The Oyo State Police Command has apprehended two suspects, including a septuagenarian, for allegedly exhuming corpses and selling human parts to ritualists. The arrests followed a tip-off received by detectives at the Iyaganku Divisional Police Headquarters in Ibadan.
According to police spokesperson Adewale Osifeso, the operation commenced with a search of one suspect’s residence, located in a Muslim community in Ibadan. During the search, a female human torso and various dismembered remains, including severed limbs and dried bones, were discovered stored in bags and paint buckets.
The primary suspect confessed to exhuming the body from a cemetery in Awa-Ijebu, Ogun State, and selling the parts to ritualists. His confession led to the arrest of the second suspect, who admitted to purchasing some of the human remains.
The case has been transferred to the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation. Police Commissioner Johnson Ademola has advised cemetery managers to enhance security measures and urged transporters to scrutinize the contents of passengers’ baggage to prevent facilitating illicit activities.
This alarming incident underscores the ongoing concerns regarding ritualistic practices and the trafficking of human remains in the region.
