A suspected cultist identified as Onyekachi Duru has confessed that he joined a secret cult in the higher institution to avoid being intimidated by other cult members on campus.
Duru, who made the confession while in police custody in Umuahia, the Abia State capital, said he was robbed of his mobile phone as a fresher on the campus by some cultists, after which he made up his mind to become a cultist to stop such incident from repeating itself.
He said, “When my phone was stolen from me, I reported the incident to one of my friends and he advised me to join his family (cult) and nobody will collect my phone again. That was how I became a cultist since 2011.
“My friend that initiated me later died in an accident while travelling. Even though I have not killed anybody since I joined the cult, I have initiated two other people into it.
“I went into armed robbery when I returned to Aba for my industrial training and since then, I have not gone back to school to complete my studies.
The suspect, who regretted his actions, vowed that he would not return to cultism again if he was left off the hook, adding that there was no gain in being a member of a cult.
The 24-year-old undergraduate was arrested in connection with a complaint made at Central Police Station, Aba, by one Ezeugo Ogbonna, who was allegedly robbed of his valuables and the sum of N60,000 at his residence by some armed robbers.
Others members of the syndicate arrested along with Duru are, Friday Udu, Chukwuebuka Stanley, Chimaobi Obi, Chidiebere Onyekwere. The rest are Chukwuemeka Okorie, Emmanuel Udeh and Ndubuisi Kalu, all of Emeka Street by Faulks Road, Aba.
Some exhibits recovered from them were one locally made double barrel short gun with two live cartridges, a machete, necklaces, one bangle, one belt and Tecno phones.
The Commissioner of Police in Abia State, Mr. Adeleye Oyebade, confirmed the arrest of the suspects.
He pointed out that the suspects were among the armed robbers that had been terrorising Aba and its environs, adding that they will be arraigned in court at the end of police investigation
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