three suspects in connection with plucking out of the eye of the boy.

He said the arrest was in response to the case of a suspected ritualist who plucked the eye of the minor.

The terrifying incident occurred in the Jira Mountain Yelwa area of Bauchi Metropolitan.

According to the Police Public Relations Officer, Ahmed Mohammed Wakil, the suspect Isaac Ezekiel ‘m’ 32yrs of Rafin Zurfi Yelwa Bauchi Metropolitan had been arrested, where he voluntarily confessed to the unfortunate crime.

A prompt search of his house by the Police led to the recovery of Uzairu Salisu’s eyeballs, Wakil disclosed in a statement.

Wakil said the exhibit recovered from the suspects included the two human eyeballs in a calabash,cable wire used in perpetrating the heinous act and a travelling bag containing some native medicine.

He said suspects arrested in connection to the crime are Isaac Ezekiel ‘M’ 32yr-old of Rafin Zurfi Yelwa Bauchi Metropolitan, Nensok Bawa ‘M’ 38yr-old of Kabwir District Kanke Local Government Area Plateau State and Yohana Luka (AKA Doctor Samu) 52yr-old of Golbong Village Amper District in Kanke Local Government Area of Plateau State.

“Findings reveal that in April 2022, Principal Suspect Isaac Ezekiel conspired with the two suspects above to conceive the idea to commit the atrocity of getting the eyeballs of a human being,” he said.

“On 24th June 2022 at about 0900hrs the principal suspect Isaac Ezekiel lured one Uzairu Salisu ‘M’ 16yr of Jahun Bauchi Metropolitan into a nearby Bush for a casual job on his farm, the Isaac Ezekiel used a cable wire to strangulate Uzairu Salisu into a coma and use a knife to remove the two eyes for a ritual purpose.

“Investigation is in progress, after which the suspects will be charged to court.

“The task has not been an easy one, but in line with our constitutional mandate, we shall remain fierce, tireless, and relentless in committing ourselves to the safety and security of lives and property of the people of Bauchi state and the country at large.”

Source: Bauchi: Police arrest 3 in connection with removing boy’s eyes for suspected ritual

Baby’s eyes gouged out for rituals – two persons arrested in Kenya 

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Warning: The following articles’ graphic contents may upset readers

Nothing less than a horror story. In Kisii, in south-western Kenya a three-year old baby was attacked, his eyes gouged out allegedly for ritualistic reasons. The baby was saved and at present is in a stable condition but unfortunately the small boy will never regain his eyesight.

The police has arrested a suspect. Also the baby’s mother has been arrested. They are suspected to have gouged out baby Sangini’s eyes for ritualistic purposes.

The gory attack has caused many reactions, people are angry and saddened that an innocent child was attacked and that he will be blind for the rest of his life.

The story is almost too horrific to believe and the reader is warned that the following articles on baby Sangini contain graphic details including a photo of the young victim.

It is mainly because a similar attack took place on the other side of the African continent that I decided to draw attention to the mutilation of the Kenyan baby Sangini. Earlier this year, in June, police in Bauchi State, Nigeria, arrested three individuals for allegedly gouging out the eyes of a boy, also for rituals. Tomorrow I will post more details about the latter case. (webmaster FVDK).

Man suspected to have gouged out Baby Sagini’s eyes arrested
The eyes were gouged out to be used as rituals

In Summary: 

  • The suspect was Monday expected in court as investigators go on with their work. More suspects are being sought, police said Monday December 19.
  • Maina Ochoki (Baby Junior Sagini’s Cousin) is believed to be main the suspect in the case of Baby Sagini.
Maina Ochoki first suspect in the Marani case arrested,set to appear in court

Published: December 19, 2022
By: Cyrus Ombati, The Star – Kenya

Police on Sunday arrested the main suspect in a case where a three-year-old boy had his eyes gouged out in Kisii.

Maina Ochoki, baby Junior Sagini’s cousin, is believed to be the main suspect in the case of Baby Sagini.

Police investigators say Maina and his mother Pacifica gouged out Baby Sagini’s eyes to be used as a ritual.

The suspect was Monday expected in court as investigators go on with their work.

More suspects are being sought, police said on Monday, December 19.

By Sunday, Sagini was due for discharge following the doctor’s advice.

Kisii Eye Hospital director Dan Kiage said the boy was responding well to treatment and ready for discharge.

“It is unfortunate he will not see,” he said.

Sagini had been in the company of other children when he broke away, only to be found with his eyes gouged out and writhing in pain.

Source: Man suspected to have gouged out Baby Sagini’s eyes arrested

Also:

Attempted murder – Suspect in baby Sagini’s case detained for five days
The three-year-oild had his eyes gouged out for a suspected ritual

In Summary:

* Police successfully sought to have Ochogo detained for five days over investigations into the gouging out of baby Junior Sagini’s eyes.
* Prosecutor Hilary Kaino made the miscellaneous application to enable them arrest more suspects including Ochogo’s mother who is the main suspect.

ATTEMPTED MURDER: Alex Ochogo arrested for allegedly gouging the eyes of the three-year-old boy at Ikuruma village in Marani subcounty, Kisii on Monday, December 19. 
Image: CYRUS OMBATI

Published: December 19, 2022
By: Magati Obebo, The Star – Kenya

A man arrested for allegedly gouging out the eyes of a three-year-old boy in Kisii will be detained for five days pending investigations.

Alex Ochogo, 26, appeared before senior resident magistrate Christine Ogweno at Kisii law court on Monday.

Police successfully sought to have him detained for five days over investigations into the gouging out of baby Junior Sagini’s eyes at Ikuruma village in Marani subcounty, Kisii.

Prosecutor Hilary Kaino made the miscellaneous application to enable them arrest more suspects including Ochogo’s mother who is the main suspect.

Kaino told the court that Ochogo was seen escorting his mother to a bus station, who then fled to Nairobi on the day baby Sagini was found in a maize plantation.

Police are investigating a case of attempted murder.

“The main suspect was the last person seen with this child in the evening, hours before he disappeared. The following morning this suspect left to Nairobi,” Kaino told the court.

The prosecutor told the court that holding the suspect in custody will guarantee his safety against harm by members of the public.

Advocates Daphine Biyaki and Nduhukire Anita who were watching the brief for baby Sagini, agreed with the prosecutor’s application to detain the suspect for five days.

Ogweno ruled that the suspect will be detained at Rioma police station for five days as the police conclude investigations.

“The suspect will be arraigned in the same court on December 23 to know his fate as the court gives directions,” the magistrate said.

Baby Sagini’s mother was also arrested on Sunday and booked at Nyanchwa police station under OB NO 13/18/12/2022.

She was locked at the court’s police cells and later driven away by DCI officers the moment Ochogo appeared in court.

Baby Sagini who is admitted at Kisii Eye hospital in an early interview said a man with a rope and a torch took him from their home compound where he was playing with other kids.

Sagini’s eye specialist Dr Dan Kiage said the boy is in a stable condition however, there is no way he will regain his eyesight.

Police said Ochogo and his mother Pacifica are suspected to have gouged out Sagini’s eyes to be used as ritual for Ochogo’s father.

It is alleged that the two conspired in December 2021 and killed Ochogo’s father.

Source: Suspect in baby Sagini’s case detained for five days

Also see:

Manhunt – Sonko issues Sh200,000 reward for suspects in Sagini case
Baby Sagini, 3, had his eyes gouged out during an attack by unknown thugs in Kisii

In Summary: 

  • He offered a Sh400,000 reward to any officer who will fish out the suspect.
  • The former governor further promised an additional Sh200,000 for any person who volunteers information that may lead to arrest of the key suspects
CASH REWARD: Former Nairobi governor Mike Mbuvi Sonko. 

Published: December 18, 2022
By: Magati Obebo, The Star – Kenya

Former Nairobi governor Mike Sonko has joined other leaders to condemn the assault on Junior Sagini from Ikuruma, Marani in Kisii.

Sagini, 3, had his eyes gouged out during a gory attack by unknown thugs on Thursday night.

Sonko described the incident as saddening.

He offered a Sh400,000 reward to any officer who will fish out the suspect.

The former governor further promised an additional Sh200,000 for any person who volunteers information that may lead to arrest of the key suspects.

The incident has evoked a string of reactions across the political divide.

Nominated Senator Essy Okenyuri visited Sagini at Kisii Eye Hospital on Saturday where he is receiving treatment.

She asked security agencies investigating the case to leave no stone unturned.

Okenyuri said no child deserves to go through torture, the kind Sagini suffered in the hands of his tormentors.

“Every child deserves to be treated with dignity notwithstanding the circumstances they are brought up. I am hoping nothing will stand in the way as justice is sought for him,” she said.

Political activist Steven Nyarangi said the incident was heart wrenching.

By Saturday evening, detectives in Kisii said they were quizzing the father-Thomas Ongaga- over the incident.

He had been living with the child after separating with the wife.

Police, however, said he was not in their custody yet as a suspect adding that they sought him for information as part of preliminary investigations.

Already Vigilance House has dispatched an additional team of detectives to help unravel the motive behind the bizarre attack.

In Kisii, friends have begun donating money for Sagini’s medical bill.

The hospital bills has shot to Sh100,000 with family members requesting help. 

At the hospital, Sagini innocently played in his bed with bandages wrapped on the empty sockets oblivious that the verdict on his ability to see again had been decided by a tormentor.

He asked doctors when he is going to see.

Villagers and relatives at Ikuruma found him covered in blood and crying in pain after a night out in the cold.

The minor is said to had broken off from the other team of children sent out Wednesday to fetch water only to be discovered with eyes gouged out.

The attack on the boy horrified Kenyans, leading to a growing outcry and outrage over violence against children in the country. 

Source: Sonko issues Sh200,000 reward for suspects in Sagini case

Also see:

Discharged – Kisii Governor Arati offsets baby Sagini’s hospital bill, condemns attack
The three-year old baby had his eyes gouged out during an attack by unknown thugs

In Summary: 

  • Arati visited the baby at Kisii Eye Specialist Hospital on Sunday morning where he volunteered to offset the Sh100,000 medical bill.
  • Kisii Eye Hospital director Dan Kiage said the boy was responding well to treatment and ready for discharge.
MEDICAL BILL: Kisii Governor Simba Arati with Kisii Eye Hospital boss Dan Kiage after he visited baby Sagini whose eyes were gouged out by an attacker on Thursday night. 
Image: MAGATI OBEBO

Published: December 18, 2022
By: Magati Obebo, The Star – Kenya

Kisii Governor Simba Arati has termed baby Junior Sagini’s attack as appalling and despicable.

The three-year-old had his eyes gouged out by unknown thugs in Ikuruma, Marani on Thursday night.

Arati visited the baby at Kisii Eye Specialist Hospital on Sunday morning where he volunteered to offset the Sh100,000 medical bill.

Sagini was due for discharge following the doctor’s advice.

Kisii Eye Hospital director Dan Kiage said the boy was responding well to treatment and ready for discharge.

“It is unfortunate he will not see,” he said.

Sagini had been in the company of other children when he broke away, only to be be found with his eyes gouged out and writhing in pain.

Arati said plans are afoot to have Sagini and his sister relocated to a safe house. 

“It is unfortunate that such a small boy could be brutalised like this. It points to the growing mental problems society is grappling with, which should form part of the wider investigations,” Arati said.

During the visit, Arati asked security agencies and government administrators in the villages to monitor families that go through marital challenges and refer them for counseling, to avert such disasters.

He offered to set up a rehabilitation centre, to take care of such cases.

“We will do a supplementary budget to ensure this is realised,” the governor said.

Also see:

In Kisii – Detectives probe father of boy whose eyes were gouged out
Cops say they have not arrested him but are only questioning him

In Summary: 

• County police boss Mutungi Musyoki, however, said they are only questioning the father as part of the preliminary investigations.

• He is currently recovering at Kisii Eye Hospital, where doctors said he will never see again following the attack.

Published: December 17, 2022
By: Magati Obebo, The Star – Kenya

Detectives in Kisii on Saturday opened a probe into the bizarre incident  where a minor’s eyes were gouged out in a Thursday night attack in Marani.

They have questioned the father of the boy, Thomas Ongaga- who lives with the children alone after separating from their mother.

Police said they are piecing every detail together as they search for clues that may lead to the arrests of key suspects in the macabre attack on the three-year-old.

County police boss Mutungi Musyoki, however, said they are only questioning the father as part of the preliminary investigations.

“We are only questioning him, he has not been arrested,” Musyoki told journalists.

The motive of the beastly act remained unknown as a manhunt for the suspects continues.

The minor, Junior Sagini, was reported missing after visiting the maize farm with her seven-year-old sister.

There were other conflicting reports that they were in the company of other children and that they had been sent to fetch water when he broke away from the team only to be found later, soaked in blood with eyes gouged out.

He is currently recovering at Kisii Eye Hospital, where doctors said he will never see again following the attack.

Police said they are not leaving anything to chance as the manhunt is still on.

“We want to know what happened in between the visit to the farm, at what point did the two siblings separate, who kidnapped him and committed the heinous act on him,” Musyoki said.

Kisii Eye Hospital director Dan Kiage said that the boy was in bad shape when he was brought in.

“It appears the attacker used a sharp object like a knife to injure the eyelids. The problem is that he won’t see again,” he said. 

Source: Detectives probe father of boy whose eyes were gouged out

See also:

Horror as boy, 3, kidnapped and eyes gouged out in Kisii
Minor was rushed to hospital after he was found with his case covered with blood

In Summary: 

  • The minor was rushed to the Kisii Eye Hospital after he was found with his face covered with blood.
  • When the other children got home with their jerrycans full of water, they informed his grandmother what had happened.

Published: December 17, 2022
By: Cyrus Ombati, The Star – Kenya

A special police squad has been sent to a village in Kisii to investigate a bizarre incident where suspected thugs kidnapped a three-year-old baby and gouged out his eyes before dumping him at the family’s banana plantation.

The gang is said to have taken away the child from his family home in Marani on Wednesday, December 14 evening and held him for more than six hours, sending the family into panic as they searched for the minor’s whereabouts in vain.

The minor was rushed to the Kisii Eye Hospital after he was found with his face covered with blood.

Doctors have said he will remain blind for now and he is recuperating in the general ward after a surgical procedure.

“Both his eyes had been removed completely and there are some injuries in the lids…so it looks like there was a sharp instrument like a knife that was used,” Dr Daniel Kiage at the facility said.

Residents of Ikuruma village in Marani, Kisii county, are yet to tell the motive of the incident.

Police had initially arrested one of the boy’s relatives as a suspect in the investigations but later released him for lack of evidence connecting him to the crime.

A team of detectives has since been sent from Nairobi to boost local ones in the probe.

Director of Criminal Investigations Mohamed Amin said they want to know the motive and those behind the bizarre incident.

Swathes of bandages are covering the emptiness where his eyes once were.

His family is calling on the police to speed up investigations and bring to the perpetrators to book.

Doctors said the boy is scheduled for a second operation as soon as he is stable enough.

The boy’s grandmother Rael Mayieka told police it all started when her grandson, went to fetch water from a nearby spring.

He was in the company of other children but it is said that he threw his jerrycan into a nearby thicket and started running away.

When the other children got home with their jerrycans full of water, they informed his grandmother what had happened.

The granny went to the spring searching for her grandson, but he was nowhere to be seen.

It was until the following day that his elder brother who had gone to cut grass for the cows pounced on him in a maize plantation and alerted them.

Source: Horror as boy, 3, kidnapped and eyes gouged out in Kisii

And another report:

Cousin: This is why we gouged out 3-year-old baby Sangini’s eyes

Kisii (also known as Getembe or Bosongo) is located in south-western Kenya, near lake Victoria