A 28-year-old suspected cultist, Azeez Idris, has told the police in Lagos that any time his members put on red clothes they must kill somebody that day.
The suspected Eiye cult member said that they derived their strength from wearing red clothes whenever they were going on operations.
Other suspects are Andrew Awalebi (38), Wale Oyekan (40), Uche Igbo (38), John Dayo (20), Tajudeen Oluwatosin (30), Azeez Olayeni (21), Femi Orijobi (21) and Joseph Kolawole (22). They were all arrested on May 9 at Jakande Estate, Lekki area of the state.
The suspects, it was learnt, were going to carry out attack on their rival group in the area, when they were arrested by the Special Anti- Robbery Squad team drafted to area.
According to Idris, the members don’t just wear red clothes; they do that whenever they are going to attack a rival group, because somebody must die.
He said: “I was initiated into the Eiye cult group in 2013 by Johnbull. The said Johnbull approached me and said that he wanted me to be part of them and promised to defend me when I was in trouble.
“It is true we always wear red but on the operations that they arrested us, I did not go with them.
“I was sleeping when policemen came to arrest me. I had been to prison twice because of cult-related issues.
“When I was released from prison I did not intend to join the group, but I joined when my colleagues threatened to kill me.
“Since I joined the Eiye group, I have not killed, but, I am the one carrying the guns we use for operations. I am not the leader of the group; the leader of our group is Jide. He was arrested when we went to fight and remanded in prison.
“As a member, we always assist one another who are in need of money or if such a person is being threatened we would go and give the person protection. I regret joining the group. After I joined I couldn’t leave for fear of being killed,” he said.
On his part, Olayeni said that he was formally a member of the Eiye confraternity.
He said: “After I was released from prison I decided not to join them again, but I was arrested in my house while I was sleeping.” Awalebi, who the police claimed to be the leader of the group, denied being the leader.
But Idris pointed at him and said he was the leader of the Eiye cult group.
However, Awalebi said that he had never met Idris, claiming that he was only working as a security guard at Asapa Estate in Ajah area.
Dayo, on his own, said that he was an Eiye cult member and that he was initiated by one Toyosi who is late now.
The state Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, said on May 9, about 10p.m., his men received a distress call about the operation of the Eiye cult members at Jakande area. Based on the information, a crack team of Special Anti-Robbery Squad operatives and the command undercover were drafted to the scene which led to the arrest of the suspects as they were about to set out for a mission to attack rival cult group.
The commissioner said that during interrogation, the suspects confessed to be members of the notorious Eiye confraternity cult group.
According to him, the suspects have made life miserable for residents of Jakande Estate in Lekki area of the state.
He said: “The ringleader of the cult group by name Andrew Awalebi called Flying Bird confessed that he was initiated into the group in 1990 by one Efrebor. He has also participated in inter-cult clashes in Lekki- Ajah area where many lives were lost.”
Edgal said that one locally-made single- barrelled pistol, two battle axes, two daggers, one cutlass, charms and a pair of regalia were recovered from them.