One Haruna Ezekiel, a 35-year-old resident of Gongo community of Tafawa Balewa local government area of Bauchi State has killed and burnt his paternal uncle, Sunday Sale, 80-year-old for allegedly initiating his son into witchcraft without his consent.
LEADERSHIP learned that the suspect buried the burnt body of his victim, who gained notoriety for witchcraft in the community in a shallow grave at his residence and set the house ablaze.
An eyewitness who does not want to appear in print said, “While I was returning from a market, I saw the house of late Mr Sunday oozing with smoke and I alighted to find out what is going on. However, on reaching there, I met Mr Ezekiel there watching the house burn to ashes after he buried his victim in a shallow grave dug behind the house.”
He said Mr Ezekiel, who perpetrated the act, previously alleged that his victim initiated his son into witchcraft through a lump of meat.
“Mr Ezekiel’s son told him that Mr Sale gave him a piece of meat to eat some days ago. Later, Mr Sale told him that the meat he ate was an initiation into witchcraft and that requires his father (Mr Ezekiel) must be sacrificed in the process.”
“This infuriated Mr Ezekiel and he confronted his victim about the matter, who was suspected to be notorious for witchcraft for long. Although Mr Sale apologized about the matter but Mr Ezekiel was short-tempered and hit his uncle with a stick on the head and he fainted,” the eyewitness narrated.
Confirming the incident, Bauchi State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Ahmed Muhammed Wakil said the matter was reported to the police, adding that an investigation has commenced.
“Police frowned at the action of the suspect, who instead of reporting to the police for proper investigation and prosecution, took the law into his own hands, by gruesomely murdering the person he was suspecting without any recourse of the law,” he said.
