A 36-year-old man, identified as Shakiru Bello has been arrested by Lagos State Police Command for allegedly murdering his wife for ritual purpose in Ijora, Lagos State. Bello was arrested in Ibadan, Oyo State, where he had allegedly gone to take cover after the alleged dastardly act in an uncompleted building, on Monday.


He was alleged to have dismembered the wife’s body with cutlass and buried her in a shallow grave in order  not to give himself away, before leaving for Ibadan, his home town.

Things took another dimension when his in-law started suspecting the disappearance of the wife, Sherifat, by his in-law. Their suspicion, according to a relative of the deceased, followed earlier alleged attempt on the wife by the husband.

It was gathered that  the suspect allegedly inserted  some charms into Sherifat’s private part while sleeping in their one room apartment in Shomolu area of the state, a situation that led her to stay away from him for some time.

However, on Monday, the deceased was said to have called the husband on phone, demanding N10,000 for the upkeep of their three children. They agreed to meet in Ebute-Metta area, from where they proceeded to Ijora where the alleged act took place.

Residents besieged Ijora Police Division after the news of the incident spread. Some of the curious residents followed the police and the suspect to the shallow grave where the corpse of Sherifat was buried and subsequently exhumed.

The dismembered body parts, which included the head, two hands and legs, were in decomposing state. The  stench from the exhumed body parts did not deter the anxious crowd from having a glimpse of them.

At this point, the crowd called for instant justice on the suspect, appealing to the police to release him for mob action. In order to avoid the invasion of the police station, the suspect and exhibits were taken to the Area ‘B’  Command, Apapa, with some residents still following on motorcycles.

During interrogation, the suspect, blamed the incident on the devil. “I don’t know what to say than it was the devil that pushed me into butchering my wife. I am from Ibadan, in Oyo State.We have been married for 14 years now. We have three children. I was at Shomolu when she called me to meet her at Estate bus stop, Ebutte-Metta. 

She wanted to collect N10, 000 from me. We later went to Ijora area where I killed her inside an uncompleted building.

“I killed her on Monday. If I did not bury her, people will easily link me with her death. Yet I have been caught. It was the work of the devil”.


The suspect, as gathered, would be transferred to the homicide section of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Yaba, Vanguard.