A farming community in Ogun State was thrown into shock after a local farmer confessed to killing a young herds boy and burying him in a shallow grave, admitting the boy had done nothing wrong.
The grim discovery in Roro village, Obafemi Owode Local Government Area, began when a cattle rearer reported his son missing after he was chased from farmland.
Fearing a violent reprisal from Fulani herders, villagers, hunters, and police launched a search that ended with the boy’s body found buried in the bush.
Community leaders proposed that all residents take a traditional oath within seven days to uncover the truth.
But before the ritual could happen, 35-Year-old Taiwo Amos, a widowed farmer and father of three, stepped forward and confessed.
Amos said he went to his farm on September 2 after church to check animal traps when he spotted the herds boy alone with cattle.
“I came back from church, stood up and went to check on my trap. When I got to the bush I saw him from a distance and a thought just came to my mind, telling me to go and kill him,” he said calmly.
Shockingly, Amos admitted the boy had done nothing to provoke him.
“To be honest, even his cows did not eat my crops. He didn’t offend me at all.”
He confessed that he initially lied to police, claiming villagers had shouted “thief” and told him to shoot.
But fearing the community oath would expose him and bring curses on his children, he decided to tell the truth.
Describing how he disposed of the body, Amos said: “I cut his legs because I was tired from digging the ground, so I had to bury him like that. No one assisted me in cutting or burying him and no one saw me shooting him.”
Insisting he acted alone, the suspect pleaded for leniency: “I want the government to please have mercy on me. I’m a first-time offender.”
