A suspected member of Eiye Confraternity, Oliver Sunday, who was found with a cut-to-size locally-made gun, has told the Anti-Cultism Squad of Ogun State Police Command that he agreed to join the cult group so as to be part of land grabbers through which he would make money.

Sunday, who hails from Uzebba in Edo State but lived in Ogijo, was arrested after his 12-year-old son, (name withheld), took what he felt was a metal object, but which was a gun, to a scrap buyer to get money to eat.

The boy was said to have picked the metal object under a chair in the apartment where he lived with his father when he was sweeping.

Nigerian Tribune learnt that the scrap buyer, who discovered that the object brought for sale was a gun, felt that it was a setup to get him arrested, so he quickly went to security agents to inform them.

The boy was arrested, while those who knew his father quickly informed him. The father and son were taken to Ogijo police station, from where they were transferred to the Anti-Cultism Squad unit, led by CSP Sunday Daramola, at Eleweran in Abeokuta, for further investigation.

The command?s spokeswoman, SP Omolola Odutola, who confirmed the arrest, said that the recovered gun was painted in blue, signifying the colour identity known with Eiye cult group.

Explaining how he got entangled with the police, the suspect?s son said: ?I was sweeping the sitting room when I noticed something under one of the chairs. I saw that it was a metal object, so I took it to those buying scraps to get money to survive on. To my surprise, instead of paying, the potential buyer took me to the police station to report me. It was there I learnt that the object was a gun.

?My father was called and was asked of the owner of the gun. He confessed to being the owner, saying that it was given to him by those he was working with in land grabbing. I didn?t know about the job, I only knew he was working in a place where diesel is sold.

?We were transferred from the Ogijo Division to the Criminal Investigation Department, Eleweran, Abeokuta, for further investigation.?

Speaking about his background, the boy revealed: ?I only knew my mother when I was still a child. She left home someday with my two siblings who are females and left me behind. I was about five years old then. I don?t know where she is now.

?Since then, I have been with my father but he was not taking care of me very well. I stopped schooling and started to train to become a mechanic. I started three months ago. My boss used to buy food for me sometimes when I was hungry. My father would not come home sometimes, so I would sleep in hunger. He used to give me money for feeding sometimes, but not enough to take care of hunger.

How I joined cultism

?My father once used cutlass to beat me, giving me injury on the head. He thought I was the one who took his money which my mother went away with. People helped me to take care of the injury.

?My father used to take hard drugs such as marijuana, loud and Colorado. I used to leave our apartment whenever he was smoking. He used to take alcohol called Shine Your Eyes and Blackhood. He also used to come home with different women.?

He appealed to be allowed to go and stay with a woman who formerly lived in their neighbourhood and was taking care of him along with her children since he couldn?t see his mother to return to.

?My mother is an Igbo woman. I would have loved to go and stay with her and my siblings, but I don?t know where she is. The woman who was formerly living in Ogijo has moved to Lagos with her children. If I can?t get my mother, I will like to stay with her,? the boy said.

The father, Sunday, however, said that his son was just telling some lies against him, as he took care of him to the best of his ability, and was not taking hard drugs but only alcohol.

The suspect confessed to being a member of Eiye Confraternity, disclosing that he joined the illegal group to work with land grabbers who are also leaders and members of the cult group.

The suspect, aged 42, said that he worked as a welder before joining the cult group two years ago.

Concerning the ?iron rod? that turned out to be a gun which was found under a chair in his apartment by his son, the suspect said: ?It is true that I belong to Eiye cult group and was given the gun. I joined others two years ago after I was introduced to it by a man called Ibaka. He is our spiritual man.

?The Number One in the cult group is Majasola, who is also into land sale and has followers. They are called ajagungbale (land grabbers), and I was told that I would not be allowed to join them if I was not initiated into the Eiye Confraternity.

?I was called by some of the land grabbers who referred to themselves as Omo onile. They said the land was owned by their late father and since they didn?t get any job after graduating, they decided to be in charge of the sale. They told me that it?s not an easy job, and I must belong to their cult group before I would work with them.

How I was initiated

?I was taken inside a bush at Agbowa after I was blindfolded. I was given water to drink and they brought some kolanuts. They made a pronouncement that I belong to Eiye cult group from that day. I was given a bird name, Kingfisher. My godfather, called Agbara, was the one who gave me orientation. I usually went with them to land sites to confront their opponents. They usually used guns and other weapons to scare them off.

?I used to follow them to sites to sell land. We were always between 15 and 20 in number. We were Majasola?s boys, and he always took us along whenever he wanted to go to sites. He had a defence man called Bayo. He?s from Ikorodu and the second-in-command. In 2023, I got almost a plot of land free and some amount of money as my reward, and I started constructing a building.

?The gun was given to me by my godfather. I was told to bring it to the site on a particular day. When I got home, my son was not around. I hid it under the chair.

?I was surprised when I was called while at work and told of my son?s arrest. I confessed to owning the gun and wondered how the boy laid his hand on it. I went to the police station and thereafter called my godfather. He promised to come to the station. From Ogijo Division, we were transferred to the Anti-Cultism Squad at the State Criminal Investigation Department, Eleweran, Abeokuta.?

The suspect denied taking drugs but only alcoholic drinks. He however admitted bringing women to the apartment he was living with his son. ?Yes, I bring babes into my apartment instead of lodging them in a guest house. And my son doesn?t stay in the same room. He sleeps in the parlour while I use the bedroom,? he explained..

He said that he usually got between N60,000 and N150,000 as his share each time he went to site with others, saying: ?I joined cultism to benefit from land grabbing.?

He denied using cutlass to beat his son, saying that the boy got injured when he fell from a mango while trying to pluck its fruits, and the stick being thrown at the tree by others hit his head.

He said it was his son who decided to be a mechanic apprentice as he was in school before. ?My son dey tell lie so much. Na me born am, na me know am,? the suspect stated. (Nigerian Tribune)

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