A football academy owner, Victor Achidume, has been arrested by men of the Lagos State Police Command for allegedly shaving the armpits and pubic hair of some children for alleged ritual purposes. The 43-year-old was alleged to have given the children between N100 and N200 after shaving their pubic hair.
The state Commissioner of Police, Edgal Imohimi, during a press briefing on Monday said six victims had testified against the suspect. He said:
“Victor Achidume, a suspected cult member, lured some young people, aged between 11 to 15 years, to his house after a football game, shaved their armpits and pubic hair ostensibly for ritual purposes, and thereafter gave them between N100 and N200. About six boys came forward and said there were still some of their colleagues, who they were going to come forward.
“Naturally, the suspect denied the allegation. However, I was quick to ask him a question – Is there any possible reason why the young boys will want to tell lies or frame you? Of course, he had no reasonable answer to that question.
“Investigation reveals that the man takes these children to his house, which is improper. We expect that if he is running a football academy as he claims, the children should be taken to a sports arena and not his private house.”
PUNCH Metro gathered that the Delta State indigene owned Magico Football Academy, Agege. The suspect denied the allegations saying, he was a victim of blackmail. He said:
“Each time they are going to school, they come to the front of my house and I throw N500 or N1,000 to them. They say that their parents don’t buy books for them and they had not eaten. They never entered my house. I have never shaved them before.”
“The kids are here, look at them; do they look like kids that are losing weight? Even some of these kids, do they have hair? They are young; who has checked them to confirm if it is true or not? It is unfair. You have not confirmed your fact and you are putting me before the press to defame my personality, integrity and character. I never did it.”
Our correspondent learnt that the matter became public knowledge when one of the victims, Seun Salaudeen, reportedly started losing weight. He was said to have told his parents that he had been going to Victor’s house, where the suspect shaved his armpit and pubic hair. Salaudeen told PUNCH Metro that the suspect had allegedly shaved his pubic hair six times.
“Whenever he shaved my hair, he talked about football to distract me. The last time he shaved my pubic hair was on Wednesday, May 9, 2018, and he told me not to tell my parents,” he added.
Another victim, Oluwadare Ifeoluwa, who confirmed Salaudeen’s account, said the suspect had inspected his own pubic hair as well.
“After three weeks of knowing me, he asked me if I had reached puberty stage. I said no. He then checked and asked if I had shaved my pubic hair before. I said yes. He then said that I should not worry,” he added.