Delta Police arrest herbalist Amechi Okwuokenye and his brother Smart for kidnapping and killing two men in Owa-Alidima, Ika North East LGA

The Delta State Police Command has arrested a 20-year-old herbalist, Amechi Okwuokenye, and his 26-year-old brother, Smart Okwuokenye, for allegedly kidnapping and killing two men in Owa-Alidima, Ika North East Local Government Area of the state.

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The Command’s spokesperson, SP Bright Edafe, confirmed the arrest in a statement on Sunday, revealing that the victims’ bodies were recovered from a soakaway pit near the suspects’ shrine and deposited in a mortuary for autopsy.

According to Edafe, the incident began on September 30, 2025, when one of the victims, Friday Liberty, aged 22, visited the herbalist but never returned home.

Liberty’s disappearance prompted his family to investigate, and his girlfriend later revealed he had gone to consult a certain herbalist.

“The family contacted the herbalist, who denied seeing him but promised to perform spiritual incantations to bring him back. After spending money without results, they reported the matter at the Agbor Area Command on October 14,” Edafe stated.

Detectives subsequently launched an intelligence-led investigation and identified the herbalist as the last person seen with the missing man.

Surveillance was mounted around the shrine, leading to Amechi Okwuokenye’s arrest on October 23, 2025, while hiding inside a refrigerator.

During interrogation, the herbalist confessed that he and his brother had kidnapped both Liberty and a motorcycle rider, Isioma Ugbeje, who had transported him to the shrine.

“They kidnapped the victims and demanded a ransom of ₦10 million. When their plan failed, they murdered the two men and dumped their bodies in a soakaway pit near the shrine,” the police spokesperson said.

Edafe added that the herbalist admitted to previously assisting Liberty in performing rituals meant to “hypnotise clients” for financial gain, but their relationship turned fatal when the brothers decided to kidnap him for ransom.

Both suspects are currently in custody, while investigations continue.

Also read: Delta Police Arrest Kidnappers who Shot Victim after Ransom

Delta State Commissioner of Police, Olufemi Abaniwonda, assured the public that justice will be served and reaffirmed the command’s commitment to tackling violent crime in the state.