The Delta State Police Command has arrested a 20-year-old herbalist and his stepbrother in connection with the kidnapping and m*rder of two individuals, including a long-time client of the herbalist.
The victims, Mr. Friday Liberty (22) and motorcycle rider Isioma Ugbeje, were reported missing after Liberty visited the herbalist’s shrine in Owa-Alidima, Ika North East Local Government Area, on September 30. Liberty’s family, initially unaware of his fate, began searching for him after his girlfriend revealed a conversation linking his disappearance to the herbalist.
The family contacted the herbalist, Amechi Okwuokenye, who denied seeing Liberty but offered spiritual assistance. After spending money with no results, the family filed a petition at the Agbor Area Command on October 14. Detectives launched an intelligence-led investigation, eventually identifying Okwuokenye as the last person Liberty contacted.
Surveillance was placed around the shrine, leading to Okwuokenye’s arrest on October 23 while hiding inside a refrigerator. During interrogation, he confessed to kidnapping Liberty and Ugbeje with his 26-year-old brother, Smart Okwuokenye. The suspects had demanded a ₦10 million ransom, but when their plan failed, they m*rdered both victims and disposed of their bodies in a soakaway pit near the shrine.
According to police spokesperson SP Bright Edafe, the remains have been recovered and deposited at the mortuary for autopsy. Commissioner of Police CP Olufemi Abaniwonda assured the public that justice will be served.
The suspects remain in custody as investigations continue.