Devil pushed me to kill my friend for ritual —Osun herbalist 

A herbalist based in Oba-Oke, Osun State, Ganiyu Kehinde, arrested by the police for killing his friend, Emmanuel Collins, has said he committed the act in a bid to get human parts that would be used for money rituals.

Kehinde was among the suspects arrested across the state for various crimes paraded by the police at Osun Command’s headquarters in Osogbo on Friday.

Giving the facts of the case, Osun Police Command’s spokesperson, Yemisi Opalola, said it was reported at Oke-Odo Division in Osogbo that a Ghanaian, Collins, aged 35, was killed by a yet-to-be-identified individual.

“Police detectives swung into action, and through intelligence led to an investigation, one Kehinde Ganiyu ‘m’ intimate friend to the deceased was arrested. He confessed to the commission of the heinous crime and stated that, on 9th July 2024, at about 9:00 pm, he went to the deceased’s residence with a knife, where he met him sleeping because he was sick.

“That he slaughtered the deceased with the kitchen knife and removed his throat. He added further 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).

“He confessed to having singlehandedly carried out the operation. The investigation is still ongoing, and the suspect will be charged to court after the investigation accordingly,” Opalola said.

Responding to questions from journalists, Kehinde, who claimed to be an herbalist, admitted killing the deceased, adding that he used the throat for money ritual soap.

He said I am a herbalist. “The deceased was my friend. I could not tell what came over me. I met him sick, and I attacked him and killed him for a money ritual. The devil pushed me to kill my friend for a money ritual. After killing him, I removed his throat and used it to prepare a soap for money ritual, which I had. I have done similar soap for four Yahoo boys before. Devil pushed me to do it.”

Also paraded was a 22-year-old Effiong Saviour, who, in Ipetumodu, allegedly attacked a woman with a cutlass and robbed her of her handbag containing a phone, GTB ATM card, and N6,000 after inflicting machete cuts on her.

Warning against acts of criminality, Opalola said all suspects would be charged to court upon the conclusion of an investigation into their various crimes, urging the residents to volunteer timely information that would prevent crime.