For 25-year-old mother of two, simply known as Barakat, years of relationship with Alfa Tiamiyu Abass made her trust him completely, moreso that she saw him as her spiritual mentor and advisor. But now, she must be full of regrets in her grave, seeing the way her life was terminated abruptly by someone she saw as a confidant. In fact, dejected Barakat would have bitten her fingers in regret, except that she even lost her fingers to the killer who severed them with other parts of her body for ritual purpose
Alfa Abass was arrested by Oyo State Police Command when he was found with decomposing human parts later discovered to be those of Barakat.
According to Nigerian Tribune, the suspect was exposed when a report was received by Atiba Division on May 15 that a corpse was seen dumped by the side of a stream at Jibola Afonja Street in Oyo town.
Briefing journalists on the suspect’s arrest, the state Commissioner of Police, Ngozi Onadeko, said that when the report was received, a team of detectives from the division went to the scene where it was discovered that the corpse was that of Barakat, packed in a sack, already decomposing, with the head, hands, toes and flesh from the thigh cut off from the body.
Shocked by the discovery, people of the community who had gathered were said to have started perceiving a foul smell from Abass’s residence. They traced the smell to the point it was coming from, only to discover Barakat’s missing body parts in Abass’s room.
The police commissioner said: “Upon interrogation, Alfa Tiamiyu Abass confessed to have killed the deceased who happened to be his client. He stated further that he, with one Qudus, now at large, perpetrated the crime act.
“A search was conducted in his house and all the parts removed from the deceased body were recovered.”
She added that investigation was ongoing to arrest Qudus for prosecution.
It was learnt that the suspect’s family and that of the deceased had been together for long. He was even the one who presided at the naming ceremony of the two children that the deceased had. She was said to have had a misunderstanding with her husband, leading to her moving out of her matrimonial home. She reportedly called the Alfa, telling him about her predicament. That was when he told her to come for the solution to her problem. As she arrived, he told her that he wanted to give her something to make her a favoured woman, but asked her to drink gin first. After taking the gin in compliance with what she perceived as spiritual directive, she became weak and was asked to lie down. As she did and slept off, Abass pressed a cutlass on her throat to suffocate her and use it to cut her head. He then picked a knife and cut the neck.
In a hurry to finish the job, Abass was said to have called Qudus to hold the body while he was cutting the additional needed parts.
During investigation, the suspect told detectives that that was the first time he had killed for ritual purposes but confessed that he had been buying human parts for such rituals in the past. He said that he deleted the number of the parts seller from his phone when he learnt that he had been arrested so that he would not be traced to him. He said he didn’t know his name as they were just introduced to each other.
He was said to possess a sack full of different notebooks on how to perform rituals and what to use as ingredients. He used to take it from different people.
During investigation, a shrine-like structure was found in his house suspected of being used to swindle clients.
He narrated his involvement thus: “I’m from Oyo town. I’m 29 years old. I became an Alfa about nine years ago. I pray for people and take spiritual steps to find solutions to their problems.
I was arrested by the police when found with human parts. “Actually, I killed a lady whom I asked to come to me for special prayers and spiritual medicine. We were together and she used to come to me frequently for prayers. She was very nice to me. She was my client but we once had sex because she wanted it. She used to seek beads that I had worked on spiritually so that she would be favoured by men and get money from them easily.
“What happened was that when she got to my house at about 10pm, I gave her gin to drink in preparation for the medicine I wanted to give her so that she would get favour from people. It was a pretence from my side. After she drank the gin, she felt so weak that she slept. As she slept, I took a cutlass and pressed it on her neck to suffocate her before killing her. I tried to use the cutlass but when it was not very effective, I took a knife and used it to slice off her head. I also cut her hands, flesh from her thighs and her two big toes. I wanted to use them for money rituals but kept some of the parts for those who might need them.
“After the needed parts were removed with the help of a relative, Qudus, whom I called to join me, we took the body stump to a bush at Oroki area and dumped it by a stream.
“On my return home, I started the ritual process by placing charmed soap on the head. The parts were with me for a week before my act was discovered through the foul smell coming from where I kept them after soaking them in alcohol for preservation.”
In an update, it was learnt that Abass was arraigned in Chief Magistrates’ Court 1, Iyaganku, Ibadan, last Friday on a holden charge before Mr E. A. Idowu.
In a charge sheet with number MI/506c/22, a two-count charge of murder was slammed on him. After the charge was read, his plea was not taken and the Chief Magistrate ordered that he should be remanded at the Abolongo Correctional Centre, Oyo town, while the case was adjourned till July 19.
Mr Idowu also directed that his case file be sent to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) for legal advice.
(Nigeria Tribune )
