The parents of Tosin Olusanya a.k.a Target broke down and wept as the Akure High Court, Ondo State, sentenced him to seven years imprisonment for cultism and gang r*pe, New Telegraph reports.
Olusanya, who had a shocked expression on his face, took one glance at his weeping parents and joined them in crying. As he cried, he begged for leniency, promising never to ever venture back into cultism. But nobody listened to him; the gravel had already fallen.
The 7-years imprisonment came after weeks of trial. Olusanya was accused of initiating secondary schoolgirls into cultism. The convict, who is in his early twenties, is an undergraduate of Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo, Ondo State.
According to him, he was initiated into the Eiye Confraternity while in secondary school. He would later initiate several other secondary schoolgirls and boys. Whenever it was time for initiation of girls into cultism, Olusanya would ensure that 10 boys' take turn in r*ping a single girl. The court was also told that Olusanya used to insert red pepper into private parts of the new female converts, describing it as 'baptism by fire.'
Different witnesses gave graphic details of the nefarious activities of Olusanya. The witnesses' include National Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) officials, teachers and victims.
An NSCDC official, Folo runsho Oluwabunmi said that on February 4, 2016, a written request was made to Chief Security Officer (CSO) of the Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo (RUGIPO), requesting for assistance in the arrest of Olusanya.
According to Oluwabunmi, Olusanya was declared wanted for cult related offences just after he matriculated. He was trailed and arrested. One of the victims, Victor, 16, said: "I was initiated on June 12, 2015 by Target. For the initiation, my face was slashed, I was beaten and Regal Gin poured into my eyes.
"I was also informed of the time and avenue of subsequent meetings. Samson aka Naija, introduced me to the cult group. I have not attended their meeting ever since. I have since renounced my membership."
Solomon, 17, a senior secondary student (SS1) told the court that he joined the cult group on January 7, 2016. He said: "I was introduced to the group by Samson, a fellow student. I was initiated at bamboo area, within the school premises around 12pm. During my initiation, I was blindfolded with my school uniform and flogged by two members at the same time.
"A Regal Gin was splashed on my face. My identification name is 'Road runner.' Chibuike, Target and Rabiu were present during my initiation. I never attended any meeting since then."
A female student, Oluwatosin, said: "In December, Bukky came and invited me to a meeting within the school premises at a place called Bamboo Forest. We got there and met Target, our ex-student. He was with other students.
"After the meeting, we went to Target's house at Koseunti area along with Bukky and a JSS1 student. When we got to Target's house, we were initiated through s*x and cutting of our thumbs to get blood. Regal Gin was splashed on our faces. After my initiation, I never attended meetings and as a result on January 22, 2016, I was summoned to be gang r*ped for failing to attend meetings. I was lured with a promise that once I became a member I would become more confident and brave."
Damilola, 15, said: "I was introduced to cultism through a friend, Bukola between July and September, 2015. Bukola took me to the guys that initiated me somewhere in Ondo Road, Akure. I got there with my friend but my friend did not follow me into the room with the guys. During the initiation, my face was covered with a cloth. I was pushed into a bed and the guys had s*x with me. They cut my thumb and dropped the blood on an axe. Our meeting always comes up every last Friday of the month at 2pm."
Tomiwa, another female student, in SS1, said: "I was among nine members of Eiye Confraternity group. We threatened the principal of the school that her daughter would
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