The Niger State Police Command has arrested four men for allegedly offering their biological children as human sacrifices in a desperate attempt to acquire wealth through money rituals in Minna.
The suspects, identified as Ibrahim Mohammed Hamisu, 43; Abubakar Abdullahi, 40; Aliyu Sule, 25; and Mohammed Idris Dogara, 57, were arrested alongside a 40-year-old native doctor, Shehu Abubakar, during a police operation in the Garima area of Bosso Local Government Area, Minna.
The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Wasiu Abiodun, disclosed this in a crime bulletin issued on Thursday, November 5, 2026.
According to the police, the suspects were arrested on October 27 at about 8:30 p.m. after operatives attached to the Anti-Kidnapping Unit received credible intelligence about suspicious activities allegedly linked to ritual practices at an isolated compound in the area.
Acting on the information, the operatives reportedly mobilised to the location, where they apprehended the five suspects and recovered several items suspected to have been used for ritual activities.
The recovered items included blood-stained red and white clothing, four calabashes, two live chickens, three slaughtered chickens, a blood-stained knife and a large mat on which the items were arranged.
The police said preliminary investigations revealed that the four suspects had approached the native doctor to perform money rituals for them using a human skeleton allegedly discovered during mining activities.
However, the native doctor reportedly declined the request, explaining that he did not offer such services.
The four suspects allegedly persisted and offered their biological children as sacrifices in exchange for different sums of money.
Following their insistence, the native doctor allegedly instructed each of them to purchase a chicken and assemble at a designated location for the proposed ritual.
The police said operatives stormed the location while the suspects were allegedly carrying out the planned ritual.
One of the suspects, Aliyu Sule, was reportedly caught holding a blood-stained knife and preparing to slaughter his chicken, while three others had already slaughtered theirs.
The command further disclosed that the suspects confessed during interrogation and were undergoing further investigation before being charged to court.
The police condemned the alleged criminal activities and reiterated their commitment to combating ritual-related crimes, violent offences and other threats to public safety across the state.
SP Abiodun also urged residents to remain vigilant and provide credible information to security agencies to help prevent criminal activities in their communities.
