Counter-Allegations As Youth Leader Remanded Over Petition By Alleged Cult Leader Following Killings In Benue South

By Amos Aar

THE PRESIDENT of the Ugbokolo Ward chapter of the Edumoga Youth Movement (EYM) in Okpokwu LGA of Benue State, Mr Agboji John, has been remanded at the Federal Correctional Centre, Makurdi over some charges yet to be substantiated by the Benue State Police Command.

While the police First Information Report (FIR) obtained by National Record indicates that Mr John was arrested on Tuesday, August 22, 2023 for alleged criminal conspiracy, armed robbery, acts of terrorism, mischief by fire and attempt to commit culpable homicide, there is however a counter-report that John’s arrest was sequel to EYM’s protest against cult violence in Ugbokolo which led to the killing of at least 10 youths.

The FIR with serial number (S 117 (1) C. P. C.) written from the DZ Section of State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Makurdi and addressed to Chief Magistrate Court, Makurdi, entitled: “Nature of information: CRIMINAL CONSPIRACY, ARMED ROBBERY, ACTS OF TERRORISM, MISCHIEF BY FIRE AND ATTEMPT TO COMMIT CULPABLE HOMICIDE”, reads:

“On the 22/08/2023 at about 1000hrs, the above case was received at DZ Section SCID Makurdi through a letter of petition written to the Commissioner of Police, Benue State Command by T Ahmed & Associates, legal practitioners in Lapo Adams chambers located on No. 3. Off. Atiku Abubakar way opp. Haf haven Hotel, Makurdi, Benue State, dated 17/08/2023 on behalf of one Okwori John ‘m’ of Ugbokolo town, Okpokwu LGA of Benue State.

“Stating that, on 15/08/2023 at about 0830hrs, armed men in their large numbers, armed with dangerous weapons such as guns, matchets, [sic] etc invaded his house at Ugbokolo searching for him to kill that he saw and identified one Agboji John, Sunday Owunebe, Innocent Oheitonye, Sunday Ebute, Akor James Alilu, Shedrack Ochai aka Shedy ‘B’ all ‘m’ of the same address, among others, that, after he manage [sic] to escape, the gang damaged/looted his properties worth millions, razed down his house value yet to be estimated and carted away with his cash sum of eight hundred and thirty thousand naira (N830,000) after robbing his wife of P.O.S machine and cash sum of one million, five hundred thousand naira (N1,500,000).

ALSO SEE: Bloodbath As Violent Cult Rivalry Leaves 8 Dead In Benue

“During Police investigation, the said gang leader, Agboji John was arrested for committing the offence while others are still at large. Section 6(b)1(1), 2(a)(b) of the Robbery and firearms Special Provisions Act 2004, 4(2) of the Abduction, Hostage-Taking, Kidnapping, Secret Cult and Similar Activities Prohibition Laws of Benue State 2017. 3380 & 230 of the Penal Code Law of Benue State 2004″.

The FIR shows that inspector Iorpav Moses charged 47-year old Agboji John to court on August 23, 2023 when he was remanded at the Federal Correctional Centre, Makurdi, where he still being held as at press time.

When contacted, Benue State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Superintendent of Police (SP) Sewuese Anene, did not respond to questions asked her via Police WhatsApp media group, seeking to establish if the suspect has been formerly arraigned.

National Record also asked the PPRO for update on police investigations into the allegations against Mr John who along with members of EYM were reported to accused the petitioner of being a suspected cult member.

But Engr Geoffrey Owotikwu, who is the National President of EYM, in a telephone interview with National Record, claimed that Agboji John did not lead any gang to rob and destroy Okwori’s property and that he (Agboji John) is neither a kidnapper nor an armed robber as alleged by the petitioner.

Engr Owotikwu said following the murder of an innocent young man in Ugbokolo last month, EYM, under his leadership, prohibited cult activities and embarked on ‘cleansing of Edumoga land’ to be free from the illicit association.

According to the EYM president, the ‘cleansing’ was a holistic one which involved oath-taking by both repentant cultists as well as those who were not cultists.

Engr said the cleansing exercise did not go down well with Mr Okwori, whom he accused of being the cult leader in Benue South and as a result, he wrote the petition against Agboji John to cover his cruelty.

Narrating the circumstances that led to the arrest of John, Owotikwu said, last month, August 2023, rival cult groups were killing themselves in Ugbokolo but nobody, including political leaders and traditional rulers, spoke against it even as ten persons were killed.

Displeased by the bloody situation, Engr Owotikwu said EYM waded in especially when an innocent youth was killed.

“If cultists are killing themselves and they do not touch anybody, I will not intervene because they are cultists and I’m not a cultist. But when they eventually touched a youth leader who everybody believe is not a cultist, we now have to rise since our leaders have refused to talk. We, the youths, have decided to take it open ourselves.

“We had several meetings and we had several confrontations with them [cultists] and at a point, most of the cultists ran away.

“We actually said that we don’t want cultism in our land anymore. Whoever that wants to practice cultism should go to a distant land where it is allowed and not here.

“The EYM under my leadership made the pronouncement and it was even aired on radio stations and social media as well and we gave them a deadline till the end of August 2023 to do the needful, come out openly and renounce if they actually want to stay here.

“One of them who is Enone leader or Benue zone C leader, Okwori John, his nickname is ‘Cause Trouble.’ He thought he is clever; he went and wrote petition against one of my youth presidents under me, from Ugbokolo Ward, he is the youth president of Ugbokolo Ward; his name is Comrade Agboji John Audu. He [Okwori] wrote a petition that the guy [Agboji John] is a kidnapper, he a gang leader, a cultist… You can imagine a cultist telling a youth member or a leader; a cultist; he thought that with that he will be able to quench the heat that is on them currently.”

However, an account by a lecturer at the Benue State Polytechnic, Ugbokolo, who pleaded anonymity conflicted with the EYM president’s narrative when he told National Record that part of Okwori’s house in Ugbokolo was razed by angry youths when they were protesting against the killing of an innocent youth by cultists during their rival war last month. The lecturer, however did not say that Agboji John led the mob to damage Okwori’s property.

“I think the report we have is that they [mob] went to his house and he ran away. So, out of anger, they set his house ablaze though not completely,” the lecturer confided in National Record.

The long-neglected cult activities in the Benue South senatorial district is gradually culminating into banditry activities and a serious communal clash between the cult members and non-cult members. 

Sources from Ugbokolo who pleaded anonymity said political leaders, traditional rulers and even community elders have been silent over the cult activities that have claimed many lives and some of them belong to the evil society while others are sponsoring it.

According to one of the sources, John Okwori, the alleged cult leader, had posted comments on his Facebook wall which suggest that he is an alleged member of the cult group named ‘Black’. The comment was said to have been posted as posers to Agboji John following the mob attack.

The screenshots of the posts, which were made available to National Record read: “If I be black, my wife na black too Mr Audu Presido Deep question“.

“There’s no single son of ugbokolo that is a cultist except non indigen [sic] more especially ogbadibos we know where it’s coming from“.

Edumoga, one of the largest districts in Benue State, but arguably the most marginalised and underdeveloped, has several prominent politicians including a former former senate president, former minister and several former members of House of Representatives, amongst other highly placed public officials.