by 
The pastor and his church
The
founder of Cherubim and Seraphim Church, Itedo Isinmi Ayo parish, in
the Ado Odo/Ota Local Government Area of the Ogun state, and three
others, have been arrested in connection with the discovery of
suspected human parts allegedly buried inside a church.
According
to a report by Punch newspaper, the 77-year-old prophet identified as
Samuel Babatunde, was on Wednesday paraded by the state Commissioner of
Police, Ahmed Iliyasu, in his church at Egan Road, in the Iyana-Iyesi
area of Ota.
The Police boss told journalists that the
startling discovery followed the arrest of a suspected serial
kidnapper, Jeremiah Adeola, last Saturday, August 12, adding that the
suspect specialised in kidnapping children and had confessed that
Babatunde was the receiver of the abducted children.
He
explained that another suspect, Haruna Afolabi, an herbalist, was among
the suspects who allegedly buried the human parts at the entrance of
the church.
Iliyasu said the lid was blown off their nefarious
activities last Sunday when operatives attached to the Ota Area
Command received an intelligence report about Adeola and eventually
apprehended him.
The pastor and his accomplices
He said, “On
the strength of the intelligence, detectives from the Ota Area Command
were detailed to effect the arrest of the suspect. At about 10.20am of
the date, their efforts paid off when the said Jeremiah Adeola was
arrested.
“On interrogation, he
confessed to being a serial kidnapper and mentioned the name of the
prophet as the receiver of the kidnapped children.
“Upon
his revelation, he was taken to the church of the said prophet at
Iyana-Iyesi Ota, where 77-year-old Samuel Babatunde, the man in charge
of the church, and one Haruna Afolabi, a 42-year-old traditional
worshipper, were arrested.
“The floor of the church was dug as described by the first suspect, and suspected human parts were brought out.”
Iliyasu,
however, said forensic examination would be done on the exhibits,
adding that all those found culpable would be brought to book, warning
criminals to steer clear of the state.
While
speaking with journalists, Babatunde denied the allegation levelled
against him, but however confessed that a pig was buried alive inside
the church, as opposed to human parts.
He said he buried the pig “to bring good fortune, prosperity and comfort to the congregation of the church.”
While
saying he founded the church in 2005, Babatunde expressed regret over
the incident, which he blamed on the devil, adding that though he met
Adeola at a prayer mountain in Ibadan, Oyo State, he never contracted
him for human parts, claiming that the alleged serial kidnapper had a
mental problem.
But Adeola insisted that the prophet was the
receiver of some kidnapped children, arguing that the cleric paid
N50,000 for each of the two children he supplied to him recently
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