Benin City, Edo state – The Edo state police command on Wednesday, February 26, arrested a prominent pastor Ijebor Simon and one Destiny Okojabhole over the alleged murder of a 7-year-old boy, Evans Okojabhole.
As reported by The Punch, a statement by Moses Yamu, the spokesperson of the police in Edo state, the incident was reported by the deceased’s father, John Okhojibole, who lives on Jehovah Witness Road, off Elebesunu Street in Irrua, Edo state.
Edo police investigate murder case
Yamu said the late Evans was sighted with his stomach ripped open, his feet severed from his ankle, and some fingers cut off. The late boy was dumped in the bush close to their house, 24 hours after he was reported missing.
The police’s statement partly reads:
“During preliminary investigations, two suspects, Pastor Ijebor Simon (45 years) and Destiny Okojabhole (23 years), have been arrested by operatives of Irrua Divisional Headquarters and transferred to the State Criminal Investigations Department Benin-City for further investigation.”
Although the police did not link the apparent murder to ritual killing, some commenters have said the cleric may have carried out the murder for such ungodly purposes.
Ritual killing is common in Nigeria and it is a worry for state actors.
In 2022, Nigeria’s house of representatives urged the country’s federal government to declare a state of emergency on the rising incidence of ritual killings in the country.
The country’s lower legislative chamber also called on the police hierarchy to “take urgent steps to increase surveillance and intelligence gathering with a view to apprehend and prosecute (sic) all perpetrators of ritual killings in Nigeria.”
Especially for desperate people eager to “belong” and facing tremendous pressure to discharge a range of cultural obligations, ritual killings are just one among a subset of illegal options occupying different nodes on an ambiguous moral spectrum.
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Earlier, Legit.ng reported that police authorities in Nigeria confirmed the arrest of Wilfred Bonse and three other suspects allegedly involved in cybercrime.
The alleged fraud against Patricia Technologies reportedly scammed the company of N607 million.
