Olayiwola Matthew
The Enugu State Police Command has paraded a notorious native doctor in Enugu Ezike, Onuwa Odugu and a 67 year old father over the tragic death of the a young man in a failed fortification ritual.
The death of the 26 year old man, identified as Chikwado Eze in a shrine during a fortification ritual had earlier been reported.
It was learnt that the young man after securing a visa to travel abroad returned to the village from where he was escorted to the native doctor’s shrine for the ritual which was supposed to ensure his success abroad.
As part of the ritual, the young man was buried in a coffin for 1 hour 30 minutes. He was later exhumed but had died inside the coffin.
The Police Spokesman in Enugu, Daniel Ndukwe, in a statement on Wednesday said that both the native Doctor and the deceased’s father have been arrest and would soon be charged to court for conspiracy and murder.
The statement reads, “The Enugu State Police Command is making the public aware of the recent occurrence and handling of two separate murder cases. In the first case, a native doctor, one Onuwa Odugu “m”, aged 48, and Uwakwe Eze “m”, aged 67, were arrested for conspiracy and murder of Eze’s 26-year-old son, one Chikwado Celestine Eze.
“The incident is alleged to have occurred when Uwakwe Eze took his son to the native doctor’s shrine for rituals intended to fortify him with charms.
“However, during the ritual, the deceased was buried in a coffin but he unfortunately died in the process.
“He was rushed to the hospital and confirmed dead by the attending doctor, and his body deposited in the mortuary for preservation and autopsy.
“The native doctor confessed to the crime and the previous performance of such rituals, attributing the death of the victim to his non-adherence to certain ritualistic rules he earlier prescribed for him.
“The case is under investigation, and the suspects will be arraigned in court once investigations are concluded.”