The operatives of the Osun State Police Command have arrested a 50-year-old man, Kehinde Ganiyu, for allegedly killing his friend for a money ritual.

The command’s spokesperson, SP Yemisi Opalola, disclosed this to journalists during the parade of criminal suspects at the command headquarters in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, on Friday, July 26, 2024.

Opalalola stated that the suspect removed the throat of his victim after killing him.

She said: “On July 18, at 3:00 p.m., the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Oke-Odo Division, Osogbo, received information that a Ghanaian was killed by a yet-to-be-identified individual.

“Police detectives swung into action and through intelligence and investigation, one Kehinde Ganiyu, the intimate friend to the deceased was arrested.

“Ganiyu confessed to the heinous crime stating that, on July 9, at about 9:00 p.m., he went to the deceased’s residence with a knife where he met him sleeping because he was sick.

“He said he slaughtered the deceased with the kitchen knife and removed his throat.

“He added that he dried the throat for three days before he took it to a bush called Igbo Imese Aiwosi Area, located at Oba-Oke village, where he burnt it in a clay pot with some ritual materials and later mixed the burnt powder with soap for money ritual (Osole).”

Opalola said the suspect confessed to have singlehandedly carried out the operation, adding that an investigation was ongoing on the matter.

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The police spokesperson added that the command arrested a 60-year-old blacksmith in the Ada area of Osun State who allegedly fabricated single-barrel guns and provided ammunition to suspected criminals.

She stated that in the process of arresting the blacksmith, two other suspects, believed to be his customers, were also arrested.

She said two suspects were also arrested in the Ikire area of Osun State for alleged armed robbery and kidnapping while another suspect was apprehended in Ipetumodu for allegedly robbing a lady of her valuables and also inflicting machete cuts on her.

Opalola further disclosed that a suspected motorcycle thief was apprehended with a cut-to-size locally-made gun found in his house while two other suspects were arrested in criminal hideouts in Ile-Ife with two locally-made guns.

She said a medical doctor was also arrested by the command for allegedly raping a woman he promised to provide a job.

Opalola said a herder and his brother were equally arrested after it was reported that money was paid to him to purchase 54 cows but converted the money to build a house for himself.

The police spokesperson revealed that a tiler was also arrested by a police patrol team in Ede town with four bags of cement, which he confessed to have stolen from the building site where he was employed to work.

Opalola said all the suspects would be charged to court at the conclusion of the investigation.

The Star