19 Year-Old Sells Younger Brother For N20,000 To Pay Bride Price

The police in Niger State have arrested 19-year-old Aliyu Basala Mohammed Yakutchi, for selling his six-year-old younger brother at Nagenu village in Katcha Local Government Area to one Legbo from Afuwagi village in Mokwa Local Government of the state for ritual purpose.

Bisala, who is being interrogated at the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligent Department (SCIID), said he took his younger brother, Yamusa Ibrahim Yakutchi to Legbo, a notorious criminal and ritualist on credit and hopes to use the money to pay his 14-year-old bride to be price.

The suspect, who claimed to be the third in a family of six while speaking at SCIID, said Legbo, who is now on the run with the victim was expected to pay him the N20,000 after completion of the ritual.

Bisala attributed his action to the handiwork of the devil, saying he had intended to use part of the N20, 000 proceeds from sale of his younger brother to pay the bride price of his wife to be, Fatima who is also from the same village.

Asked if the decision to sacrifice his younger brother’s life was planned and executed with his wife to be, Bisala replied on the contrary, adding that Fatima was not aware of his evil plans to sell his own little brother just to get money to pay her bride price.

“I blame the devil for pushing me to plot the evil plans and to carrying it out against the little boy who I cannot tell of his whereabouts with Legbo as at now”, Bisala, who rarely spoke Hausa except Nupe said as he sobs profusely in regrets for his actions.

Bisala, who also claimed to be a farmer said, “I am a bachelor, I was only enrolled in an Islamic school during my childhood days by my parents and my parents could not afford to enroll me for western education while I only speak our local dialect, Nupe language because I cannot speak or understand Hausa language too.”

The suspected ritualist ran away with the victim when he learnt that the police were looking for him, Bisala said, adding that, “Legbo who is about 30 years old and an indigene of Afuagi in Mokwa Local Government could not be found when the police visited his village to arrest him.”

As at the time of filing this report on yesterday (Thursday), the police’s manhunt for the fleeing suspect had not yielded the desired results thereby fueling fears that the innocent boy may have been killed.

Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Muhammad Abubakar confirmed the story, adding however that the command is making frantic effort to arrest the fleeing suspected ritualist, Legbo and possibly rescue the little boy.