Kwara ritual killing: Residents want quick dispensation of justice

Residents of Kwara State are unanimous in their call for quick dispensation of justice in the case of a self-acclaimed Islamic cleric, Abdulrahman Bello, that allegedly killed and butchered his girlfriend that he met on Facebook.

A huge crowd of spectators that trooped out to the Ilorin Magistrate’s Court complex, located opposite the State High Court complex on Tuesday, when the suspected killer was arraigned, was full of anger and condemnation of the evil act committed.

It took intervention of fully armed law enforcement agents to control the surging crowd inside the court room to see the suspect and his accomplices until they were ferried inside a vehicle that conveyed them to prison after the court sitting.

Leading the call for quick dispensation of justice is the Emir of Ilorin and the chairman, Kwara State traditional rulers’ council, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, who condemned the killing and urged the Nigeria Police and the judiciary to ensure that total justice is served in the matter.

The emir, who described the incident in a statement he issued as “most unfortunate, alien and a regrettable act of wickedness”, urged clerics in the Ilorin Emirate and beyond to sanitise the system by ensuring that the likes of Abdulrahman Bello are expressly exposed to law enforcement agencies before causing more harm to innocent persons.

“It is only hard work that pays. Total war should be declared against idleness, laziness and unwarranted loitering around the society by youths in the name of finding means of survival,” he said.

Also, the leader of a youth development agency, the Brain Builders Youth Development Initiative (BBYDI), Olasupo Abideen, who described the incident as worrisome, said that appropriate action should be taken to check the situation.

He said a special court should be set up to try violators of gender based violence, “so that trial would be faster, judgement would get done and they should not be given a right of appeal because anyone who kills others deserves to be killed. Anyone who causes pain or destruction to others should face the full wrath of the law. Gender based violence should not be allowed across any society. It’s an anathema that has eaten deep into some people.”

While he called for a review of Violence Against Person Prohibition (VAPP) Act by the National Assembly, he said that the offence committed was “technology-facilitated gender-based violence” because it all started on Facebook.

“An aspect of the VAPP Act that has not been captured is the technology facilitated gender-based violence, which is what just happened in Ilorin,” he said.

Apartment of self-acclaimed cleric

Bello, the 29-year-old self acclaimed Islamic cleric and the suspected killer of the final year student of Kwara State College of Education, is an indigene of Isale Koto community in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital.

However, he operated his barbaric and cannibalistic venture away from his family compound at Isale Koto area to take residence opposite RainOil, Majeasura community, Olunlade area; another location in the Ilorin metropolis.

Bello’s apartment, a room-and-a-parlour self-contain at Olunlade area, revealed a gory sight. A room that can be described as slaughter slab had blood stains on the floor and contained a special wooden table for cutting human parts, a cutlass, a knife, used paint buckets of different sizes, plastic container with human parts and blood, cooking gas and pots, among other items.

The other room had a mattress, small plastic containers with black soap, pairs of slippers of his victims, sound system, some of his apparels and used plastic bottles containing substances suspected to be concoction or charms, among others.

The Police state command is yet to confirm speculation that a sum of N6.5 million was found in his bank account, while it is also yet to be confirmed that the suspected killer sold the body parts to different parts of the country, with the head of his victim reportedly sold to one of his accomplices in Ibadan, Oyo state capital.

The matter

It is recalled that a final year student of the Kwara State College of Education in Ilorin, Lawal Hafsoh Yetunde, was killed in Ilorin, on Monday, February 10, by her boyfriend that she met on social media (Facebook).

Nigerian Tribune gathered that the suspected killer, after the gruesome killing, dismembered her body for alleged ritual purposes.

It was reported that Yetunde went missing on February 10. She was said to be attending a naming ceremony when she received a call from a friend.

According to sources, she dropped her food to answer the call and then left. “Since then, we’ve been searching for her everywhere, but no one knew her whereabouts.

On Tuesday, her parents reported the case to the Oja Oba Police Station in Ilorin. The police requested her phone number and used it to track her last call. The call was traced to an individual living at Olunlade district area of Ilorin, although his family house is at Isale Koto.

“The suspect was arrested, but initially denied knowledge of the lady’s whereabouts. However, when the police searched his house, he confessed that the lady was in his area and had died from an asthma attack after he called her to come over.

“Upon further investigation, the police found the lady’s body, dismembered and hidden in a bowl, along with the equipment used to dismember her.”

Sources said that the victim and the suspected killer met on Facebook, where he obtained her phone number. He then called her and invited her to come over to his place.

Speaking on the development, Abubakar Hafiz, a resident of Afon Junction, Ganmo community of Asa Local Government Area of the state said that justice must be served quickly on the development to discourage others who may intend to get involved.

“Disturbingly, evidence found in the suspect’s house suggests this may not be his first offence. A table in his room appeared to be equipped with tools used to dismember bodies,” he said.

Suspect’s account

In a video believed to have been recorded at a police station in Ilorin, the suspect denied murdering the victim for ritual purposes, but admitted to dismembering her body and disposing of it in a dustbin.

Bello, who described the deceased as his girlfriend, revealed that they had met on Facebook. Speaking in Yoruba while kneeling in the video, dressed in a gold-colored ‘jalabiya’, he explained the circumstances surrounding the tragic incident. He claimed that he was only a victim of circumstance and did not intentionally kill Yetunde.

According to him, the incident occurred when the victim visited his residence after attending an event. He recounted that she complained of hunger, prompting him to go out and buy food for her. Upon his return, he found her gasping for breath and struggling to stay alive. Despite his efforts, she passed away suddenly.

Bello claimed he was overwhelmed with fear and confusion, which led him to make the rash decision to dismember her body and dispose of it at a public refuse dump nearby. He insisted that it was his first time being involved in such an act, emphasizing that he had never done anything like it before.

The suspect further described himself as an ‘alfa,’ a term commonly used to refer to a Muslim cleric, and stated that he was in the process of gaining admission into Kwara State University (KWASU), Malete, before the tragic incident unfolded.

A magistrate court in Ilorin on Tuesday, remanded the self-acclaimed Islamic cleric, together with five other friends at Oke Kura Correctional Centre, Ilorin.

The Magistrate Sanusi B. Mohammed, who presided over the matter, adjourned the case till March 6, 2025.

The suspect, Abdulrahman Bello, who was arraigned with five other suspects, were not represented by any counsel.

They were accused of a three-count charge of criminal conspiracy, culpable homicide, possession of human parts and armed robbery.