Ogun State Police Command yesterday paraded 42 suspected secret cult members for their alleged roles in violence that claimed many lives in several locations in the state.
The command also said 93 suspected cultists from different confraternities were arrested between March 2022 and July 7.
It added that a good number of them were undergoing prosecution in the state with some being convicted and sentenced.
Spokesman of the Command Abimbola Oyeyemi said some of the suspects were arrested for murder, kidnapping and rape, among others.
A 29-year-old fake kidnap victim, Segun Mafimidowo, connived with his friends to demand N8 million in ransom from his parents.
“He also sent pictures of where he was tied in both hands. The purported abductors later sent an account number of one Ogbu Abraham to which he directed the parents to pay the ransom. But the anti-kidnap section of the command embarked on technical investigation which led to where Segun Mafimidowo and his so-called abductors were hibernating,” Oyeyemi said.
Police spokesman Oyeyemi suspects who allegedly abducted a 15-year-old girl sent on errand by her parents, gang raped her and forcefully initiated her into their secret cult group.
The police command in Edo yesterday also arrested 30 suspected cultists for alleged involvement in cult-related clashes and activities in Benin metropolis.
Police spokesman Chidi Nwabuzor said the suspects included seven females and 23 males, adding that they were arrested in different locations within the state capital.
