Palpable fear has gripped residents of Ipokia community in the Ipokia Local Government Area of Ogun State as some yet-to-be identified ritualists reportedly invaded the community and dug out over 40 skulls from graves.
Our correspondent gathered that the ritualists usually operated at night when people must have slept off.
A source said the ritualists invaded different parts of the town, dug the graves to exhume skulls and other human parts.
Some of the residents, who spoke with Sunday PUNCH, said they had counted over 40 graves that were dug by the ritualists.
Some of the sources said that the ritualists started the act about two months ago and had succeeded in making away with scores of dry human heads.
It was gathered that nobody had been arrested since the exhuming of corpses began in Ipokia town.
However, residents of Ipokia said none of the security agencies, which include police, Department of State Services, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, the So-Safe Corps and the Amotekun Corps have devised means to track down those behind the removal of skulls from graves in the town.
A source said, “They sneak into people’s compounds, dig the graves and removed the skull and any other parts they need. They will do it in a manner residents won’t wake up to know there is anything going on around them.”
Speaking with newsmen, an elder in Ipokia, Samuel Adeyemi, said two corpses were dug out in his compound on Friday, lamenting that nobody did anything to stop the act.
Adeyemi said the ritualists were becoming more desperate in their bid to steal many skulls from the tombs in Ipokia for reasons best known to them.
When contacted, the Ogun State police spokesman, Abimbola Oyeyemi, said he had yet to be briefed about the incident.