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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
Men of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested two suspected internet fraudsters, aka ‘Yahoo Boys,’ for allegedly murdering and mutilating the body of a 40-year-old man, Abdullahi Azeez, for money rituals.
The command’s spokesperson, Abimbola Oyeyemi, in a statement on Sunday said the suspects, Friday Abinya Odeh, 21; and Poso Idowu, 20, were arrested following a report lodged at Owode Egba Divisional Headquarters by the relatives of the victim.
He said that the relatives of the victim told the police that Azeez left his home in Kobape area of Abeokuta on June 8, 2022, and did not return.
According to the police image maker, the Commissioner of Police, Lanre Bankole, immediately directed the anti-kidnapping unit of the State Criminal Investigation Departments(SCID) to take over “the investigation and unravel the mystery behind the sudden disappearance of the man.”
“SP Taiwo Opadiran-led team subsequently embarked on a technical and intelligence-based investigation which led them to the hideout of Friday Abinya Odeh in September.
“The SIM card of the victim was recovered at the scene. Abinya’s arrest led to the apprehension of his accomplice, Poso Idowu.
“On interrogation, the suspects confessed that they kidnapped the victim on the 8th of June, 2022, at Kobape area, at 7:30 pm, from where they forcefully took him to the bush, killed him and mutilated his body.
“They confessed further that it was one herbalist simply identified as Arab Money who they claimed to have contacted on Facebook that prescribed the ritual for them,” Oyeyemi said.
The police spokesperson added that “all efforts to recover the remains of the victim proved abortive as the suspects claimed to have disposed of it.”
He said the Commission of Police has directed that the suspects be charged to court as soon as the investigation is concluded.