Man kills 3-month-old son for ritual

Jos— IN separate cases, two men in Plateau State allegedly sacrificed their children on the altar of anger and money ritual.
The state Police Command arrested the men along with 13 other suspects, who committed other crimes ranging from car theft, criminal conspiracy, and armed robbery to attempt to steal a vehicle with fabricated master keys.
One of the suspects, Fwangmun Habakuk, 25, from Mangu Local Government Area was said to have allegedly beaten his two year-old female child (names withheld) to death in a fit of anger, for urinating on the bed.
However, blaming the devil for his action, Habakuk said he regretted his action.
Similarly, 20-year-old Polycarp Tajan from Maikatako Village in Bokkos, confessed in an interview with newsmen in Jos, the state capital, that he suffocated his three-month-old baby boy (names withheld) to enable him cut off his tongue for money-making ritual.
Native doctor’s  demand
Tajan said his quest for money took him to a native doctor, who asked him to bring the tongue of his first-born child for the ritual.
He equally blamed his action on the devil, influence of alcohol and greed.
He said: “I was really in need of money and someone told me about money ritual. I went to meet a native doctor, who demanded the tongue of my first-born child.
“When I came home that day, the baby was on the bed and my wife was cooking in the kitchen. I used the pillow to suffocate the baby.”
Police sources said Tajan’s wife raised the alarm that led to the suspect’s arrest. The native doctor was still at large.
Robbers nabbed
In another development, a four-man gang in Shendam local government robbed a victim of his N119,000, a digital camera, DSTV decoder, DVD and two Techno handsets. They also raped the robbery victim’s wife.
The gang members were, however, apprehended by the police while trying to dispose of the decoder.
This was even as a key fabricator, Yahaya Abdullahi of Dilimi in Jos was also arrested for producing master keys used by car thieves in the area.
His accomplice, Annas Yunusa, reportedly attempted to use one of the keys to open a Honda Civic car parked along Ahmadu Bello Way in Jos, where he was arrested.
Teenagers rob Marwa operator
However, a tricycle (Keke NAPAEP) operator narrowly escaped death when a gang of four youths, three boys and one girl, who boarded his vehicle put a rope on his neck from behind, with which they allegedly dragged him down and took the tricycle away.
Other suspects were nabbed over alleged unlawful possession of AK-47 rifles and trans-border car theft.
While parading the 15 suspects, state Police Commissioner, Chris Olakpe said the feat was possible due to the synergy and collaboration between the security agencies and the public.
He advised people to secure their vehicles and warned spiritualists to stop “crimes as money does not come through human parts but through hard-work and prayers.”