Operatives attached to the Cross River Police Command is currently investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of five women who were murdered by village youths over allegations that they were witches.
The five victims were among 15 women earlier marked to be killed by village youths over allegations that they were witches.
NigeriaCrime.com gathered that the women were hacked to death at Ndon Owong, in Odukpani Local government area on October 13, 2022, and were buried in a shallow grave in the “evil forest.
However trouble started after the killing of the five women and policemen attached to Odukpani Divisional Police who went to the village to invite the village head was attacked, beaten and abducted by youths of the community
The youths formed a mob and disarmed an ASP with a service pistol, they started beating and cutting the trio with machetes inflicting various degrees of injuries on them.
It took the intervention of the Anti Cultism and Kidnapping Squad led by SP Awodi Abdulhameed Anti Cultism and Kidnapping Squad, ACKS, to rescue the officers and also recovered the service pistol and arrested two suspects Etim Effiong aged 34, and Micheal Etim Udoh, aged 32 involved in the incident.
Confirming their arrest, the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Irene Ugbo confirmed the incident, adding that they have two suspects in their custody but were already making progress in apprehending other fleeing suspects.
“Nobody can take the laws Into their hands, our constitution does not recognize anything like witchcraft, if they had a case they should have taken the appropriate channel to address them not taken innocent lives in cold blood.
“Five people were gruesomely murdered in cold blood and buried in shallow graves inside the forest over what I described as unfounded allegations.
“It is barbaric, it is unacceptable and we will leave no stone unturned in ensuring they face the full weight of the law,” SP Ugbo said.