Crime

Bizarre: Herbalist, unwilling to refund N9m, buries ex-Customs officer and daughter alive

She provoked me to anger. I did what I did because I considered her an enemy who was out to kill me if I did not act fast.”

Published

6 months ago

November 12, 2025

OCHEFA

326 Views

Image credit : NPF

A 64-year‑old herbalist has confessed to the Nigeria Police how he buried a 68-year‑old retired Customs officer and her 10-year‑old adopted daughter alive in a shallow grave behind his shrine in Ajuwon, Ogun State.

The herbalist, identified as Alhaji Olatunji Azeez, was paraded by the Lagos State Police command’s boss, Umar Manko.

He showed no sign of remorse as he said that he committed the act to prevent the victim from demanding N9 million he used to prepare a pregnancy concoction for her.

Trouble started for the retired Customs officer, one Mrs Angela Kerry, who resided at New Oko‑Oba area of Lagos, following her inability to give birth.

In her search for a possible solution, she was reportedly introduced to the suspect, who confessed to having carried out a series of rituals and also prepared concoctions for her to no avail.

Apparently disappointed, Kerry was said to have demanded the refund of N9 million earlier collected from her by the herbalist last month, consequent upon which he invited her to his shrine at 9, Wadoye Street, Ajuwon to collect the money.

Unknown to Kerry, who went in company of her adopted daughter, the herbalist had a sinister motive up his sleeves.

How mother, child were buried alive

Narrating how he buried both mother and child alive, the suspect who claimed to have three wives and five children said:

“She provoked me to anger. I did what I did because I considered her an enemy who was out to kill me if I did not act fast.”

“It all started five years ago when she was introduced to me by her friend, one Lizzy. She was attacked spiritually and I helped her out. She came again over a similar attack and I also prepared some concoction which saved her.

She told me that her family members were after her and I said she needed to fortify herself.

” Three years ago, she revealed that she has not been able to give birth and had not been pregnant for one day. I told her it would be impossible since she had reached menopause but she objected, saying many prophets had told her God could do it.

“Along the line, she said she wanted to sell her property at Omole, that she wanted to travel abroad to be away from her family. After selling the property, I discovered so many pastors started coming around here to get a share from the money realised. In fact she told me that she had paid N15 million to some pastors already.

“Then I told myself that if I did not act fast, these people will collect everything from her. I had to tell her to bring N9 million to prepare some concoction for her pregnancy, even though I knew it was impossible for her to get pregnant.

“She gave me N9 million. But after nine months, she returned, saying nothing had happened, and demanded a refund. That was where trouble started. I managed to pay her N 3.5 million and begged her to be patient for the balance.

“Then she charged into my temple one Friday demanding that she should be paid that day.

I told her I won’t pay her and that if she had gone to the hospital and the treatment failed would she have demanded a refund.

She threatened to deal with me if I did not pay her, saying she would show me she was in the force.

Then I told myself that if I did not act fast, these people will collect everything from her. I had to tell her to bring N9 million to prepare some concoction for her pregnancy, even though I knew it was impossible for her to get pregnant.

She gave me N9 million.

But after nine months, she came back saying nothing had happened and demanded a refund.

So, I decided to act fast before she tarnished my image. I pacified her to come back next day for the money. When leaving, I told her not to come with the daughter.

“After she left, I told myself I needed to act fast. I went to a building at the back of my shrine where I dug a hole. I spread a mat on the hole and laid a white cloth on it, exactly the way it looks in my shrine.

When she came next day, I told her to go inside the building that we needed to pray before we talk about the money. She asked if the prayer was for the pregnancy and I told her it was for fortification.

“I warned her not to take her daughter along but she refused. I did not argue any further because I did not want my plan to fail.

“On getting inside the building, I asked her to stand on the white cloth and immediately she did, she fell inside the hole and landed on her buttocks.

All I heard when she fell was yeh! When she fell, I said I have seen the end of my enemy and I have gained victory.

“The daughter did not say a word. She just stood watching. I had to cover the hole with over 40 buckets of sand.

After covering the hole, I asked myself what to do with the little girl. I left the room, locked it from outside.

When I came back at about 6.30pm, I met her on the sand. I quickly removed my jacket and poured about 30 bucket of sand to cover her.

Next day, I went to get two bricklayers to cement the place.”

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Crime

Lekki, Lagos Island account for over 27% of criminal cases in Lagos, says govt

Pedro said that stealing-related offences remained the most prevalent crimes in Lagos State, accounting for 44.7 percent of cases recorded on the Lagos Criminal Information System (LCIS) within the review period.

Published

14 hours ago

May 22, 2026

OCHEFA

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•Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro

Lagos State Government has said that more 27 percent of criminal cases recorded within the last three years in the state occurred in the Lagos Island and Lekki-Ajah axis, with Lekki/Ajah alone accounting for more than 16 percent of cases filed in court.

The state’s Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro, disclosed this during the 2026 media briefing to commemorate the third year of the second term of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

Other locations with high crime records include Ikorodu, Alimosho, Lagos Mainland/Yaba, and Mushin.

Crime

NDLEA smashes Nigerian-Mexican meth cartel, arrests baron, 3 Mexicans, 6 others.

Published

2 days ago

May 20, 2026

Charles Flames

40 Views

..…Recovers N480 billion meth, precursors from massive clandestine lab in Ogun forest.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dealt another crippling blow to transnational organized crime by completely dismantling a highly sophisticated, multi-million-dollar Nigerian- Mexican methamphetamine production syndicate.

The clinical, simultaneous operation, executed by elite operatives of the Agency’s Special Operations Unit (SOU), led to the shutdown of an industrial-scale clandestine laboratory, the biggest ever discovered in Nigeria hidden in a remote forest in Ijebu area of Ogun state, the seizure of the largest multi-billion naira meth in history, arrest of the cartel’s kingpin, three Mexican technical experts, and six other top local collaborators.

Giving details of the major operational success at a media briefing at the Agency’s headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday 20th May 2026, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) said following months of painstaking and credible intelligence gathering, operatives of a Special Operations Unit of the Agency launched well-coordinated strikes across Ogun and Lagos States within a space of 48 hours last week.

According to him, “barely two weeks ago, we announced the successful takedown of a high-profile Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO) headed by Simon Amadi in a complex, multi-country operation involving the US Drug Enforcement Administration, the Swiss, French, and the Greek law enforcement agencies. Today, I am proud to announce that the NDLEA has struck another crippling blow to the heart of transnational organized crime.

“Through a clinical, simultaneous operation executed by the elite operatives of our Special Operations Unit (SOU), we have successfully dismantled a sophisticated, transnational methamphetamine production syndicate run jointly by a Nigerian drug cartel and their Mexican counterparts.

“This network did not just traffic drugs; they were actively manufacturing industrial-scale quantities of highly lethal illicit substances right on our soil, threatening the national security and public health of Nigeria.

“After months of painstaking, credible intelligence, our operatives on Saturday, 16th May 2026, launched a well-coordinated, simultaneous strikes in both Ogun and Lagos States.
The primary target was a remote farm located at Abidagba forest, in Ijebu East Local Government Area of Ogun State. This farm was being used as a massive, highly dangerous clandestine methamphetamine laboratory by the Anochili Innocent Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO).

“Simultaneously, another tactical team closed in on the mastermind’s luxury fortress at No. 8 Tafawa Balewa Street, Golf Estate, Lakowe, Lekki area of Lagos State—the residence of the drug baron, Anochili Innocent.

“At the farm in the Ijebu forest, our operatives overran the clandestine laboratory in Ogun State, securing the perimeter and catching the syndicates completely off-guard. At this laboratory, we apprehended seven (7) key members of the cartel processing illicit substances.

“Most notably, the operation confirms our intelligence regarding the importation of foreign technical expertise by local cartels. Among those arrested are three (3) Mexican nationals brought into the country specifically to cook this deadly substance, alongside four (4) Nigerian collaborators.

“The suspects arrested in the forest lab are: Nwankwo Sunday Christian, 41; Igwe Abuchi Remijus, 42; Ifeanyichukwu Chibuike Joshua, 23; and Egwuonwu Uchenna Victor, 38; as well as the three Mexican meth experts: Martinez Felix Nemecto, 46; Jesus López Valles, 40; and
Torrero Juan Carlos, 51.

“Simultaneously, another tactical team closed in on the luxury residence of the cartel’s mastermind, Anochili Innocent, located at No. 8 Tafawa Balewa Street, Golf Estate, Lakowe, Lekki area of Lagos State. The drug baron was cornered and arrested.

A meticulous search of his premises led to the recovery of the international passports and mobile phones of the three arrested Mexican cooks, directly linking him to the importation and management of the foreign criminals.”

Not done with the dismantling of the drug cartel, Marwa disclosed that relentless follow-up operations on Monday 18th May 2026, led NDLEA operatives to another property owned by the baron at House 70, Close 3, Mayfair Estate, Lakowe, Lekki, Lagos where another key member of the syndicate, Kingsley Orike Omonughwa, 44, was arrested after which investigators stormed the residence of another syndicate member, Emeka Nwobum, whose property served as the cartel’s strategic stash house.

The arrest brings to 10 the total number of cartel members, including the baron, the three Mexican specialists, and six Nigerian collaborators, who are currently in NDLEA custody.

Providing further details of the operation, the NDLEA boss said “I equally directed the deployment of our specialized Chemical and Forensic Team to the clandestine laboratory to test, weigh, and secure the chemical components.

The sheer volume of dangerous precursor chemicals, industrial solvents, and finished products recovered is staggering.

“The operation yielded a massive 2,419.48 kilograms (over 2.4 tons) of chemical materials, including highly toxic, volatile, and crystallized methamphetamine worth Three Hundred and Sixty-Two Million, Nine Hundred and Twenty-Two Thousand Dollars ($362,922,000.00) in the international market.

This translates to over Four Hundred and Eighty Billion Naira (N480,000,000,000.00). Imagine this humongous amount in the control of criminal elements.

Also recovered from the cartel include: a Toyota Tacoma vehicle used for operations at the clandestine meth laboratory, and a Toyota Highlander seized from the kingpin’s residence.

“To put this in perspective, the 2,419.48 kilograms of finished and liquid methamphetamine seized represents millions of street doses that would have flooded our local communities and international markets, causing untold destruction, psychosis, and violence.”

Marwa noted that the dismantling of the Anochili Innocent DTO, coming directly on the heels of the Simon Amadi cartel takedown, sends an unequivocal, resounding message to drug barons both locally and internationally that Nigeria is a hostile territory for their business, warning that the Agency will continue to hunt them down wherever they are located.

“We are fully aware of the shifting tactics of these cartels, including the disturbing trend of hiring South American cartel specialists to set up production factories in our rural communities. Let it be known that no matter how deep into the bush you hide, no matter how secure your gated estate is, the NDLEA will hunt you down, disrupt your networks, and seize your ill-gotten wealth”, Marwa warned.

While appreciating the support from international partners to keep Nigeria and the global community safe from the criminal activities of drug cartels, he commended “the extraordinary bravery, professionalism, and precision of the NDLEA SOU operatives and our Chemical and Forensic Team. Nigeria owes you all a debt of gratitude.”

He urged Nigerians to remain vigilant adding that the forest lab in Ogun State was operating under the guise of a regular farm.

“Report suspicious activities, strange chemical odours, or unusual movements in your localities. This war is for the soul of our nation, and we will not back down until we achieve a drug-free Nigeria”, he added.

Crime

BREAKING: EFCC Nabs Convicted Ex-Power Minister Saleh Mamman After Years on The Run

Published

3 days ago

May 19, 2026

Charles Flames

62 Views

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, who was convicted and sentenced to 75 years in prison in absentia over corruption charges.

EFCC operatives apprehended Mamman in the Rigasa area of Kaduna State, where he was reportedly hiding.

Confirming the arrest, EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede said the former minister had been on the run following his conviction. Authorities indicated that details of his formal arraignment and transfer to correctional custody will be released in the coming hours.

Saleh Mamman served as Nigeria’s Minister of Power under former President Muhammadu Buhari.