Police rescue suspected ritualist from crowd in Akwa Ibom

But had the police intervened in time, a father of three from Anambra State would have been lynched by an angry mob following the discovery of the remains of a little boy hidden in a box in his possession.

The incident, LEADERSHIP learned, occurred at Itam timber market area of ​​Itu Local Government Area of ​​Akwa Ibom State where some vigilant youths intercepted the man, corpse and two children and immediately subjected him to severe beatings to extract a confession from the suspect. before the arrival of the police.

“We suspected that there might be something incriminating in the box, and when we revealed it, and to our surprise, it was the dead body of a little boy, carefully wrapped and packed in the box,” said one of the angry youths , identified simply as Udo Akpan, explained.

After being rescued, the suspect explained that he was the father of the two boys and the deceased, and that he took the boy’s corpse home for burial in his native state of Anambra as it is the tradition of his community not to bury dead indigenous people. outside.

Confirming the incident on Wednesday, the State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Timfon John said: “What happened about the Itam incident is that a father of three boys was intercepted by the police in Itam with a dead boy and two children. living boys.

“After investigation, the man told police that all three boys, including the dead ones, are his. And that in his tradition the deceased men are not buried outside their community. So, he took his late son, accompanied by the other siblings, to the village in Anambra State for burial.

According to the police spokesperson, the police recovered the dead body and deposited it in the mortuary while investigations continued to establish the truth or otherwise of the matter.