The Nigeria Police, Oyo State Command, says it has arrested a 45-year-old Islamic cleric over alleged possession of fresh human parts.
The Command’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), SP Adewale Osifeso, made the disclosure when he paraded the cleric among other suspected criminals at the command’s headquarters in Ibadan, on Friday.
He said police detectives arrested the suspect at about 10 am on Nov. 6, at Ogbere-tioya Area, Ibadan.
Osifeso alleged that the arrest was made possible following credible intelligence reports from members of the public.
“The dragnet of the command caught up with the cleric after purposeful investigations and tracking around Ogbere-tioya Area, Ibadan, under Ona-ara Local Government Area.
“The suspect was found in possession of items suspected to be fresh human head and two hands,” which he said were given to him by one Tijani Waheed, now at large,” Osifeso said.
Speaking with newsmen, the suspect alleged that the fresh human head and two hands found in his possession were for ritual purposes.
“I have one wife and two children and things are very hard for me in taking good care of them.
“I met one Waheed, who is also an Islamic cleric at a Maolud. We discussed the issue and he told me that he knows how to do money ritual that would require the use of human parts.
“I told him that I don’t know how to get the human parts and he promised to get it for me.
“He later brought the human parts to me at Amuloko where we met early in the morning and I kept it in my office where I attend to people seeking spiritual assistance.
“The police came to search my office on the day Waheed gave me the fresh head and two hands,” he said.
The suspect said that the person who gave him the human parts was now at large.
In another development, the police also paraded seven suspected cultists, one murder suspect and a motorcycle snatcher.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the arrest of the suspected Islamic ritualist would make it the second ritual-related case in the last two weeks in the state.
Police personnel on patrol had on Oct.16, arrested three Islamic clerics around Agbarigo Junction, Ibadan, for alleged possession of human parts.
Similarly, the PRO said the command’s operatives arrested eight other suspected criminals for their alleged involvement in cultism and murder.
He said some of the recovered items included an improvised gun, an axe, 17 wraps of loud drugs, laptop and cell phones.
(NAN)
