My brother arrested for having tattoos, says deceased suspected cultist’s sister

Mary, the younger sister of a suspected cultist, Oduyiga Seyi, who reportedly died while in the custody of the Ogun State Police Command, has accused policemen of arresting the suspect for having tattoos on his body.

Oduyiga, a father of three who was arrested in Sagamu on Saturday, November 18, was believed to have allegedly been tortured to death by the command’s operatives.

The arrest of the 39-year-old barber was said to be in connection with the frequent cult clashes in Sagamu, which has recently claimed more than 15  lives.

However, PUNCH Online reported that the State Police Command on Sunday refuted the claim that he was tortured to death in its detention facility.

His younger sister, Mary, said the victim went out to charge his phone near his home in Atoyo, Sagamu when the operatives arrested him on November 18.

According to Mary, Seyi was accused of being a cult member despite denying the accusation.

She said the police justified his detention by pointing to tattoos on his body.

Mary said, “On Saturday, November 18, around 5 pm., my brother went out to charge his phone around his house on the same street.

“There was no electricity. A neighbour put on a generator, and he went there to charge his phone. His house is at Atoyo in Sagamu. He sat under the tree in front of the house where he was charging his phone and took off his clothes due to the heat.

“He saw a team of policemen on patrol, and he attempted to run away but fell down and was arrested. He was taken to Awolowo police station along with one other person.

“The police accused him of being a member of a cult, but he denied it. They took his picture and sent it to some suspected cultists who denied knowing him.

“The police said he would not be released because he had tattoos on his body, whereas the tattoos were Psalm 23.

“He wrote the verse of the Bible on his body, drew the two hands of Jesus supplicating on his chest with the inscription ‘Only God can judge me.’ He also wrote on his neck ‘The day I will never forget,’ dated April 7, 2014.

“Later, we pleaded for his release, but they did not release him. They released the other person arrested, stating that the other one would be released because he did not have tattoos on his body,” the sister said.

She said all efforts to secure bail for Seyi were denied by the police.

Mary said the family members were shocked to learn that Seyi had died in police custody on Friday.

She continued, “After some hours, I lost my patience, went back to the policewoman, and pleaded to be allowed to see him and give him the food. She agreed and took us to the cells again. Some inmates said he had been taken out since morning. We later called upstairs to meet the Deputy Commissioner.

“We did not know he wanted to break the bad news to us; he then said, “Your boy was misbehaving in the cell overnight; he was biting the inmates, talking to himself; he was behaving like he had run mad. They took him to the hospital, and on getting to the hospital, he gave up.

“On getting to the mortuary, we saw blood on his body; we saw some holes with blood; they had even stitched the area. I was confused that the police could deposit our man in a mortuary and embalm him without our notice.

“It means there is something fishy. It could mean that he might have been poisoned; they might have hit his head with a gun butt; I saw bruises on his body. I saw bruises on his back; he bled; I saw blood in his eyes. He died on Friday.

“Before he died, he was given a phone to call home; he spoke with my cousin and begged him that he should be fast to take him out of the place because he could not withstand what he was facing.

“We were told that his eyes were tied, legs tied, and turned upside down. There was blood in his eyes; there was blood in his body,” she said.

Mary, however, said that the family would brief lawyers in order to file a petition over the incident to seek justice over her brother’s death.

Ogun State Police Command on Sunday refuted that Oduyiga was tortured to death in its detention facility.

The spokesperson for the state police command, SP Omolola Odutola, disclosed this in a statement made available to journalists on Sunday.

The police explained that Oduyiga and another alleged cultist, Gbenga Adejoke and members of the outlawed Buccaneer cult group, were arrested around the Atoyo area of Sagamu in the wake of reprisal cult clashes that rocked the town in recent times

The police disclosed further that, Oduyiga and Gbenga during interrogation, allegedly confessed to be members of the outlawed Buccaneer cult.

The police said that the alleged cultist died at the Ogun State Hospital, Ijaye, Abeokuta, the state capital, where he was rushed to after going berserk, attacking and biting other suspects in the cell.

The statement read, “It is a fact of public knowledge that Sagamu town witnessed a series of cult clashes where 5 rival cultists were murdered.

“Following an intelligence report that suspected cultists on the wanted list of Ogun State Police Command, were within Atoyo area of Sagamu, on Tuesday 18th November 2023, the police swung into action on a covert operation where two suspected cultists were apprehended. Oduyiga Seyi Samson  “m” 39 years and Gbenga Adejoke ‘m’ notorious members of Buccaneer and Eiye confraternity were arrested.

“On Interrogation, both Seyi and Gbenga made a confessional statement to being members of the outlawed Buccaneer and Eiye confraternity Secret cult. Seyi confessed he was initiated in 2015.

“The Ogun State Police Command vehemently refutes that the deceased was tortured to death as it is being speculated in some online media. Ogun police command holds a strong commitment to upholding fundamental human rights laws, particularly when it comes to the treatment of suspects.

“Torture is strictly against our protocols and principles. Ogun state police command is well versed in the legal framework that safeguards the rights of individuals in custody, free from all forms of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.”

The police said for the records, “the deceased was already charged for cult-related activities and he was taken to Court on Thursday, 23rd November 2023 where he was to be arraigned before a special Court on cultism case in Isabo Abeokuta, but the honourable Court did not sit, and he was brought back to Eleweran in  Abeokuta the same Thursday.

“Seyi was to be taken back to the court on the next available day that the Court will sit, which is on Friday, 24th November 2023.

“However, on Friday, 24th November, at about 0500 hours, Seyi went berserk, shouting, biting with teeth, and assaulting other suspects in the cell until he got exhausted. Other suspects in the cell alerted policemen on duty.

“He was taken to the police hospital and later to Ijaye General Hospital Abeokuta, along with other suspects he gave bites in the cell for medical treatment against infection. Other suspects were treated and discharged, but Seyi, while on medical attention, later gave up the ghost.

“Every other allegation is hereby debunked as the accurate position is what has been stated above.

“As soon as the autopsy report about the deceased is out, the Police will give further details. However, the Commissioner of Police, CP Alamutu Mustapha, commiserates with the deceased’s family.”