Police parades 19-year-old suspected serial killer of Barakat Bello, others in Oyo (photos)

The Oyo state police command today paraded a 19-year-old man, Sunday Shodipe, suspected to be behind the killing of Barakat Bello and four others in Akinyele Local Government, Ibadan, Oyo State capital.

Recall that there have been lots of killings within the local government in recent times. Notable among them is the rape and murder of Bello Barakat, an 18 years old undergraduate that was killed on the 1st of June, 2020 at Oloro Area of Akinyele. 

On June 5, a pregnant woman, Azeezat Shomuyiwa’s head was smashed with a stone. On June 13, Grace Oshiagwu, a female student of Oke-Ogun Polytechnic, was killed in the local government and on June 22, a 5 year-old-boy, Mujeeb, was also hacked to death inside his compound in the local government area. This prompted the police to begin a full-scale investigation.

Last week, the command announced that the suspects linked to the killings have been arrested.

While being paraded, the suspected serial killer, Sunday Shodipe, recounted how he goes about killing his victims. He said a certain herbalist who he worked for, Adedokun Yinusa Ajani (50), sends him out for such assignments. He said anytime he wanted to go for the operation, the herbalist would instruct him to kneel down in front of him and he would make some incantations and then put something on his tongue three times.

According to Sunday,  whenever he locates his victims, he would hit them with a shovel and when they fall in the pool of their own blood, he would make some incantations and move around the body three times and then place the body on his back for about five minutes with his eyes closed before leaving the scene.

When asked if he was not afraid that anybody could come around while backing the body, the suspected serial killer said the herbalist had told him that nobody would come around during the period. He said after the operation, he would return to the herbalist, who would make some incantations again.

When asked for the reasons for the killings, Sunday said he didn’t know as it was the herbalist who was just sending him on such errands.

The accused herbalist, Adedokun Yinusa Ajani, however, denied sending Sunday on a killing spree. He claimed Sunday’s mother brought him to his house some time ago that he was a wayward child and he did some spiritual work for him. He, however, said that after two months, she returned with the boy, asking him to learn how to become a herbalist.

“He had only spent six days with me when I told him to leave because I was not satisfied with his behaviour and it was not long after that that I was arrested by the police,” Ajani said

While parading the suspects, the state Commissioner of Police, Joe Nwachukwu Enwonwu, said the suspects were arrested after recovering the phone of one of the victims from one Shehu Usman. Enwonwu said upon interrogation, Shehu denied involvement in any crime but gave useful information which subsequently led to the arrest of Shodipe and Ajani. The police boss said the suspects were responsible for the killings of Wasilat Adeola, Barakat Bello, Grace Oshiagwu, Mojeed Tirimisiyu, who was just five years old, and the attack on Adeola Azeez and her daughter, Dolapo Oyeyemi, who both survived.

Items recovered from them include a Techno mobile phone, an iPhone Xs Max, and one Itel phone.

Four other suspected ritualists were also paraded.

One of them, Abiodun Oladejo (35), who was allegedly responsible for the killing of a woman, Oluwasayo Fagbemi, who was killed in front of her house at Sasa area on June 24, while washing plates at about 5:40 a.m. Three other suspects were also arrested in connection with the killing and another attempted murder case.

Speaking to newsmen, Olasoji confessed to how he killed Fagbemi with a stick and wiped her blood with a handkerchief for ritual purposes.