Chioma Igbokwe
Herbalist Libaq Alabede is battling to convince the police he knew nothing about the fresh human body parts found in his house at 14, Glover Lane, Ajowa Estate, Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State.
The incriminating piece of evidence––discovered by operatives of Inspector General of Police, Intelligence Response Team (IRT) who stormed his houses with a search warrant––was a nylon bag containing among other things fresh human parts. The exhibit was found in one of the shops attached to his building.
Alabede, 37, is currently facing the damning allegation that he plundered fresh graves, exhuming buried bodies and removing their parts for ritual purposes. He is also accused of having sold parts of his late wife’s body to his customers.
I was framed up
Alabede had no better defence other than to claim that his enemy framed him. “Police should go and arrest the likes of Segun, that man is a confirmed ritualist,” he said. “Go to my family house in Oyo, you will confirm that I am a good herbalist that will never get involved in anything evil.”
The native of Shepete in Oyo State was born and bred in Ogun State, where he attended an Arabic school in Ifo and learnt to become a herbal doctor.
He explained his area of specialization: “I learnt how to use herbs to heal all kinds of disease, especially sexually transmitted disease. I also learnt how to invoke good luck on the lives of people especially businessmen and women. I have helped a lot of women who cannot conceive to become mothers and men who were once sterile to be able to impregnate women with ease. It is a gift and that is how I made my money.”
On his allegation of a setup, Alabede attributed it to revenge by his enemies for his cooperation with the police. “I am one of the best herbalists in this Ifo area and also a member of OPC. It is part of our responsibility to make sure that the area is safe. I normally assist the police to arrest miscreants in our area especially our members who are into ritual killing.”
He alleged that a certain Segun was one of those arrested severally by the police, and upon his recent release from prison, had “threatened to deal with me for telling the police of his activities.”
As far as he was concerned, he could see the hand of his nemesis in his current plight. “I had gone to one of my houses where I buried my late wife and police came there and arrested me. They searched the house and discovered human parts in nylon in one of the shops and they concluded that it belongs to me. I am 100 per cent sure that he (Segun) was the one who planted the fresh body parts there for the police to find. I was framed because I do not participate in such an act. I cannot tell police about people who commit such crime and still turn around to commit the same crime,” he said.
When asked why the grave of his late wife was tampered with, Alabade responded thus: “It is a taboo for a herbalist to see the body of his late wife. When she died, my people decided to bury her in that property because I specifically constructed it for her. She was living in that house before she became very sick. The part of the land where they buried her is soft, that is why whenever you come here, it will seem as if someone tampered with her grave, but I assure you that if you dig up her corpse and discover that it was tampered with then be rest assure that one of the evil men visited her grave.”
As for his presence on the property, he claimed he was planning to rent out the shops “since it’s almost a year after her death.”
Why missing pants
When confronted with the prevalence of women pants use for ritual purposes, Alabade avowing that “I am not one of them” insisted that women underwear is normally used to produce love medicine and not for money ritual.
“When the issue became very common, we discussed it in our general meeting and members were warned to desist from such. Normally underwear is used by some herbalists to prepare love medicine.”
He attributed the upsurge in stolen panties to desperate Yahoo Yahoo boys. “It is because of the so much money that they are making from that business that is why our colleagues (herbalists) request for more money and abnormal things. Have you seen any woman run mad or die mysteriously after she lost her pant? We only use pants to produce love medicine, not money ritual.
“I do not need to kill someone to become rich as a herbalist. If you accuse me of selling potent manpower medicine, I will say that I am guilty as charged. I am an expert in that field and that is why I am so popular in these areas.”
He claimed he made his money by concentrating on herbs that make women pregnant. “A lot of them will come and pay heavily. This was how I managed to build so many houses and marry seven wives.”
He further reiterated his innocence by pointing out the odd angle to his ordeal. “If I am a ritualist, I cannot keep such sensitive material in my house or land. I will restrict it to the shrine area, which should be located in the bush where security men cannot come and suddenly search without informing me ahead of the search. I am innocent, police should go and arrest Segun, he is a ritualist and should explain to the police where he got those fresh body parts.”