Police detain 22-year-old over alleged cult-related murder

The police in Imo State, Nigeria’s South-east, say they have arrested and detained a 22-year-old boy over an alleged cult-related murder of a Nigerian man, Okeke Nnamdi.

The police spokesperson in Imo State, Henry Okoye, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.

Mr Okoye, a deputy superintendent of police, identified the suspect as Bright Adiene.

The spokesperson said Mr Nnamdi’s murder happened in Owerri and was reported on Saturday.

“The suspect is currently in police custody, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend one Anyima, who is also connected with the incident.

“Investigations are ongoing to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident and identify all those involved,” he said.

Strengthening security in Imo

Mr Okoye said, in response to the incident, the Commissioner of Police in Imo State, Audu Bosso, convened a strategic security meeting on Sunday with area commanders, divisional police officers, and tactical Team Commanders.

The spokesperson said the commissioner met with the police chiefs to assess the security situation and strengthen operational strategies across the state.

“Following the meeting, operational commanders were directed to intensify intelligence-led operations, conduct targeted raids on identified criminal hideouts, strengthen patrols in security hotspots, and respond promptly to emerging threats,” he said.

According to the statement, Mr Bosso also directed police chiefs to work more closely with community leaders, youth groups, and other stakeholders to improve intelligence gathering and prevent further violence.

The commissioner urged parents and guardians to monitor their children’s activities and associations, discourage involvement in cultism, and promptly report relevant information to security agencies.

He warned that anyone found to be involved in cult-related violence would be prosecuted.

The police chief urged residents to remain calm, vigilant, and law-abiding, and to provide information that could assist ongoing investigations and other security operations.

Prohibited in Nigeria

Cultism, also known as secret societies, is outlawed in Nigeria.

The laws vary state by state. Imo is among the states that have yet to enact its own anti-cultism law.

However, the south-eastern state relies on federal laws that criminalise cultism to prosecute offenders.

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Section 62 of the Criminal Code Act, for instance, outlawed participation in or membership of any cult group in Nigeria.

The section prescribes up to three years’ imprisonment for offenders upon conviction.

Like cultism, murder is also illegal in Nigeria.

Murder is specifically outlawed in Section 315 (6) of the Nigerian Criminal Code Act.

Offenders, on conviction, face a death sentence, Section 319 (1) said.

Several persons have been sentenced to death for murder across the country.

An Aiyetoro High Court in Ogun State, for instance, sentenced a man,  Adelake Bara, to death by hanging in June 2022, for shooting and killing one Olaleye Oke.

A high court in Lokoja, Kogi State, in January 2022, also sentenced a man, Muritala Dare, to death by hanging for stabbing his colleague to death with a broken bottle.