But if worshippers, who seek to heal from some of the clerics, go by the confessions of a Muslim cleric and a church prophet on how they were making use of human parts to solve problems brought to them by their clients, they would likely be shaken to their foundations.
This is because a 35-year-old Muslim cleric, Alfa Sulaiman Ahmed has opened up to the police on how he had been buying human flesh to prepare money-making charms for his clients and himself.
Ahmed and three others, identified as Olapade Saheed (32), Olatunji Abiodun (26) and Akiyele Tope (45), were arrested by the police in Ibadan, Oyo State after Saheed and Abiodun was caught with a fresh human head and two hands on a motorcycle at the Ayegun area of the city.
The state Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Odude, had told Saturday Tribune, on Thursday, that Saheed and Abiodun were first apprehended by the vigilance group members at Ayegun area on February 3, at about 5:00 a.m, after the suspects had severed the body parts from a corpse buried about four days before they exhumed it. He added that the SARS operatives arrested Ahmed and Tope after interrogating the first two.
Saheed had confessed to Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) operatives that it was Ahmed who invited them to exhume a corpse because he needed human flesh. He further said that they also decided to take the head and hands of the corpse to sell to a prophet who needed them.
Saturday Tribune had an interview session with the suspects. Below are the excerpts:
Sulaiman Ahmed
I live in Ayegun-Olomi. I am a Muslim cleric (Alfa); people come to me for consultations and prayers.
I wanted to buy human flesh from Saheed and Abiodun. I knew them through one Alfa Abdulmumuni Ayelabegan. I used to give Ayelabegan money to get the human flesh. When I told him of my latest need of human flesh, he said would invite them to meet with me.
They came and I took them to where a grave was. I told them to exhume the corpse in it and get me a chunk of flesh. I was to use the flesh to prepare soap for money-making charms for some of my clients and for myself.
I used to pay between N1,500 and N2,000 for a chunk of flesh.
Akinyele Tope
I live in Ojagbo, Ibadan, but I am an indigene of Ondo town in Ondo State. I am a prophet and had been doing the job for 15 years. I am the founder of The Light of God Cherubim and Seraphim Church at Ojagbo. I have between seven and 10 members.
Human bones were found with me. It was one Baba Tayo that came to me that his elder brother had a stroke, asking for the solution to it. I asked him to look for dry human leg bones, nine spiders and nine shells of pepper (ataare) and bring them to me. He said he would tell a boy who used to dig foundations and drainages, as he disclosed that the boy sometimes stumbled on dry bones.
He brought Saheed who helped him to get the human bones. So I decided to buy some of the human bones, with the belief that it would be useful for me at another time. I paid him N2,000 and kept the bones at home. I have arrested about four days after.
Saheed OlapadeIt
He is not in the bible that human parts should be used for rituals to heal the sick. I know it is mainly the job of a native doctor, but healing is part of the job of a prophet too.
It was Alfa Ahmed who called me to come to Ayegun area of Ibadan to meet him. One Alfa Ayelabegan introduced me to him. I went with my partner, Abiodun.
When we got to Ayegun, we took a bike to Alapa Community where he lived. He said he wanted me to help him exhume a corpse, as he needed some human flesh.
The grave we were to exhume was in a third house away from his. It was covered with a mat. Alfa Ahmed said we would do the job between 1:30 and 2:00 a.m. He took us to his house to sleep. At about 2:00 am, he woke us up and we went to the grave to exhume the corpse.
We called him that we had concluded the job and he came out to take the chunks of flesh he needed. I also took the head and hands of the corpse that I wanted to sell to another prophet that Baba Tayo linked me with.
At about 5:00 a.m, we chartered a bike to take us out of the community, but we were stopped by night guards. They asked us what was in the bag we were carrying that was oozing out the stench.
When they checked and saw a human head, people from the neighbourhood came out in droves and attacked with sticks and cutlasses. It was the timely arrival of SARS operatives that saved us from being lynched.
Olatunji Abiodun
I was invited for the job by Saheed and I agreed to go with him. The alfa promised to pay me N1,500, but he was yet to pay when we were apprehended by the police.
and then