The Oyo State Police Command has arrested two suspects for allegedly exhuming corpses and selling body parts to ritualists.
The Command’s Public Relations Officer, Adewale Osifeso, confirmed the arrest in a statement released in Ibadan on Friday.
Arrest and Investigation.
According to Osifeso, the arrest was made possible following a tip-off received by detectives at the Iyaganku Divisional Police Headquarters. Acting on the intelligence, officers conducted a search of a suspect’s residence in the Muslim area of Ibadan.
“During the search, detectives discovered a female human torso and other dismembered remains, including severed limbs and dried bones stored in bags and paint buckets,” Osifeso stated.
The suspect reportedly confessed to exhuming a corpse from a cemetery in Awa-Ijebu, Ijebu North Local Government Area of Ogun State, before selling the body parts to ritualists.
Following his confession, he led officers to the cemetery, where his claims were verified. This subsequently led to the arrest of a second suspect, a septuagenarian, who admitted to purchasing human parts from him.
Ongoing Investigation
The case has been transferred to the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation. Authorities are working to identify and apprehend all individuals connected to the crime.
Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Johnson Ademola, has urged cemetery managers to remain vigilant amid rising concerns over corpse exhumation for ritual purposes.
Additionally, he advised transporters to carefully inspect passengers’ baggage to prevent the unintentional transportation of illicit materials.
