The Ogun State Police Command has arrested a 49-year-old man identified as Ganiyu Shina after he was caught bathing with blood at a river bank in Abeokuta, the state capital.
According to a statement by the command’s spokesperson, Abimbola Oyeyemi, the suspect was arrested on Thursday.
Oyeyemi disclosed that Shina, who resides on Oguji street, Obantoko in Odeda Local Government Area, was sighted by members of the Kotopo community where he reportedly parked his Nissan commercial vehicle, came out with local sponge and a container filled with blood and started bathing with it.
Narrating the event, Oyeyemi said, “Immediately he discovered that some people were watching him, he took to his heels, but was chased and apprehended by members of the community.
“When the police at Aregbe divisional headquarters were informed of the incident by a member of the community, the Divisional Police Officer, Bunmi Asogbon, quickly led the patrol team to the scene and suspect was brought to the station.”
Oyeyemi further explained that during interrogation, the suspect said he was instructed to carry out the rituals by his herbalist.
He said that the suspect claimed that the blood he used was that of a cow and not human, however, the command has opened an investigation into the matter.
The statement added that the Commissioner of Police, Lanre Bankole, had directed that the remaining blood should be taken for laboratory analysis to ascertain whether it is human blood or not.
The CP praised members of the community for not taken the laws into their own hands and assured them that the suspect would be properly investigated.
