The activities of Internet fraudsters, popularly known as Yahoo Boys, have become endemic in Nigeria. The fraudulent practices of this set of people, who are mainly youths, have become so widespread that the government and security authorities are now having sleepless night over the menace they constitute, especially to the image of the country in the comity of nations.
As cybercrime and other internet criminal activities continue to fester, indications have emerged that certain powers are behind the confidence, ferocity and impunity with which the Yahoo boys now operate.
Investigations by our correspondent revealed shocking details of the fetish practices and ritualistic procedures carried out by witch doctors, popularly called Babalawo in local parlance, to perpetrate cybercrime. All these are to aid the Yahoo boys to hypnotise their victims to doing their bidding without raising any question and easily part with their hard-earned money in circumstances they’ll never be able to explain.
When he was beaten thoroughly, he confessed that he was working for Yahoo boys. He said they were about to use the new-born baby for a ritual in a river. He said after the burning of some parts of the baby’s body along with some materials, they would use the concoction obtained from it to make incisions on the Yahoo boy’s wrist and face before he would proceed to give orders to his
Our modus operandi
A witch doctor in the Ikorodu, Lagos area, Soji Awoniyi, explained to our correspondent how he had, on many occasions, carried out some rituals to aid the activities of some of the Yahoo boys, boasting that they had always recorded success in their fraudulent cyber activities after such fetish procedures.
Describing his procedure as aajo (ritualistic assistance), Awoniyi disclosed that he normally prepared some concoctions, which he would mix with soap or turn into powdery form for the use of his Yahoo boys clients to use in order to gain some uncanny favours from their victims.
He explained that some of the concoction would be expected to be eaten by the Yahoo boy while he takes the powder with local alcoholic ‘hot’ drink and takes his bath with the soap before commanding his victims to do whatever he wants.
He said, “We have done many things (rituals) for many people and they have been successful. What you asked is not something difficult.
“I have done many work (rituals) for people. We have some work, which involves preparing concoction; some is soap, and the very soap that he or she needs to be successful. The soap could be Lux, Premier or black soap; it could be powder, which can be taken with hot drinks like Schnapp.”
Explaining how his clients, the Yahoo boys, fleece their victims, Awoniyi said, “If they have established relationship with their customer, they may ask him or her to come and meet them at the bank they use. I would have done some works on the person (yahoo boy) in order to easily get money from his victim.”
When asked what kind of ritual would be done on a Yahoo boy to enable him get money from his victim, he said, “For this kind of job, they (the yahoo boys) will bring N5000, which I will use in getting the materials for the rituals (aajo). I will get a cock, a clay pot (ikoko) and other ingredients such as palm oil, cock, cobra and python bones, and other things like ori (shea butter).
“After all these things are done and my customers eat them, money will begin to flow in for them in torrent. But they must not fail to come back and show appreciation so that we can also benefit. And by so doing, more blessings will follow.
“And again after eating it, they will leave the bones as left-over. It is the bones that we will now work on again, and they will now eat it with our local hot drink.”
Awoniyi further revealed that a pigeon could also be used for preparing the concoction.
He said two pigeons would be provided for N3000 with other ingredients, which, according to him, could be quite expensive and scarce.
“The pigeon is very powerful. But the kind of concoction we use it for is different from that we prepare with a cock,” he said.
The witch doctor assured that after completing the rituals and his clients (yahoo boys) eat the concoction as directed, once they ordered their victims to pay them any amount of money, they would easily obey.
“After that, I can assure you that no barrier can prevent them from getting the money. After seeing the result, they are expected to come back and appreciate us,” he said.
While noting that rituals had no repercussions, Awoniyi stressed that after the Yahoo boy had eaten the concoction, he must abstain from any form of sexual intercourse for three days.
He added that any sexual affair by the Yahoo boy within three days after eating the concoction would nullify the potency and render the ritual invalid.
“The only forbidden thing is that after eating the concoction, the Yahoo boy must not sleep with a woman until after three days. If he did, the ritual would become invalid; there won’t be any effect on their victims and that will amount to a waste of resources and efforts,” he stressed.
The witch doctor further explained that the ritual is “about duping and collecting money from people. We cannot do this kind of work (ritual) for you and you won’t come back to appreciate us. One of the boys I did this work for was the one who bought me a mobile phone, when I lost the one I was using. In fact, about three months ago, he also brought a half bag of rice, beans, garri, yam power and cartons of macaroni to me. My family ate that for some time. This is my job and I am very good at it.”
When he was beaten thoroughly, he confessed that he was working for Yahoo boys. He said they were about to use the new-born baby for a ritual in a river. He said after the burning of some parts of the baby’s body along with some materials, they would use the concoction obtained from it to make incisions on the Yahoo boy’s wrist and face before he would proceed to give orders to his
We use new born babies for rituals – Arrested herbalist
However, a witch doctor, simply identified as Oluwo, who was arrested by operatives of the Anti-kidnapping Squad at Igbile in Ogun State, has confessed how he even killed newly born babies as part of the ingredients for preparing the concoction with which he had been assisting Yahoo boys to perpetrate cybercrime.
Our correspondent gathered that after Oluwo’s arrest, he allegedly told the police during interrogation that the killing of new-born babies made the concoction more potent and guaranteed success for the Yahoo boys in their dealings with their victims, particularly the foreigners.
Oluwo was allegedly arrested in the Itokin area of Lagos State while driving in a Prado jeep with a suspected Yahoo boy. The police were said to have found inside the vehicle a new-born baby wrapped in a piece of white cloth and placed inside a mortar.
The suspected yahoo boy in company with Oluwo was said to have immediately fled the scene as the police stopped their vehicle. But Oluwo was not that lucky as he was arrested as he, too, made an attempt to take to his heels.
A police source told our correspondent, “When he was beaten thoroughly, he confessed that he was working for Yahoo boys. He said they were about to use the new-born baby for a ritual in a river. He said after the burning of some parts of the baby’s body along with some materials, they would use the concoction obtained from it to make incisions on the Yahoo boy’s wrist and face before he would proceed to give orders to his victims on the internet.
The police source also disclosed to our correspondent that after his arrest, Oluwo offered the team the sum of N500,000 bribe, which they rejected.
“He offered us N500, 000 to release him, but we declined and sent him to our headquarters along with the baby and the jeep.”
Blame govt for menace-Traditionalists
But some traditional religion practitioners have blamed the government for the development.
According to them, the non-recognition of traditional religion by government and the hardship occasioned by the country’s parlous economy had given room for some of its practitioners to use the powers inherent in it to achieve unlawful and dubious ends.
Oba Saala Ogboni Worldwide, Oba Olamilekan Olaniyi Alagbe Fayemi, told our correspondent, “Poverty has made a lot of traditional religion practitioners and worshippers misbehave because they don’t have hope for the future. Most of them are waiting and looking for opportunities to acquire wealth. And this is also because the government does not recognise traditional religious practice.
“The government is giving recognition and support to the two other religions, Islam and Christianity, but disregarding our own traditional religion. Islam and Christianity are foreign religions, yet they are supported by the government. Government sponsors pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Mecca. They give money to pastors and Imams. In government houses, you have chapels and mosques and funds are allocated to them. But for us, who are traditional religion worshippers, they don’t have any provision. Even if the traditional festival comes, money will only be given to the traditional rulers, out of which they will not even give a dime to the traditionalist.
“So many herbalists are now looking for alternative means to better their lives. So, if any traditionalist gets a little chance, he will use it wrongly; poverty has made many of us turn into something else because they are not living well; their lives are not meaningful. If some of them see someone who wants to pay them huge sum of money, just to do something evil, they will eagerly do it. Some of these people, for the whole of one year, may not even have jobs of up to N300,000. Now if such a person sees someone that will give him a million naira job to kill someone for rituals or aid cybercrime, he will do it quickly.
Continuing, he said, “There is no image or integrity which they want to protect against being soiled, hence, if they find any opportunity that will upgrade their standard of living, they will not mind to compromise.
“So, it is the government that is to blame. And it must be ready to address the issue if not things might not get better,” he warned.
But the Akoda-Awo Ipakodo of Ikorodu land, Chief Ifashola Aworinde, categorised the traditionalists involved in diabolical activities and illegal rituals as Adahunse.
According to Aworinde, the Adahunse could be an individual, who inherited detailed accounts of ritual procedures from his forebears and now explored them to his own advantage.
He said such individuals had not been trained as herbalists or real traditional religion practitioners.
Aworinde said, “There are some others who are not herbalists, but Adahunse (those who carry out rituals by studying ritual procedures documents). Anybody can be an Adahunse.
“These are people who inherited account of rituals from their father or great grandfather. They only have to study the procedures in order to carry out of rituals and they will follow the steps.
“These individuals may now contact thugs to kill as part of the requirements for the rituals.”
He dismissed insinuations that anyone engaged in rituals to aid criminal activities is a herbalist.
“It is sad today that people believe that anybody who has that account and carry out the procedures for rituals, such persons are herbalists. And this is not so. It is these people who inherited those accounts that are found engaged in evil deeds,” he said.
In her own submission, the Iya Osun of Orile Iju, Mrs. Veronica Gbenga, described traditional religion as the mother of all religions.
She stressed that traditional religion should be upheld in order to ensure a peaceful and prosperous society.
The Iya Osun maintained that traditional religion would never support evil or criminal activities such as those of the Yahoo boys.
“We are not supposed to do evil to anyone. We are to right the wrongs in the society. Those who are doing evil and call themselves Isese (traditional religion adherents) are not true traditional worshippers. They are called Adahunse,” she said.
