Two leaders of a Christian fellowship, Chidi Samuel and Paul Zakari have been arrested by the Ogun State Police Command for burying one of their members.
The state Commissioner of Police, Lanre Bankole, told journalists that Samuel and Zakari had taken seven youths with them to an isolated area in Oyan Village for what they claimed to be Bible study and fellowship.
The deceased, 20-year-old Okumazor Favour, was among the youths who attended the supposed Bible study and fellowship.
Before her death, Favour was sick but did not inform her parents. The suspects had refused to let the deceased go home even though she was sick.
When she eventually died, they proceeded to bury her in a shallow grave also, without her parents consent after her death.
According to the police commissioner, “While in the isolated area, one of the youths, whose parents have reported missing at Ibafo police station, fell sick and later died. The suspects, who refused to let the girl go when she fell sick secretly, buried her in a shallow grave within the village.”
He stated further that it was one of the youths who escaped from the event that informed the deceased parents of her death, hence the arrest of the suspects.
In an interview with Saturday Tribune, 32-year-old Samuel narrated his side of the story: “Im from Abia State but living at Alamo, Magboro. I am a pastor at Lifebuilders Network. It is a ministry not a church, and it’s about youth programme, evangelism and Bible study.
“In October 2021, we went for a programme at Oyan Village in Imala town to engage in Bible study and prayer. The journey was supposed to last for six months. We had done about four months when we got sick. We managed ourselves but one of the girls we came with got so bad. With the little money we had, we took her to hospital but she died.”
Samuel revealed further that the nurse who treated her said the deceased suffered from typhoid, malaria, and anemia.
He confirmed that their parents were aware of the program and confirmed that they did not call her parents when she was sick and also after she died.
We tried our best. It was a spiritual attack, but our mistake was that we did not call her parents.”