Mad Rush for Money Leads to Early Grave- True life story

HEART OF DARKNESS

• Gory details of how herbalist, associates killed Lagos businessman who wanted to get richer

SUSPECTS in the gruesome murder of a Lagos businessman, Olalekan Ogunranti, have given gory details to the police on how and why they per­petrated the act. The suspects identi­fied as Alhaji Asimiyu Agboola a.k.a Ijaya, Akorede Akeem, Coker Samuel Osas, Afolabi Ramoni and Adesina Muyideen who are suspected fraud­sters allegedly conspired, lured and killed their latest victim, Ogunranti who was until his death the Managing Director, Today’s Prints.
Trouble started when the family members of late Olalekan Ogunranti 45, discovered that he was missing. He had on Monday, May 16, 2016 travelled to Osogbo, Osun State on a business trip. At 6pm same day, they realised that his phones were no lon­ger going through. They were further alarmed when they discovered that an unknown person was in possession of his personal phone and could not give account of his whereabouts.
When they asked to talk to their brother, the unknown person simply said that he picked the SIM card on the ground at Iragbiji in Osun State. According to late Olalekan’s family member who reported the matter to the police, their brother had reasons to travel to Osogbo, for business trips because his printing press was also lo­cated in the state.
On their arrest, Saturday Sun learnt that after weeks of fruitless search for the late Olalekan, the Acting Inspec­tor General of Police, Ibrahim Idris on assuming duties ordered the Intel­ligence Response Team (IRT) of the IGP’s Monitoring Unit to take over the matter and ensure the arrest of the culprits in record time.
A 32-year-old graduate, Coker Samuel Osas who is one of the sus­pects led IRT operatives to Obokun River in Obokun local government area of the state where the mutilated body of the late Olalekan was recov­ered and deposited at LAUTECH Osogbo as other suspects were later arrested in Lagos and Ondo states. Efforts are still on, according to the police, to arrest one of the prime sus­pects simply identified as Biggie. Big­gie is alleged to be the one who could give account of the missing head of late Olalekan.
Their confession
The suspected leader of the group, Alhaji Asimiyu Agboola, confessed to the police that they decided to elimi­nate Olalekan when he threatened to involve the police.
Tracing how it all started, Agboola claimed that sometime in March, Afo­labi and Akorede came to his office in Osogbo just to inform him that they have a rich customer who needs his help to cure a chronic case of diabe­tes.
“Five days later, they came with Olalekan and after listening to him, I gave him a bill of N90, 000 and gave him drugs and he left. Normally, we will access the customers’ financial status before giving them bill. So I asked him to pay that amount because the people who brought him said he is rich.
I removed N20, 000 which is the real cost of the drugs and the balance of N70, 000 was shared into two be­tween me and them.
“After 20 days, he called back so excited that the drug worked that he has improved. He requested to see me again and I said no problem. As soon as he came, he was so ex­cited and promised to bring more customers. After the discussion, he said he wanted something that will make him rich.”
According to Agboola, when he realized that his latest victim was demanding what was not possible, he knew that he was an easy prey. “I told the people who brought him and they suggested that this must be a good victim to extort money from. I had to play along. I told him that I can do it, that there are two catego­ries of money ritual. The first is to get money and put it in a bag after some important rituals, the money will multiply.
“The second will be to construct a big box and keep it in a room. Af­ter several days of prayer, he would be picking money from the box endlessly. He then chose to do that of a bag because, he does not have anywhere to hide the box.
“Two weeks later, he called that he has gathered N2.5million which I will help him multiply. I took the money and put ordinary paper and other stuffs in the bag and tied it up. I warned him not to open the bag until he was instruct­ed to do so.
“I told him to return after four days with the bag and that he was expected to bath in any river as part of the ritual. I gave him op­tions and he chose Ijebu area. I also told him to come with N500, 000 to buy more ingredients for the rituals. He brought the money and told me that he cannot afford to give me more money for rituals as he had run out of cash. I told him not to worry that he would soon be rich.”
After the bath, Agboola claimed he told his victim to go back to Lagos and await a signal from the gods before he can open the bag. “After 10 days of endless wait, he called back threatening to in­volve government. He said that he would arrest us. I knew it was time to shut him up, so I called the oth­ers (Akorede and Afolabi) and we agreed to kill him.
“To lure him to Osogbo, I told him that I have got a sign from the gods that he should come with N150, 000 and a goat for the final sacrifice, that as soon as we are done he can start spending the money. I alerted some cultists, one Coker and Biggie. I knew them when they were in school because I have done some charms for them to become powerful. I contracted them to eliminate the man. They suggested that he should be lured to a remote place where they will ambush him and kill him. I gave them N120, 000 to do the job.
“I knew the easiest way was to lure him to any river to bath. We selected a river in Obokun in Osun and I asked Olalekan to go to the river and bath as part of the final ritual. We assigned an okada man to take him to the location that we chose. The okada man picked him up and took him to the river while we were hiding in the bush at a distance.
“I told him not to look back while he was bathing. The instruc­tion was that if he does, the charm will not work again. He removed his dress and started bathing. They (Biggie and Coker) attacked him. They came out and told us that they have killed him and cut off his head. I asked them where the head was and they said they had thrown it away.
“After the incident, I learnt that police was looking for me so I started hiding. I left my of­fice and stayed in a hotel where I was arrested by the police. I am very popular and have a lot of in­formants so it was easy for me to know that they were looking for me. Initially, I thought they have stopped looking for me because  my police source told me that they are tired. I was shocked on how they traced me to the hotel at Iwo in Osun and ar­rested me and my driver Ad­esina.”
The 37-year-old herbalist said that the became a herbal doctor as far back as 2006 and inherited the skills of healing from his late father.
“I am one of the best trado medical doctors in Osogbo especially when it comes to the cure of diabetes and fi­broid. I own a shrine (office) at No 8 Oloti area, Iragbiji in Osun State.
“I am a legitimate herbal doctor; it’s just that the situa­tion of the country is very bad. People do not have money to buy drugs again that is why I decided to take advantage of the situation to make money. It was when he requested for money ritual that I knew that he would be an easy prey.”
The alleged executioner, Coker Samuel Osas told the police that they agreed to eliminate Olalekan as a way of helping out a friend in need. Osas who hails from Auchi, Edo state resides at No 23, Isashi, Ibeshe in Ikorodu area of Lagos where he was arrested by the police.
“I graduated from Ondo State University where I read Biology education. I couldn’t get a job so I became a tout. I had so many bad friends who convinced me to become a kidnapper. Unfortunately in 2012, I was arrested by Spe­cial Anti-Robbery Squad, of the Lagos police after I par­ticipated in the kidnap of an expatriate.
“We abducted the foreigner at Ijebu-Ode. Unfortunately, we did not succeed in col­lecting the ransom. The day we scheduled to pick the ran­som, policemen stormed the area and we ran away. We had no choice but to release the white man. Weeks later, police traced and arrested us. My father, who is a pastor at Celestial Church of Christ, secured my bail then.”
On how they killed Olale­kan, Osas said that he trav­elled with a friend (Biggie) to Osun state to attend their an­nual festival. During the fes­tival, Alhaji (Agboola) called us that he needs our help to silence one man that he had defrauded. He told us that the man had been threatening to report him to the police.
“I know Alhaji as a suc­cessful herbalist and as a cult­ist we also consult him for prayers. We brain stormed on the best way to silence him. Alhaji told us that the man was already in a hotel in the state. We agreed that he should tell the man that he is to bath at a river as the final ritual. We drove to the river and made sure that it is safe enough to kill someone with­out anyone seeing us.
Alhaji then called the man (Olakekan) and told him where to locate the river. We laid ambush while Alhaji and his driver waited in the car. In less than 30 minutes, the man came on a bike. He removed his dress and with the sponge and soap walked to the river. The instruction they gave him was that while he was bath­ing, that he should not look back.
“I was with a locally made pistol and I tried to shoot him but the gun did not work. While I was still trying to ar­range the gun, Biggie brought out the knife and stabbed the man in the neck. He fell and Biggie brought out a cutlass and beheaded him. He used a bag to carry the head and took it to Alhaji to assure him that the man was dead. He asked us to dispose the head which Biggie did. All of us entered Alhaji’s car and drove off to a spot to cool off. Weeks later I was arrested in Ikorodu.”
Another suspect, Akorede Akeem who led Olalekan to his death, claimed that he never knew that it would end tragically. “I am a musician and trado medical practi­tioner as far back as 2008. I am from Osogbo, but I used to market my products in Ikorodu, Lagos with the help of a public address system. It was in the process that I met Olalekan. Early in the year, he saw me at Ikorodu while I was advertising my product and called me. He bought medicine for pile and paid N500.
A week later he called me and said that the medicine worked and asked if I have drugs for diabetics. I told him that I do not have such drug, but I know people who are specialists in that area.
“I called Afolabi who also sells herbal drugs especially for sexually transmitted dis­eases. He was the one who re­ferred us to Alhaji (Agboola) in Osogbo.
On an agreed day in March, we all travelled to Osogbo to see Alhaji. He gave him drugs and he paid N90, 000. I got N10, 000 as my share. Later Olalekan called me and I told him that I am in the village. He told me that the medica­tion he was given was very good. He requested to see him again personally. He said that he would soon visit Osogbo, that he wants me to take him to see Alhaji. It was when I finally took him there that I knew the main reason he wanted to see Alhaji.
“He told him that he wants power to make mon­ey. I knew that my interest will be protected, so I asked Alhaji to play along. I was given N700, 000 from the initial money that he gave Alhaji; this was March 28, 2016. I quickly bought a car that I was using to sell my medicine.
Weeks later, Alhaji called that the man was threaten­ing to report us to the police. We all met during Iragbiji festival in a beer palour. It was there we all agreed that the best way out was to kill him.”
Another suspect, Afolabi Ramoni corroborating the confession of others, said he was also aware that there was a plan to kill Olalekan.
The SUN