The Nation Newspaper

Tag: hand

  • Man chops off rival’s hand over girlfriend

    A youth, Abubakar Yahaya, has chopped off the wrist of another youth, Mohammed Jafar, during  a fight over a girlfriend.

    The incident happened on November 21,2018.

    According to a police report, Abubakar, 23, of Geriyu Junction in the Bypass area of Jimeta, Yola, and Mohammed Jafar from Demsawo, also in Jimeta, had engaged in a scuffle over a lady called Mariam Boni.

    It was said that Abubakar gained the upper hand by using a machete to chop off Mohammed’s wrist.

    Read also: PDP laments, tasks Buhari on Boko Haram killing of Nigerian soldiers

    The report indicated that the fight started when Mariam, who was Abubakar’s girlfriend, decided to end the relationship, and started dating Mohammed.

    The police said they swung into action shortly after the incident and arrested Abubakar,  Mohammed (now in hospital), Mariam, and their friends, who were involved in the bloody fight.

    Police spokesman, Othman Abubakar, told newsmen that the arrest of the suspects was a result of deliberate efforts to check crimes across the state.

    He said Abubakar’s gang had first started a fight on November 20 when they attacked Mohammed’s gang at a gathering and that the police had stepped in to stop the fight, only for it to be repeated the next day and taken to the extent that Mohammed would at best now come out of hospital as a young man without a left wrist.

    “This act is reprehensible and the police will be diligent in prosecuting the offenders according to the law,” he added.

  • ‘I got N4000 to chop off woman’s head, hand’

    ‘I got N4000 to chop off woman’s head, hand’

    A man, Taofik Adara, arrested in Badagry on Sunday with female body parts, yesterday said he was paid N4000 by a herbalist to kill the woman.

    Adara, alias Kie-Kie, was paraded at the Lagos State Police Command Headquarters, Ikeja.

    He said he chopped off the woman’s head with a cutlass, while two alfas (Islamic clerics) and a herbalist held her hands.

    The victim, he added, had been hypnotised by a native doctor before he killed her.

    Adara, 61, said the cutlass used was given to him by the herbalist who hired him.

    He said the woman, whose identity was still unknown, was brought to him from Sango Ota, Ogun State by the two alfas who needed fresh human parts to prepare a concoction for their client.

    Adara said: “I live at Itoga-Zeba area of Badagry. I am a woodcutter by profession and at times I assist owners of coconut plantation to help pluck coconut.

    “The whole drama started on Saturday evening when one of my herbalist friends known as Manase came to me to say that he was expecting two alfas from Sango Ota. He said they would be coming with a lady and that he would pay me N4000 to help butcher the woman. He told me that the two alfas needed some fresh human parts to prepare a concoction for one of their clients.

    “True to his words, the two alfas arrived at Itoga on Sunday evening. I noticed that before their arrival the two alfas had used some charms on the lady. She was just obeying their directives without asking any question. I asked her where she came from and she explained that she resided at Ota and that she had gone to seek spiritual help from one of the alfas.

    “Around 9am on Sunday we took the lady deep into the forest, close to a river. Manase asked her to kneel and she did. It was while she was still kneeling that I chopped off her head with a sharp cutlass given to me by Manase.”

    He likened killing the woman to butchering a ram.

    He said after severing the victim’s head from her body, Manase instructed him to hold on to the head, while he (herbalist) removed her heart and two hands.

    “Manase told me that the two alfas needed the lady’s head, heart and two hands from the wrist. He then took away the remains of the victim to use on a later day. It was while he was cutting off other essential human parts that a policeman who resides in our area arrived. The police would have arrested four of us if he had not shouted. The three of them took to their heels when they heard the noise.”

    Adara said last Sunday’s incident was his second involvement in such act. He said he killed another person about a year ago, adding that the victim was also brought to him by his herbalist friend.

    According to him, Manase paid him N8000 for the first job.

    “The first victim was also a woman. Manase had agreed to pay me N3000 but those who came for the human parts gave me an additional N5000 making it N8000,” he added.

    The suspect, who has two wives and 15 children, begged for forgiveness, stressing that he would feel bad if any member of his family was so treated.

    Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni said Adara was being detained at the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigations Department (SCID) at Panti, Yaba, Lagos Mainland.

    He said all those involved in the Oct would be brought to book.

  • Man arrested for cutting woman’s hand

    A 24-year-old man, identified as Wasiu,  has cut off the hand of a housewife, Mrs. Kehinde Musa in Ekanile, Ikare-Akoko, Ondo State.

    It was learnt both of them are co-tenants in Mufutau Gurusu’s house.

    A community leader and eyewitness, Gani Imam, said Mrs. Musa’s N4000 was stolen in the house and the landlord promised to look into it.

    The accused, accompanied by his mother, called Mrs. Kehinde out of her room. He brought out a dagger and cut off her right hand.

    She was taken to the Federal Medical Officer (FMC), Owo.

    The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) could not be reached for comments but it was confirmed that Wasiu had been arrested.

    The case, according to police sources, will be referred to the State Command in Akure.

  • What is in your hand?

    What is in your hand?

    Human beings appear to be in a permanent state of dissatisfaction with their lives. We don’t like who we are or what we look like. We don’t believe what we have is good enough. We don’t think what we can do is adequate. To make matters worse, we tend to prefer what belongs to someone else. Unfortunately, this has affected our attitude to most things in life, even opportunities. We tend to look far into the distance in search of great opportunities while we despise the ones closest to us.

    Dr. Russell Conwell, in his all-time classic titled: “Acres of Diamonds” told the story of a wealthy Persian named Ali Hafed. Ali had great gardens, farms, grain fields and orchards. He was contented with his possessions, well, until an ancient Buddhist priest paid him a visit. The priest told him that a diamond the size of his thumb could buy him a country while he could have great influence and place his children on thrones with a diamond mine. Almost instantly, Ali felt poor because he became aware of what he didn’t have but could have. His sense of loss was so great that he couldn’t sleep. Eventually, Ali took off in search of diamonds in rivers running through white sand between high mountains but not before selling his entire possession and leaving his family with a neighbour. He journeyed through Palestine and Europe. By the time he arrived at Barcelona, his money was all spent; out of wretchedness, poverty and depression, he flung himself under a great tidal wave and ended his journey there.

    Meanwhile, the man who purchased Ali Hafed’s farm took his camel out into the garden for watering one day and noticed a curious black stone reflecting light. He took it home and displayed it as a decoration until the same old priest who told Ali about diamonds came to visit. The priest recognised the stone as a piece of diamond to the surprise of Ali’s successor. They both rushed to the garden and discovered several other stones like it. According to Dr. Conwell, it is historically true that the garden became the most magnificent diamond mine known to mankind.

    Aren’t a lot of us like Ali these days? We go in search of what we already have just to appreciate it after we have lost it. Dr. David Oyedepo puts it aptly when he said “If you think enough, what you have is enough”. Unfortunately, we hardly take time to think before we embark on our quests for fortune. Here are a few lessons we can learn from Ali Hafed:

    • Wealth is perception and perception is wealth: a wealthy man may become poor overnight without losing a dime if he decides what he has is nothing compared to what he wants. On the other hand, a poor man may become wealthy overnight without earning a dime if he realises that he has gifts no money can buy. A positive state of mind is the foundation for success.
    • Use what you have to get what you want: no matter how meager what you have is, it is the key to what you can have. If a farmer decides that his seeds are too meagre to plant, he will forfeit his harvest. Instead of using his wealth to fund an expedition while still running his business, Ali decided to sell all and he lost all.
    • Exhaust all possibilities before moving on: we are usually too quick to conclude that our present conditions lack the potentials to produce our desired results. Before you give up on that job, relationship or business, make sure there are no benefits you have missed out on all this while.
    • Become unfamiliar to appreciate what you have: sometimes, we become too familiar with what we have and we miss out on its benefits. Have you ever become tired of your smart phone and you wanted to replace it yet someone else seemed so excited about the phone? Within a few minutes, the person might have explored functions you never knew existed on the phone. The fact that you consider your phone indispensable doesn’t mean you maximise its functions.
    • What you have may be the original: when you think your hands are empty, you are perhaps not looking close enough. Don’t be too quick to drop what is in your hand, it may be the original.

    There are several lessons we can learn from the story of Ali Hafed. Why not share your own lessons by mailing your comments.

     

     

  • What is in your hand?

    Human beings appear to be in a permanent state of dissatisfaction with their lives. We don’t like who we are or what we look like. We don’t believe what we have is good enough. We don’t think what we can do is adequate. To make matters worse, we tend to prefer what belongs to someone else. Unfortunately, this has affected our attitude to most things in life, even opportunities. We tend to look far into the distance in search of great opportunities while we despise the ones closest to us.

    Dr. Russell Conwell, in his all-time classic titled “Acres of Diamonds” told the story of a wealthy Persian named Ali Hafed. Ali had great gardens, farms, grain fields and orchards. He was contented with his possessions, well, until an ancient Buddhist priest paid him a visit. The priest told him that a diamond the size of his thumb could buy him a country while he could have great influence and place his children on thrones with a diamond mine. Almost instantly, Ali felt poor because he became aware of what he didn’t have but could have. His sense of loss was so great that he couldn’t sleep. Eventually, Ali took off in search of diamonds in rivers running through white sand between high mountains but not before selling his entire possession and leaving his family with a neighbour. He journeyed through Palestine and Europe. By the time he arrived at Barcelona, his money was all spent; out of wretchedness, poverty and depression, he flung himself under a great tidal wave and ended his journey there.

    Meanwhile, the man who purchased Ali Hafed’s farm took his camel out into the garden for watering one day and noticed a curious black stone reflecting light. He took it home and displayed it as a decoration until the same old priest who told Ali about diamonds came to visit. The priest recognised the stone as a piece of diamond to the surprise of Ali’s successor. They both rushed to the garden and discovered several other stones like it. According to Dr. Conwell, it is historically true that the garden became the most magnificent diamond mine known to mankind.

    Aren’t a lot of us like Ali these days? We go in search of what we already have just to appreciate it after we have lost it. Dr. David Oyedepo puts it aptly when he said “If you think enough, what you have is enough”. Unfortunately, we hardly take time to think before we embark on our quests for fortune. Here are a few lessons we can learn from Ali Hafed:

    • Wealth is perception and perception is wealth: a wealthy man may become poor overnight without losing a dime if he decides what he has is nothing compared to what he wants. On the other hand, a poor man may become wealthy overnight without earning a dime if he realises that he has gifts no money can buy. A positive state of mind is the foundation for success.
    • Use what you have to get what you want: no matter how meager what you have is, it is the key to what you can have. If a farmer decides that his seeds are too meagre to plant, he will forfeit his harvest. Instead of using his wealth to fund an expedition while still running his business, Ali decided to sell all and he lost all.
    • Exhaust all possibilities before moving on: we are usually too quick to conclude that our present conditions lack the potentials to produce our desired results. Before you give up on that job, relationship or business, make sure there are no benefits you have missed out on all this while.
    • Become unfamiliar to appreciate what you have: sometimes, we become too familiar with what we have and we miss out on its benefits. Have you ever become tired of your smart phone and you wanted to replace it yet someone else seemed so excited about the phone? Within a few minutes, the person might have explored functions you never knew existed on the phone. The fact that you consider your phone indispensable doesn’t mean you maximise its functions.
    • What you have may be the original: when you think your hands are empty, you are perhaps not looking close enough. Don’t be too quick to drop what is in your hand, it may be the original.

    There are several lessons we can learn from the story of Ali Hafed. Why not share your own lessons by mailing your comments.

     

     

  • What is in your hand?

    Human beings appear to be in a permanent state of dissatisfaction with their lives. We don’t like who we are or what we look like. We don’t believe what we have is good enough. We don’t think what we can do is adequate. To make matters worse, we tend to prefer what belongs to someone else. Unfortunately, this has affected our attitude to most things in life, even opportunities. We tend to look far into the distance in search of great opportunities while we despise the ones closest to us.

    Dr. Russell Conwell, in his all-time classic titled “Acres of Diamonds” told the story of a wealthy Persian named Ali Hafed. Ali had great gardens, farms, grain fields and orchards. He was contented with his possessions, well, until an ancient Buddhist priest paid him a visit. The priest told him that a diamond the size of his thumb could buy him a country while he could have great influence and place his children on thrones with a diamond mine. Almost instantly, Ali felt poor because he became aware of what he didn’t have but could have. His sense of loss was so great that he couldn’t sleep. Eventually, Ali took off in search of diamonds in rivers running through white sand between high mountains but not before selling his entire possession and leaving his family with a neighbour. He journeyed through Palestine and Europe. By the time he arrived at Barcelona, his money was all spent; out of wretchedness, poverty and depression, he flung himself under a great tidal wave and ended his journey there.

    Meanwhile, the man who purchased Ali Hafed’s farm took his camel out into the garden for watering one day and noticed a curious black stone reflecting light. He took it home and displayed it as a decoration until the same old priest who told Ali about diamonds came to visit. The priest recognised the stone as a piece of diamond to the surprise of Ali’s successor. They both rushed to the garden and discovered several other stones like it. According to Dr. Conwell, it is historically true that the garden became the most magnificent diamond mine known to mankind.

    Aren’t a lot of us like Ali these days? We go in search of what we already have just to appreciate it after we have lost it. Dr. David Oyedepo puts it aptly when he said “If you think enough, what you have is enough”. Unfortunately, we hardly take time to think before we embark on our quests for fortune. Here are a few lessons we can learn from Ali Hafed:

    • Wealth is perception and perception is wealth: a wealthy man may become poor overnight without losing a dime if he decides what he has is nothing compared to what he wants. On the other hand, a poor man may become wealthy overnight without earning a dime if he realises that he has gifts no money can buy. A positive state of mind is the foundation for success.
    • Use what you have to get what you want: no matter how meager what you have is, it is the key to what you can have. If a farmer decides that his seeds are too meagre to plant, he will forfeit his harvest. Instead of using his wealth to fund an expedition while still running his business, Ali decided to sell all and he lost all.
    • Exhaust all possibilities before moving on: we are usually too quick to conclude that our present conditions lack the potentials to produce our desired results. Before you give up on that job, relationship or business, make sure there are no benefits you have missed out on all this while.
    • Become unfamiliar to appreciate what you have: sometimes, we become too familiar with what we have and we miss out on its benefits. Have you ever become tired of your smart phone and you wanted to replace it yet someone else seemed so excited about the phone? Within a few minutes, the person might have explored functions you never knew existed on the phone. The fact that you consider your phone indispensable doesn’t mean you maximise its functions.
    • What you have may be the original: when you think your hands are empty, you are perhaps not looking close enough. Don’t be too quick to drop what is in your hand, it may be the original.

    There are several lessons we can learn from the story of Ali Hafed. Why not share your own lessons by mailing your comments.

    Dr. Amodu teaches at the Department of Mass Communication, Covenant University, Ogun State.

  • What is in your hand?

    Human beings appear to be in a permanent state of dissatisfaction with their lives. We don’t like who we are or what we look like. We don’t believe what we have is good enough. We don’t think what we can do is adequate. To make matters worse, we tend to prefer what belongs to someone else. Unfortunately, this has affected our attitude to most things in life, even opportunities. We tend to look far into the distance in search of great opportunities while we despise the ones closest to us.

    Dr. Russell Conwell, in his all-time classic titled “Acres of Diamonds” told the story of a wealthy Persian named Ali Hafed. Ali had great gardens, farms, grain fields and orchards. He was contented with his possessions, well, until an ancient Buddhist priest paid him a visit. The priest told him that a diamond the size of his thumb could buy him a country while he could have great influence and place his children on thrones with a diamond mine. Almost instantly, Ali felt poor because he became aware of what he didn’t have but could have. His sense of loss was so great that he couldn’t sleep. Eventually, Ali took off in search of diamonds in rivers running through white sand between high mountains but not before selling his entire possession and leaving his family with a neighbour. He journeyed through Palestine and Europe. By the time he arrived at Barcelona, his money was all spent; out of wretchedness, poverty and depression, he flung himself under a great tidal wave and ended his journey there.

    Meanwhile, the man who purchased Ali Hafed’s farm took his camel out into the garden for watering one day and noticed a curious black stone reflecting light. He took it home and displayed it as a decoration until the same old priest who told Ali about diamonds came to visit. The priest recognised the stone as a piece of diamond to the surprise of Ali’s successor. They both rushed to the garden and discovered several other stones like it. According to Dr. Conwell, it is historically true that the garden became the most magnificent diamond mine known to mankind.

    Aren’t a lot of us like Ali these days? We go in search of what we already have just to appreciate it after we have lost it. Dr. David Oyedepo puts it aptly when he said “If you think enough, what you have is enough”. Unfortunately, we hardly take time to think before we embark on our quests for fortune. Here are a few lessons we can learn from Ali Hafed:

    • Wealth is perception and perception is wealth: a wealthy man may become poor overnight without losing a dime if he decides what he has is nothing compared to what he wants. On the other hand, a poor man may become wealthy overnight without earning a dime if he realises that he has gifts no money can buy. A positive state of mind is the foundation for success.
    • Use what you have to get what you want: no matter how meager what you have is, it is the key to what you can have. If a farmer decides that his seeds are too meager to plant, he will forfeit his harvest. Instead of using his wealth to fund an expedition while still running his business, Ali decided to sell all and he lost all.
    • Exhaust all possibilities before moving on: we are usually too quick to conclude that our present conditions lack the potentials to produce our desired results. Before you give up on that job, relationship or business, make sure there are no benefits you have missed out on all this while.
    • Become unfamiliar to appreciate what you have: sometimes, we become too familiar with what we have and we miss out on its benefits. Have you ever become tired of your smart phone and you wanted to replace it yet someone else seemed so excited about the phone? Within a few minutes, the person might have explored functions you never knew existed on the phone. The fact that you consider your phone indispensable doesn’t mean you maximise its functions.
    • What you have may be the original: when you think your hands are empty, you are perhaps not looking close enough. Don’t be too quick to drop what is in your hand, it may be the original.

    There are several other lessons we can learn from the story of Ali Hafed. Why not share your own lessons by mailing your comments..

  • Man demands N30m compensation from Chinese firm for losing hand

    Man demands N30m compensation from Chinese firm for losing hand

    A 24-year-old man, Destiny Igbinoba, is demanding a compensation of N30million from a Chinese firm, Yougxing Steel Company, for the loss of his left hand during an accident that occurred while he was working inside the factory.

    Destiny, whose left hand was amputated, said the accident happened last December while operating a machine and he was rushed to Mount Gilead hospital.

    He said his hand was amputated because there was no surgeon at the hospital and it took 20 hours for a surgeon to arrive.

    According to him, “I have worked there for over one year. I earn over N50,000 a month. Unfortunately, the hospital does not have a surgeon. I was only given a sort of first aid treatment until about 20 hours later when a Surgeon came.

    “The Surgeon said it has taken too long and that he could no longer save my hand. He said there was no pulse in the hand. My hand was later amputated. The company paid the bill. After the incident, the company called for compensation and I told them I need an artificial hand. The amount they offered was too meagre. Just N1.5m All effort to get them to see reasons that the money is too small have been fruitless.”

    “I have stop receiving physiotherapy treatment at the UBTH because of money. I want them to pay me N30m for me to start my life.”

    Counsel to the Chinese firm, Onioma George, said the firm agreed to provide artificial hand for the victim.

    His words, “He should approach the court. This is an issue for the court and not the press. He needs to get a lawyer to advice. He has seen the company rules and regulation and rely on Workmen Compensation Act.”

    “The company took care for him and said they will give him artificial limb.”

     

  • The hand that abs the Cradle

    The hand that abs the Cradle

    Everybody called her “Princess” because her parents named her so, which was almost too far-fetched as Princess Asaye hailed from a humble background. Fairy tale royalty are born into privilege and affluence. Princess  hardly fit that bill: her father was a truck driver and her mother sold cucumber and carrots at the street junction. That Princess had a special, enchanting aura was, however, not far-fetched.

    “She was funny and lively,” said a neighbour describing the kid’s brilliant smile and dazzling black eyes. “Everybody loved her,” claimed 52-year-old Balkis Ahmed, a grocer who lived very close to the child’s family. “I loved that child,” she added with conviction.

    While Princess became the darling of neighbours and first time acquaintances, she enjoyed even greater love at home, according to the neighbours. Thus it was  given that her parents would treat her to a feast when she clocked three; on January 16, Princess’ parents threw her an expensive bash to celebrate her new age.

    Four days later, her mother, Eno, drugged her to sleep with Phenergan and local gin. Then she kept watch outside their apartment while her husband, Leslie, chopped off the three-year-old’s head with an axe. Princess’ decapitation was carefully planned. The victim’s mother made sure nobody accidentally walked into their apartment; she locked her husband in with the child and sat outside their door purportedly to enjoy fresh air. So goes an account of the child’s fate as rendered by Isabella, the child’s maternal aunt. Isabella, 19, claimed that her sister, Eno, confided in her five months after she connived with her husband to commit the dastardly act.

    “She asked me to pray for her. She said they had sent Princess on a long journey. Instinctively, I knew they used her for money rituals…Three months after my niece disappeared, my brother-in-law bought three vehicles in one day. He bought one Range Rover Evoque for my sister, his wife; he bought one Toyota Camry for himself and one haulage truck for his business,” said Isabella.

    Bilkis Ahmed, 52, is a grocer who lived very close to the family; according to her, “Everybody wondered how they came by their sudden wealth and immediately rumour started going round that they must have used their daughter for money rituals. Our fears were confirmed after husband and wife got into a fight. The wife got drunk and stabbed her husband on his arm. She said he was an ingrate. She said because of him, she would never have another child in her life yet he went ahead to impregnate another woman. After the fight, they said they had made up and the  husband blamed his wife’s utterances on drunkenness.”

    But the neighbours knew better. Tongues wagged and when the rumours became unbearable for them, the duo departed their abode two months before Christmas. “They said they were travelling for Christmas but they left two months before Christmas and never came back. I knew they were running away. But wherever they are, God will punish them for what they did to that poor girl,” stated Ahmed.

    Corroborating her, Biyi Ojo, a bicycle repairer in the area said, “Nobody knows their whereabouts.” According to him, he alerted his fellow landlords that the sudden disappearance of the Asayes’ three-year-old daughter smacked of foul play but no one heeded his complaint.

    “They were too scared to challenge them. The parents said they had taken the child to spend time with a relative but how is that possible when school was still in session? Now, they have disappeared. Nobody knows where they are but it’s not my problem. It’s their child, not mine,” said Ojo.

    Several miles from the Asayes’ mindboggling conundrum, a sore, reddish bulge of blister protruded where Adunbarin’s head used to be, soon after she encountered her beloved uncle. The latter, Samuel Omosaba, made a clean cut hacking the three-year-old’s head off her tiny frame. In one deft strike, Omosaba, 42, beheaded his niece in order to use her head for a voodoo ritual that would make him rich. But luck ran out on him as Bunmi, mother of the child, returned in time to discover what he had done yet too late to save her beloved daughter. This led to the arrest of Omosaba.

    The incident which happened on a Tuesday afternoon shook the whole of Ilepa quarters in Ikare-Akoko, Akoko North East Local Government Area of Ondo State from the eaves to the rafters. Omosaba, who is said to be jobless and unmarried, allegedly approached a herbalist to make him rich. The herbalist reportedly demanded that he produced a child’s head for a money-making ritual.

    After thinking about it very carefully, Omosaba resolved to use his niece for the ritual.

    The 42-year old planned the dastardly act knowing that the child’s mother, would bring her to stay with her mother-in-law and the child’s grandma, while she went to the market. Omosaba lives in the same house with the said grandmother. He had also assured the child’s mother of good care to the deceased three-year-old. The child’s mother returned to see her decapitated corpse in the culprit’s room. Omosaba reportedly confessed to family members that he killed the girl. He was nearly lynched by aggrieved youths before the police rescued him. The police in the state said the matter had been transferred to the state criminal investigative department, CID.

    The suspect reportedly tried to flee the scene, but he was prevented by the youths of the area.

    The state Police Public Relations Officer, Femi Joseph, confirmed the incident and said that the matter had been transferred to the state CID in Akure, the state capital. “It was an unfortunate incident; we don’t know what came over the man to have been involved in such a dastardly act, but we have started our preliminary investigation into the matter,” Joseph said.

     

    Minors murdering minors

    Few months earlier, Tajudeen Azeez, 16, lured his four-year-old neighbour, Ibrahim, to a primary school in Ijaniki, Lagos. There, he stabbed the child, strangled him and removed his intestines. He removed the child’s kidney and cut off his manhood. According to Azeez, he committed the dastardly act at the prompting of a man named Osho. The latter allegedly approached him and asked him to get him fresh human parts, promising to pay the 16-year-old the sum of N50,000.

    “At first, I did not want to succumb to the temptation but it kept coming. When I woke up, I saw Ibrahim at the back of the house. I told him to escort me to a primary school not too far from the house. The name of the school is Anglican Primary School, Ijanikin. He followed me to the place and on arrival there, I stabbed him with a knife from behind. He fell down and I strangled him with a rope. I then cut his stomach open with the knife. I am sorry for what I did,” said Azeez.

    The 16-year-old was subsequently arrested and remanded in the homicide section of the State Criminal Investigations Department (SCID), Lagos State Police Command, Yaba.

    According to the Acting Police Public Relations Officer for the State Police Command, Patricia Amadin, the body of the deceased has since been deposited at a government mortuary. She said Azeez was arrested following intelligence information.

    “Based on the strength of the information, the DPO and his men raced to the place. On arrival, they found the lifeless body of a four-year-old boy while the suspect was soaked in the deceased’s blood. From close observation, it was discovered that some vital organs such as the kidney and intestine had been removed from the deceased. All the organs were kept in a black nylon bag. The suspect was promptly arrested and taken to the station,” Amadin said.

    In another incident, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) attached to the Delta State Police Command arrested Silas Anidi, 15, for allegedly beheading an 11-year-old girl, Aghogho Igbi, for ritual purposes.

    Anidi, who is the only son a pastor in Sapele area of the state, was caught by neighbours when he also attempted to kill the deceased’s sister, Favour, aged 13.

    The suspect was said to be a family friend to the Igbis and in the course of a visit, beheaded the victim and was about to do same to Aghogho’s sister, Favour, when neighbours got him arrested. Anidi while confessing to the crime, claimed that he was lured into the act by his friend, Christian. The latter is reportedly at large, according to the police.

    According to Anidi, “I started monitoring the Igbis family because I know that they used to leave their children at home and go out. Luckily on November 28, 2015, I visited their house and as God will have it, their elder sister, Janet, said that she wanted to go to school for evening lesson. I was excited that I was left alone with the younger ones.

    “I sat down on the rug and was watching cartoon network with Aghogho. While she was busy enjoying herself, I dragged her head back and sliced her throat. I rushed to the next room where Favour was sleeping and tried to do the same but she woke up and started struggling with me. I tried to slice her throat but she started screaming. I only managed to stab her in the head but her screams were too much and neighbours were attracted. I was about to escape when neighbours caught me.”

    The 15-year-old pleaded for clemency, claiming he cannot explain what led him to commit the act. “ I am ashamed of myself because my family especially my dad, will be disappointed, in me. I was not satisfied with the little money that we made in the church; that is why I wanted to travel to Ghana to make money. I was deceived that until we get human head that we will not succeed. He promised to pay N50,000 for each human head”, he added.

     

    The Ghanaian connection…

    Anidi revealed that it was his friend, Christian’s brother who lives in Ghana that gave them the contract. “He promised to pay us N50,000 and also help us to relocate to Ghana,” he said.

    In another incident, Akpotejere Osuna, 39, was arrested by operatives of Delta State Police Command for allegedly killing the eight-day-old daughter of his step-daughter for rituals while the latter visited her mother for post-natal care. The culprit allegedly killed the baby, decapitated her and removed her heart, tongue and other intestines.

    Osuna allegedly made confessional statement to the police that he killed the child for rituals. He confessed taking the baby away from the side of her mother while she was sleeping and taking her to a nearby bush, where he decapitated her.

    Luck, however, ran out on him when he was arrested by the police. The latter acted on intelligence reports apprehended the suspect at Jese Town.

    “The suspect sneaked into the house of the mother of the baby, took the baby into the bush where he murdered the child, cut of the heart and the tongue, wrapped them in a polythene bag, pocketed them and melted into the bush,” said police spokesman, Charles Muka. Muka disclosed that upon report, the suspect was traced into the bush where he was arrested, adding that “he confessed that he was taking the parts to Ghana where he was going to make use of it for money making rituals.”

     

    A harvest of infant heads

    In another incident, four men allegedly kidnapped Bakare Teslim, a four-year-old, on October 9, 2015, around 6.17pm at Agbelekale area of Iragbiji in Osun State before beheading him with a knife. The men were remanded at the Ilesa Prison for allegedly killing the four-year-old. The accused persons, including a 60 year old Ganiyu Abidoye, Taju Ganiyu, aged 25, Aremu Moshood, 48 and Agboola Abdulwasiu, aged 31 were docked on Monday, October 26, 2015 by the Osun State Police.

    Another sad episode occurred few months earlier on Friday, June 19, 2015, in Oju Ore area of Ota, Ado Odo/Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State, where an eight-year-old pupil of a private school on Funmi Ayopo Street, Olamilekan Olajide, was allegedly killed by one of his teachers for ritual purposes.

    Olamilekan’s teacher, one Sunday Anaeto, allegedly connived with two others, Uche Isaac and Opeyemi Shodeinde, to carry out the dastardly act. The suspects reportedly lured the pupil into a corner of a classroom and killed him for rituals. Subsequently, they threw the mutilated corpse of the boy into an uncompleted building behind the school. They were, however, caught by residents of the area and promptly handed over to policemen at the Obasanjo Farm Police Station, Ota. The school building was destroyed by an angry mob while the suspects were arraigned an Ota Magistrate Court in Ogun State.

    And very few people would forget in a hurry, the tragic case of the Folorunshos. The police command in Kogi State arrested middle-aged Hosea Folorunsho in Egbe township, Yagba West local government council, for the alleged gruesome murder of his son, Sunday, for ritual purpose.

    Briefing journalists on the arrest in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital, the Commissioner of Police, The state’s Commissioner of Police Mohammed Katsina, said the suspect, a herbalist, also buried the child in a shallow grave in his compound. Katsina while parading the suspect at the state command headquarters in Lokoja, the state capital, disclosed that the herbalist killed his son for an alleged ritual.

    Narrating the police investigation, the police boss disclosed that on the eve of the new year, at about 11:55pm, the suspect quietly took his baby who was asleep, in the middle of the  night, and murdered him in gruesome circumstances.

    He added that having accomplished his mission, the suspect dug a shallow grave in his compound and hurriedly buried the corpse of the baby. The police subsequently escorted Folorunsho to his compound where the baby’s corpse was buried; there he was asked to exhume the corpse.

    Folorunso thus exhumed the corpse of his child and handed it over to a pathologist who conducted an autopsy on the dead baby. The autopsy result read that the child died of multiple fractures through the application of blunt object and trauma. The 48 year old suspect, a native of Egbe in Yagba West Local Government Area (LGA) of the state is married with three other kids.

    Four years ago, in Abia State, two men kidnapped and killed two children, aged four and six. They removed their vital organs and buried them, before being arrested.

     

    State’s response

    There is no recognised, institutionalised response to ritual murders from the Nigerian police or state. However, in the wake of such dastardly acts, very few public officers have spoken out and instituted deterrent measures against the malady. In October 2012, the Governor of Zamfara State, Sanni Yerima, in response to reports of incessant killings and disappearances of persons, especially children, reportedly warned ritual killers and cultists in a public address to leave the state, adding that they would be subject to the death penalty if found guilty of murder.

     

    What the law says…

    According to the Criminal Code (1990) of Nigeria, a person who commits a murder will be sentenced to death. Similarly, a person who subjects another to a “trial by ordeal” that results in death is also punishable by the death sentence. A person found in possession of a human head or skull within six months of its removal from a body or skeleton may also be sentenced to five years in prison.

    The Criminal Code also states that: Any person who by his statements or actions represents himself to be a witch or to have the power of witchcraft; or accuses or threatens to accuse any person with being a witch or with having the power of witchcraft; or makes or sells or uses, or assists or takes part in making or selling or using, or has in his possession or represents himself to be in possession of any juju, drug or charm which is intended to be used or reported to  possess the power to prevent or delay any person from doing an act which such person has a legal right to do, or to compel any person to do an act which such person has a legal right to refrain from doing, or which is alleged or reported to possess the power of causing any natural  phenomenon or any disease or epidemic; or directs or controls or presides at or is present at or takes part in the worship or invocation of any juju which is prohibited by an order of the  State Commissioner; or is in possession of or has control over any human remains which are used or are intended to be used in connection with the worship of invocation of any juju; or makes or uses or assists in making or using, or has in his possession anything whatsoever the making, use or possession of which has been prohibited by an order as being or believed to be associated with human sacrifice or other unlawful practice; is guilty of a misdemeanour, and is liable to imprisonment for two years.

    Ritual murder of minors is, however, not limited to any specific part of the country as every region, tribe and state has its own share of the scourge. In 2009, a confidential memo from the Nigerian police to registered security service providers reportedly indicated that ritual killings were particularly prevalent in the states of Lagos, Ogun, Kaduna, Abia, Kwara, Abuja, Rivers, and Kogi States.

     

    Why ritual murder?

    The motives for ritual murder may be cultural, religious or economic. Local psychiatrists observed that ritual murder while being illegal, may occasionally be conducted when a paramount chief dies. It is traditional that he should be buried with some other deceased person who would serve him in the next life. However, The Nation findings revealed that several culprits convicted for the offence of ritual murder, had done this, to obtain parts of the human anatomy for ritual ceremonies to enhance material fortunes. Some ritualists believe that the most powerful “juju” should contain parts of the human anatomy which can only be obtained through murder. A “juju” consists of .various herbal and animal products used in rituals to enhance personal fortune.

     

    Monsters or victims? Inside the mind of a child murderer

    For years, clinical psychiatrists and social psychologists have laboured to understand why child murderers are driven to murder infants and toddlers. Their inquiry is predicated on the need to know if such individuals’ condition is genetic, hormonal, biological, or the result of extreme cultural conditioning.

    “We all experience rage and inappropriate sexual instincts, yet we have some sort of internal cage that keeps our inner monsters locked up. Call it morality or social programming; these internal blockades have long since been trampled down in the psychopathic killer. Not only have they let loose the monster within, they are virtual slaves to its beastly appetites,” according to Oluwafunmike Odukale, a psychiatrist.

    According to her, child murderers have tested out a number of excuses for their behavior. Many have been known to blame their upbringing; others claimed that they were born with a “part” of them missing. Some others claim that certain voices in their heads urge them to do it. But a familiar refrain and pattern of belief among killers of children in the country is that, they would get rich by using severed heads and other body parts of minors for money-making rituals.

     

    Why are they so difficult to spot?

    They are so difficult to spot because oftentimes, a child murderer is a familiar face, a known member of the family that the child is fond of. It could be an uncle as in the case of three-year old Adunbarin or the child’s parents as in the case of Moni.

    It is never easy to spot a child ritual murderer, according to Biodun Onaopemipo, a clinical psychiatrist. According to him, “On the bus, in the street, it is the mentally ill we avoid. We sidestep the disheveled, unshaven man or woman who rants on over some private and invisible outrage. Yet if you intend to avoid the path of a child murderer, your best strategy is to sidestep the charming, the impeccably dressed, polite family member, distant relative and friend. They blend in, camouflaged in contemporary anonymity. They lurk in our homes, churches and malls, and prowl the freeways and streets.”

    Like all evolved predators, they know how to stalk their victims by gaining their trust. Child ritual murderers don’t wear their hearts on their sleeves. Instead, they hide behind a carefully constructed facade of pleasantness and normalcy. They put on a mask of sanity. It is all a manipulative act, designed to entice their victims into their trap. They are actors with a natural penchant for performance.

     

    The child-victim through the ritual murderer’s eyes

    When they are stalking a victim, ritual murderers don’t consciously feel anger, “but the violence shows the dissociated effect.” Many killers seem to go into a trance during their predatory and killing phases. They reduce the child to a symbolic totem meant to serve as a catalyst to instant wealth and acclaim. In some cases, the murderer summon angst from within to colour his reason and serve as a shield against his emotive and empathetic faculties. Thus it becomes easier for him or her to visualise the child or infant as the only stumbling block to his financial breakthrough and the life of his dreams, so argued Dele Otun, a clinical psychiatrist.

    Indeed, 15-year-old Azeez claimed that he seemed to go into a temporary trance while he decapitated his four-year-old neighbour. The teenager admitted that he was driven by the promise of financial reward by the man who contracted him to commit the dastardly act. Likewise, Omosaba’s confessional statement revealed that he beheaded his niece driven by the belief that he would become very rich by using her head for voodoo money-making rituals.

     

    After the murder

    According to Joel Norris, a psychiatrist, there are six phases of the serial killer’s cycle:  The Aura Phase, where the killer begins losing grip on reality; The Trolling Phase, when the killer searches for a victim; The Wooing Phase, where the killer lures his victim in; The Capture Phase, where the victim is entrapped; The Murder or Totem phase, which is the emotional high for killers; and finally, The Depression Phase, which occurs after the killing.

    Norris states that when depression sets in, it triggers the phases into beginning again. There is no means of ascertaining the workings of the Omosabas, Asayes and Osunas of this world; the Nigerian criminal justice and clinical psychiatry are yet to evolve a dependable measure of addressing such societal malaise, according to Olumide Kehinde, a social psychologist.

    According to him, “Parents need to be more vigilant in ensuring the safety of their children. They should endeavour to report suspicious persons in their neighbourhood to law enforcement agencies immediately they notice them in their vicinity.”

    But what happens when the assailant is a parent, uncle, aunt, close relative or neighbour of the child? The answer is reflective in the poor, tragic fate of three-year-olds like Princess  and Adunbarin.

  • ‘Imbibe hand hygiene culture’

    Nigerians have been urged to imbibe the culture of hand hygiene.

    This, according to the General Manager, Unigloves Medical, Kevin Onah,would keep the people safe from hygiene-related diseases and outbreaks. He said this in an interview in Lagos.

    Onah urged healthcare workers to always protect themselves and the patient by wearing hand gloves while working.

    He said outbreaks have a multiplying effect because an individual can transfer a disease to other people quickly.

    His words: “Depending on the severity, for every patient they treat, health care workers should change their hand gloves. This may be subject to the sorts of procedures that are  being carried out. It is not only about wearing gloves, but about wearing the correct size and wearing it appropriately.”

    He said the effectiveness of any medical practice depends to a large extent, on infection control procedures, especially those that will be used in patient care pre-operative, during the operation and post operative.

    He said healthcare providers tend to give excuse that not wearing gloves regularly save cost, “but what cost are they saving when people are dying. You should not wear gloves or sanitise your hands only when there is an outbreak“.

    Onah said when gloves and sanitisers are appropriately used; there would be massive reduction in diseases, adding: “It would inprove the economy of the country because a healthy nation is a wealthy country. A country cannot grow economically if it does not have healthy people.”

    Hygiene, he said, has to start from the grassroots, which is why the firm was previously in schools to teach children on how to properly wash and disinfect their hands. “We tried to instill the habit of healthy hygiene so they can grow with it,” he noted,” he said.

    He added: “We would be visiting medical schools and teaching hospitals to advise medical students on the need to wear gloves in all procedures. Also, the various types of gloves to use in different procedures maybe sterile or non- sterile, powered or powder free.

    “We do not encourage the use of powdered gloves in clinical settings because powder can cause a lot of problems to some patients. Gloves are powdered for easy wearing, but powder free can also be used,”he said.