The Kogi State Police Command has arrested four suspects involved in the murder of Damilola Olowoyo, a 19-year-old student of the Federal University Lokoja, for a money ritual. Among the suspects is Jeremiah Paul, 20, who confessed to killing Olowoyo. The other suspects, Emmanuel Otitoju, Barnabas Olugbenga, and Ajayi Basit Ayomide, were also paraded by the police.
Paul, the prime suspect, explained how he met Olowoyo with the intent to use her for a money ritual. He admitted that he had met a native doctor on TikTok and contacted him through WhatsApp.
“I came to Kogi State to hustle. I met Damilola last Sunday. I approached her, and she accepted. We started chatting, but I already planned to use her for a ritual,” Paul confessed.
He explained further how he drugged the victim with a mixture of codeine and Sprite, which he drank first to avoid raising her suspicions.
“When she became weak, I took her to an uncompleted building and strangled her to death. I used her own cloth to tie her legs and neck, and then I dragged her body to a nearby bush where I removed the body parts that the native doctor requested,” Paul added.
According to Paul, the native doctor, based in Ibadan, had sent a driver with a calabash and a knife, both wrapped in special cloths. He used the knife to remove the victim’s eyes, tongue, lungs, intestines, and parts of her buttocks, which he placed in the calabash and sent back to the native doctor via the driver. In return, Paul received a ritual soap from the native doctor.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Superintendent William Aya, revealed the details of the crime while parading the suspects in Lokoja.
He said, “The Commissioner of Police was alerted about Olowoyo’s disappearance, and the investigation was immediately assigned to the State Intelligence Department. Using the technical unit at the force headquarters, we tracked down Jeremiah Paul through the victim’s phone.”
Aya described how Paul deceived the victim by pretending to like her and lured her to an apartment. After drugging her with the tainted drink, Paul carried out the murder and dismembered her body. He initially contacted the victim’s family to demand a ransom, claiming to have kidnapped her, and collected ₦400,000 before carrying out the murder.
The PPRO also revealed that one of the other suspects had initially approached the victim but backed out when he could not meet the demands for the ritual. Paul, however, took over the plan and carried it out with the help of a friend from Kaduna State.
Aya warned students and parents to be vigilant about the company they keep.
“This is an inhuman act. Imagine a 20-year-old killing an innocent girl and removing her body parts for rituals. This shows that society needs to be very careful,” he said.
He urged students to be cautious of the people they associate with, whether friends, course mates, or neighbors, as some individuals may have sinister motives despite appearing to be regular students.
“Some may even be in school but have other aims. Students should be content with what they have, instead of being lured by those with evil intentions,” Aya advised.
The police confirmed that the investigation is ongoing and that the four suspects will be charged in court soon.