DSS operatives took a team of herbalists along with them when they raided Sunday Igboho's house

NIGERIAN security operatives who raided Yoruba Nation campaigner Sunday Adeyemo's Ibadan home on July 1 took three native doctors along with them on the operation to protect them against any dark powers that could be deployed.

On July 1, men of the Nigerian Department of State Security (DSS) raided Mr Adeyemo's Ibadan home, killing two of his aides and arresting 13 others. Popularly known as Sunday Igboho, Mr Adeyemo's reputation, however, preceded him, as his knack of using native charms scared the security operatives into taking precautions.

Onaolapo Ademola one of the arrested associates, who was recently released on bail, revealed that on the night in question, about 100 DSS personnel and soldiers attacked the residence,  shooting sporadically everywhere. He added that during the raid, the operatives took gold, money, mobile phones, CCTV cameras, and one of the cats after killing about four or five other cats.

Mr Ademola said: "Chief Igboho was at home and the DSS saw him. They can’t deny that because that night, they came with three herbalists and after shooting at so many corners of the house, all of a sudden they couldn’t see him again, so they believed he was hiding, not knowing he was in the building.

"Chief Igboho is not an ordinary man, he is the Akoni Oodua of Yorubaland and a real son of Oduduwa. When the DSS could not find him, they brought in their herbalists and they started chanting incantations wanting him to come back.

"The herbalists later told the DSS that Baba Igboho had turned to a cat and that was when they started killing the cats. I believe they know he has metaphysical powers, that was why they came in with herbalists to get him at all costs but God was not ready to put his life in the hands of the DSS."

According to Mr Ademola, the DSS operatives numbered more than 20 and most of them were from Oyo State, while the soldiers were more than 200. He added that he could count about 87 vehicles when they taking them away, pointing out that they came with ambulances too, believing they were going into a war zone.

He pointed out that after they took them from the house, the number of DSS operatives that followed them to Abuja was reduced drastically. Mr Ademola stressed that there was a lady in one of their vehicles that kept saying: "Get him dead or alive!"

He added: "Chief Sunday Igboho is a human being like everyone but he is a special creature. No one can face what he faced that night and escape."