Police in Enugu State have arrested a native doctor and father of a 26-year-old man, Chikwado Eze, who died during a fortification ritual that took an unexpected course.
The tragic incident occurred last week at Ugbaike, Enugu Ezike, Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area of Enugu State.
Chikwado had reportedly secured a visa to travel abroad and had visited his village to share the good news with his father, Mr. Uwakwe Eze. But his father was said to have insisted that he needed to undergo a fortification ritual to ensure his success overseas. He then took his son to a native doctor, Onuwa Odugu.
The native doctor allegedly recommended that Chikwado be buried alive for 1 hour and 30 minutes to be properly fortified. But tragedy struck when after the stipulated time, Chikwado was exhumed and found dead.
State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, confirmed the incident in a statement late Tuesday night.
Ndukwe said the father of the deceased and the native doctor had already been arrested.
The police spokesman’s statement said, “A native doctor, one Enuwa Odugu “m”, aged 48, and Uwakwe Eze “m”, aged 67, were arrested for conspiracy and murder of Eze’s 26-year-old son, one Chikwado Celestine Eze.
“The incident is alleged to have occurred when Uwakwe Eze took his son to the native doctor’s shrine for a ritual intended to fortify him with charms. However, during the ritual, the deceased was buried in a coffin but he unfortunately died in the process.
“He was rushed to the hospital and confirmed dead by the attending doctor, and his body deposited in the mortuary for preservation and autopsy.”
The police spokesman said that the native doctor had confessed to the crime, saying he had carried such rituals in the past without any untoward occurrence.
He attributed the young man’s death to his non-adherence to certain ritualistic rules he earlier prescribed for him.
“The case is under investigation, and the suspects will be arraigned in court once investigations are concluded,” the police spokesperson said.
