Crime
Five Arrested In Niger State For Illegal Possession Of Human Skull
We went to the burial ground in Sakpe village and we dug up the body
The police in Niger state have arrested five suspects in connection with the unlawful possession of a human skull.
The suspects, identified as Isah Mohammed (26), Idris Mohammed (28), Ibrahim Jiya (18), Suleiman Usman (22), and Abdullahi Usman (24), have confessed to excavating the remains of Ndako Daniyan, a deceased person who had been interred for three years in the Sakpe village burial ground in the Edati local government area of Niger state.
Upon interrogation, Isah and Abdullahi disclosed that their quest for quick wealth led them to an Islamic Cleric known as Alfa Suleiman, hailing from Kwara State but residing in Bida.
Alfa Suleiman allegedly instructed them to procure a human skull for ritual purposes.
Following these instructions, the duo was en route to the Kpakungun area in Minna, carrying N30,000 for the transaction when they were intercepted and arrested by law enforcement authorities.
Isah, when questioned, stated, “We went to the burial ground in Sakpe village and we dug up the body. From what we saw, the person had been dead for three years, and he was from Sakpe village. The reason why we did this is because we want to be rich. It is not easy living in Nigeria. Life is hard, and we want to be rich so that we will leave this poverty and life of hardship.”
Confirming the arrests, DSP Abiodun Wasiu, the spokesperson for the Niger PoliceCommandd, revealed that Isah Mohammed and Idris Mohammed were apprehended on September 11 by operatives of a sister security agency during a routine patrol at the toll-gate along Bida-Minna road.
He said the suspects were intercepted while travelling in a Mitsubishi Lancer vehicle, and the human skull was discovered concealed in a bag during a search of the passengers.
Abiodun further stated that during the interrogation, the suspects disclosed the involvement of three additional individuals in the grave-digging operation, subsequently leading to the arrest of the three others.
The five suspects have been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) in Minna for a thorough and discreet investigation. Legal proceedings are pending as the case remains under active investigation.