Azeez Muta and Sunday Ogunleye after they were caught

The herbalist, Sunday Ogunleye (49), and his 27-year-old assistant, Azeez Muta, were arrested at Orile Agege area of the state on Tuesday last week.

The suspects were arrested based on a confessional statement made by a suspected armed robber that it was the herbalist who used to prepare charms for his gang before going on operations. After preparing the charms, the herbalist would send his cousin, identified simply as Bukola, to them to the robbers at their hideout.

Ogunleye said he was in his office when the policemen came to arrest him and his ‘errand boy’. He said: “When the policemen stormed my office, they ransacked everywhere, after which they asked me if knew any lady called Bukola and I told them she is my cousin.

“I told them it was four months ago that I saw her last. I am not preparing charms for robbers as claimed by the police; it is a taboo for me to prepare charms for armed robbers.

“I believe I was arrested because they could not arrest my cousin who is on the run. As herbalist, my own is to save people’s lives not encourage robbers, because I also arrest them.”

A police source said they had been on the trail of the herbalist and his cousin for long, because they had been romancing some armed robbers and preparing charms for them. On his part, Muta said he did not know anything about preparing charms for armed robbers.

He said: “I am working as an errand boy for the herbalist. They traced a phone I bought from Bukola to me. That was why I was arrested. I don’t know anything about the robbers.”

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