Osun State Police Command has provided details on the killing of a Federal Road Safety Corps officer Lasisi Funmilayo and her 12-year-old daughter, Sewa, following the arrest of key suspects linked to the incident.
Funmilayo and her daughter were declared missing on the morning of Sunday, November 2, after leaving their residence at Obasanjo Hilltop Estate, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta and not returning.
It was later gathered that the 39-year-old and her daughter were found dead with mutilated body parts at a suspected herbalist’s den in Osun, in what authorities suspect to be a ritual killing.
The state Commissioner of Police, Ibrahim Gotan, briefed journalists in Osogbo on Wednesday, explaining that the arrests began after the wife of one of the suspects, Victor Fajemirokun, reported him missing.
His vehicle was later found abandoned in Ikoyi, Osun State.
According to the CP, investigations led to the arrest of an herbalist, Gboyega Daramola, also known as Aberefa, on November 16.
Mr Daramola reportedly told investigators that Mr Fajemirokun brought Funmilayo and her daughter to his residence in Ijebu-Jesa on November 2 for a ritual.
He said the victims were killed by his associates, identified as Sunday James, Kehinde and Idowu, two of whom are still at large.
Daramola later led detectives to the Esa-Odo Dam, where Funmilayo’s body was recovered.
The remains had missing parts, including the head, hands and other organs.
The body was deposited at the UNIOSUN Teaching Hospital morgue.
James also took police officers to a bush where the body of the 12-year-old was recovered, also with parts missing.
Fajemirokun, who was arrested in Ghana through Interpol collaboration, told journalists he took Funmilayo to the herbalist after being told by a cleric that she was responsible for his setbacks.
He said he agreed to her being killed but fled after the incident.
“I went there with Funmilayo for spiritual cleansing. The man told Funmilayo she had to do some rituals. Three men took her to the bush. It was in the bush that we killed her. The daughter went with us,” he said.
He claimed he did not know organs were removed until he heard reports after fleeing to Ibadan and later Ghana.
James, one of the herbalist’s aides, said he acted on instructions from Daramola.
“My boss ordered me to kill them. We took them to the bush and slit their throats. After that, we cut the woman into pieces,” he said.
CP Gotan said the police would charge the suspects after concluding investigations, adding that efforts were ongoing to arrest the remaining persons connected to the crime.
