‘Cultist killed my son, tried to dump him in canal’

• Another victim killed, body dumped in father’s house

Endurance

A grieving father, Prince Augustine Ekpoto, has told how unknown cultists stabbed his son to death and attempted to dump his corpse into a canal at the Ajegunle area of Lagos State.

This was also as another victim, Shadrach Ekokodje 28, aka 50, was killed by cultists at Ovwian Aladja axis of Delta State after violence broke out among members of Arrow-Baggar cult group, over leadership crisis.
Ekokodje’s assailants later dumped his body in front of his father’s house on Yola Street, Delta Steel Company (DSC) township in Aladja. Recounting the murder of his son at Ajegunle, Ekpoto said nobody would have known the whereabouts of his son’s corpse, if not that he caught two youngsters attempting to fling it into the canal.
He said that immediately he realised the corpse was that of his 18-year-old son, Endurance Augustine, a Senior Secondary School (SS 2), student of Tin-can Island, Ajegunle, Lagos State, he broke down and wept, but held tightly onto the youngsters until policemen from Ajeromi Police Station, arrived the scene and arrested them. Ekpoto would later be told that his son was stabbed on the chest and arms repeatedly by a cult member.
Choking on emotions, he muttered: “I was told that there was a naming ceremony at Zumora Street; that a group started fighting Ezeagu Street boys. As my son wanted to run, he slipped and fell down. His assailants stabbed him on the chest and arms.
The intention was clearly to kill him.” The murder of Endurance took place at Zumora Street, Ajeromi area of Ajegunle, on August 3, 2016. Residents said that cult groups at Zumora/ Kehinde streets had been having a ruining battle with those at Ezeagu Street for long.
Nobody however, knew the reason or foundation of the feud among the cult groups in Ajegunle. Nobody in the area, where Endurance was killed, fingered him as a cultist. Recollecting the event of the fateful day, Ekpoto said that at about 8:30 pm, he saw people running in panic. He didn’t know what was happening and never guessed that his son was a victim in the melee. He said that it was his wife, Endurance’s step-mother, who gave him the shattering news.
Ekpoto said: “I ran out and saw two persons, Malik and Omole; they were carrying his corpse towards the canal. They wanted to abandon his body in the canal. But some resident refused to allow them to do that.
The people who refused to allow them dumped the corpse into the canal said they might be implicated when police arrive. My son was lifeless. I asked Malik and Omole, what they did to my son. Both of them said that it was one Jinadu that instructed them to take the corpse to the canal.”
It was further learnt that Endurance’s mother had separated from Ekpoto and moved to Cross River State. Endurance had been living with his father, who remarried and had four other children. A resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “Endurance was a quiet boy. He only went to the naming ceremony because his friend, D.J, invited him to the event.
An argument broke out between boys from Kehinde and Zimora streets. These boys were already in possessions of machetes and daggers. When the Ezeagu boys took to their heels, Endurance fell down and was stabbed on the chest and arms.
He bled profusely until he died.” Meanwhile, people living at No 69, Ezeagu Street, where Endurance lived, have fled their homes. There are fears that Kehinde and Zimora streets cultists would carry out another attack.
One of the fleeing residents said: “Yes, I have relocated my family from this compound. We are not secure here. We heard that some boys from our street went for reprisal attack because of the late Endurance. The story going round is that the Zimora and Kehinde boys are coming, not only to fight us, but to set our building on fire. We have been seeing strange movements since then.
Almost all the men living in this compound have relocated their families.” The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Dolapo Badmus, confirmed the murder of Endurance. She said: “The murder occurred during rival cult activities. His body has been deposited at Ajeromi General Hospital Mortuary.
The matter has been transferred to the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigations Department (SCIID), Panti, Yaba.” Similarly, Ekokodje was allegedly jostling to succeed the late Capon of the group before other contestants ganged up and killed him.
He was allegedly lured by other members of the group, led by Prince Eweta, who is a major contestant for the position, to Agbada Waterside bush, where he was tortured to death. His corpse was later dumped in his father’s house.
The Delta State Commissioner of Police, Zanna Ibrahim, who confirmed the murder case at the command headquarters in Asaba, said Anti-Cult Unit had been established to boost the war against cultism.
He said two principal suspects, Sunday Rume, 20 and Churchill Samson 24, were arrested at Orhuworhun town in connection with the murder. Ibrahim further said: “The suspects confessed to the crime and revealed how the deceased, who was the next to succeed the late Capon of the cult group, was lured to the waterside bush and killed.”
Ibrahim also said that some armed young men and women, suspected to be members of Aiye confraternity, who stole money and other valuables worth over N7.7 million and thereafter went underground, had been arrested.
The commissioner said the suspects armed themselves with guns, machetes and other weapons, went on the rampage in Nsukwa community, attacked some persons, destroyed property and stole money.
The police boss said: “Provoked, the same group of cultists attacked Nsukwa village market and dispossessed traders of their wares and belongings. Detectives embarked on investigation and carried out raids of the areas.
We arrested 10 suspects.” Ibrahim gave the names of the suspects as Patience Ashinze, Nwaka Faith, Ifeoma Benita Ogbolu, Sunday Blessing, Nkadi Blessing and Obi Odumma, all women.
Others are Azubuike Chijeni aka Mosquito, Gorge Igwe aka Native Doctor, Oluchukwu Okafor, Ezenna Isaac and Azuka Okoh, all men.https://newtelegraphonline.com/cultist-killed-son-tried-dump-canal/