THE Anambra State Police command has rescued two persons from being lynched by a mob in Ihiala local government area of the state over allegation that they killed three persons for money ritual.
In a trending video, the suspects, a male and a female, were seen being paraded naked by the mob and forced to carry the dead persons in a wheelbarrow, while the crowd followed them.
They were at the point of being beheaded and set ablaze before the police intervened.
Those filming the incident said the man and the woman, who they accused of being yahoo yahoo ritualists, had killed the three persons for the purpose of using them for money rituals, before they were caught by the villagers.
However, the state Police command said it was not a case of money ritual, but pure murder.
In a statement in Awka, the state Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Tochukwu Ikenga said: “The Command operatives yesterday, 7/6/2023, rescued two victims and a suspect who were about to be lynched by an angry mob at the Total filling station junction, ihiala.
“To set the records straight, it is not a case of ritual killing, but a pure incident of murder.
“Preliminary information reveals that the two victims, a man and a woman, who were humiliated and paraded naked, as shown in the video by the angry mob, were erroneously accused by the mob as they were seen at the scene where the murder took place.
“Also, both the suspects and victims are currently receiving treatment in the hospital, while the deceased have been deposited in a morgue.”
Meanwhile, the state Commissioner of Police, Echeng Echeng, while reacting to the incident, sued for calm, adding that he had ordered immediate transfer of the case to the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, Awka for a comprehensive investigation.