By Tim Binnall
The bizarre case of a kidnapped celebrity witch doctor in Nigeria has come to a peaceful conclusion as the self-proclaimed sorcerer was released after being held in captivity for six days. The very strange saga began last week when armed intruders burst into a hotel owned by Akwa Okuko Tiwara Aki, killed two members of his security detail, and then fled the scene with the mystic in their grasp. Famous in Nigeria for his lavish lifestyle and friendships with prominent celebrities, the witch doctor's abduction came as something of a shock to the public and caused many to wonder why he did not use his alleged powers to thwart the miscreants. Since gaining his freedom, the sorcerer has offered an answer to those critics, though some may find his explanation rather dubious.
Shortly after the witch doctor was taken captive, his abductors reportedly demanded a staggering 350 million Nigerian Naira, which is approximately $460,000 in American dollars. In a testament to the sorcerer's standing in his country, an unnamed source told a Nigerian media outlet that "his friends rallied round and raised the money" to pay off the ransom and Akwa Okuko was set free this past Saturday morning. Following his release, the witch doctor declared that "while I was in the kidnappers’ den, I listened to the radio and saw how people were speaking all kinds of rubbish, so I decided to set the record straight."
He recounted how "someone named Okey Japan called me" with the claim that they were spending considerable money at his hotel and wanted him to join them. The witch doctor obliged their request, he says, but the mysterious stranger was not there when he arrived and, around thirty minutes later, he heard gunshots. "People started running helter-skelter," Akwa Okuko recalled, and the armed ne'er-do-wells soon began shooting at him. "I don't want to reveal much now," the sorcerer went on to cryptically say, "but I know that only two things can save a man. If your charms do not save you, your money will save you."
To that end, in explaining why he went with the kidnappers rather than use his purported powers to thwart them or simply flee the scene, the witch doctor offered a somewhat altruistic explanation. "If I wanted to run away, I would have run away," he said, "but I have seen those that were shot and I said 'if I leave, they will kill many people.'" Acknowledging that he was responsible for the presence of the gunmen in the building, Akwa Okuko mused that he felt compelled to acquiesce to their demands as "what I did was to save many souls." Ultimately, the witch doctor fired back at those "rejoicing" at his unfortunate experience and rather ominously warned those individuals that "if the death that killed the rich, encounters the poor, it will crush him."