Four secondary school students have been arraigned by the Nkpolu Divisional Police headquarters in Mile three, Port Harcourt, Rivers State over charges bordering on cultism.
According to the charge sheet deposed by Chief Magistrate Phillipa Dike-Udenna, the students are from the Community Secondary School, Nkpolu Oroworukwo axis of mile three in Port Harcourt.
The charge sheet cited by our correspondent gave the names of the students as Uchechi Okene, 17, Hakeem Suleiman, 18, Sunday Progress, 16 and Nicholas Benson, 16.
The charge sheet PMC 1478C read, “That you Uchechi Okene ‘m’ aged 17, Hakeem Suleman ‘m’ aged 18, Sunday Progress ‘m’ aged 16 years and Nicholas Benson ‘m’ aged 16 years on the 17th day of November 2021 in Community Secondary School Nkpolu, Oroworukwo, Port Harcourt in Port Harcourt magisterial district did conspire to commit felony to with Cultism and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 516(A) of the criminal code, Cap 37 Vol.11 laws of Rivers State of Nigeria.
“Count 11 read, that you Uchechi Okene ‘m’ Hakeem Suleiman ‘m’ Sunday Progress ‘m’ and Nicholas Benson ‘m’ on the same date and place at the aforesaid magisterial district did belong and are members of Deegbam Secret cult group and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 2(1) of the secret cut and similar activities prohibition N0 6 laws of Rivers State of Nigeria.”
The students were remanded in Police custody as Philipa Dike-Udenna Chief Magistrate grade 2 of Magistrate court 30 did not sit and they are to be arraigned properly on Monday 22, November 2021.
Our correspondent reports that Nkpolu Police Division filed the case of cultism against the students without transferring the students to the Anti-cultism of the Nigeria Police as it is usually the process in cases of cultism.