The 19- year -old prime suspect in the multiple killings in Akinyele Local Government Area of Oyo State, Sunday Shodipe, said on Wednesday that pressure from a herbalist was instrumental to his escape from police custody.

Shodipe, who was rearrested by the Oyo State Police Command on Sunday, stated this while being paraded by the Commissioner  of Police in the state, Nwachukwu  Enwonwu, in Ibadan.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 32 other suspects were also paraded for various offences  ranging from robbery,  murder,burglary and  kidnapping to rape and defilement.

Shodipe, who spoke in Yoruba, said that the 50-year-old herbalist arrested with him had threatened him in custody, warning of dire consequences if he did  not escape to continue the ritual killings.

He said the herbalist had also explained what he would do for him after escaping  from custody.

” Baba( herbalist) had been telling Officer Funsho to open the gate to allow us to take our bath but the officer did not answer  him.

“Baba later told the officer that he needed to drink  gin as an herbalist to prevent spirits from draining his blood but the officer  still did not answer him.

” Baba had been blaming me for telling the police and the public  that he was the one that sent me to kill and  that I would have been released from the custody if I had been untruthful.

“Baba also told me that something terrible might happen  to him if he stayed too long in police custody because  of the sacrifices  he had not been performing since his arrest.

“So, when the police later allowed me to go and bath in the evening at about 7.pm, I used the opportunity  to escape and went to Akinyele to kill another  woman.

” Baba sends me out and tells me to kill by reciting his name, Idris Adedokun Yunusa Ajani, in incantations.

“So, I killed the women to ensure Baba’s safety,” Shodipe said.

The suspect further said that he went to Bodija where he was rearrested to fend for himself by carrying luggage using a face cap to hide his identity.

The commissioner of police said Shodipe, who was in police custody due to the congestion  at the Nigeria Correctional  Service facility in the state, would now be taken to the correctional facility.

Enwonwu  appealed to the media to be objective in their reportage and always  verify their information from the police before  publication.

He said it was wrong for the public to judge the police by what they read on the social media and the attitude of one officer.

“The police officer involved  in Shodipe’ s case is paying dearly for it and he  is still in police custody facing disciplinary action which has been  completed  at the level of the command and forwarded  to Abuja,” he said.

NAN reports that the police also paraded some suspects linked with the bank robbery in Okeho, Kajola Local Government Area of the state. (NAN)