The ‘ money seeking ritualists’
By Ayo Kehinde
A herbalist in Owode area in Ogun State, South West Nigeria during the week told a father and his three other accomplices on a mission to use his son to make money, that ” there is nothing like money ritual.”
His warning did not persuade the money- ritual – seeking Nigerians and 50-year-old farmer from Benin Republic, Poni Bada, who told Police that he decided to use his last child for money rituals in Nigeria to be able feed the rest members of the family and educate the children.
Bada spoke after they were arrested by operatives of Zone 2 Police Command overseeing Lagos and Ogun States in south west Nigeria.
Bada was arrested alongside his three Nigerian accomplices, namely, Ige Koselu, Benjamin Balovi and Segun Shile, who took him to the herbalist’s home in Owode area of Ogun State, where his nine-year-old last child, Agbe, was to be used for the ‘ money ritual.’
Narrating his experience, Bada said, “I have 10 children from three wives.
“The situation of things kept going from bad to worse.
“I could not feed my children.
“I then decided to use my last child, Agbe, for a money ritual, so that I could train the other children and have better living conditions.
“In May 2023, I left my home town in Jakotome, Benin Republic for Nigeria to visit my brother, Benjamin Balobi, at Ilaro, Ogun State, who earlier told me he was doing well as a farmer and that the owner of a farmland was looking for labourers.
“That was how I brought Agbe to Nigeria to work.
“But the thought of using him for a money ritual came up when I realised that the money paid as salary to my son was very poor.
“I told Balobi to help me get a herbalist that would help me with the money rituals.
“He said he knew no one, but promised to help me find a herbalist who might have information on it.
“He informed Ige Koshelu (one of the suspects) who found someone that promised to take us to the herbalist’s place in Sango.
“But we were taken to another herbalist’s place in Owode, where we were arrested.”
In his own confession, Shile, a commercial motorcyclist, said: “If I had known, I would have withdrawn.
“We were warned by the herbalist I took them to at Owode, Ogun State not to use the boy.
“When I called the herbalist on the phone, he said there was nothing like money rituals.
“Few days later, he invited me to bring the person that would be used for the rituals.
“Immediately he sighted the boy, he stated categorically that the child’s head was too strong to be used for rituals.
“He, however, demanded N100,000 from us to take to another herbalist who would perform the rituals.
“Three of us: Balobi, Koshelu and myself, who accompanied the father of the boy there, then went outside to discuss how to raise the money. Balobi brought N50,000 and Koshelu and I addedN25,000 each.
“We told the boy’s father not to pay since he was donating his son for the ritual.
“The agreement was for him to give us out of what would come out of the process.
“When we handed the money to the herbalist, he picked up his phone and called someone.
“To our surprise, the next thing we saw were policemen.”
