The left hand of Ovey Friday, the teenager whose hands were allegedly burnt by a herbalist in Nasarawa State, has been amputated after he developed gangrene.

Doctors assured the thirteen-year-old teenager is in a stable condition and the functionality of his right hand depends on the healing time.

Meanwhile, the herbalist who allegedly burnt Ovey’s hand has been arrested by the police, and is currently at the Nasarawa State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department alongside the victim’s grandmother and stepmother.

Speaking to Channels Television, the herbalist, Adamu Musa, a 45-year-old herder revealed he relocated to Kwandere (where the boy was taken to by his stepmother and paternal grandmother), from Loko town in Nasarawa local government area three years ago, and has been administering herbal medicine for various ailments.

He refuted claims of burning the boy’s hands, insisting he only rubbed a herbal substance over his hands and contrary to the claims of the stepmother, Mercy Friday, he told our correspondent it all occurred in their presence.

“They are saying, I burnt his hands but I didn’t burn his hands. It is just a medicine I rubbed over his hands to ascertain if he is possessed or not and I told them (the stepmother and paternal grandmother), that if he is possessed, he would vomit and if he is not his hands will swell severely. It is the medicine that made his hands like that because he is not possessed, he said”.

After being informed of the amputation, in surprise, he chanted incantations in Arabic “Allahu Akbar!Allahu Akbar! meaning, God is great, saying, “this kind of situation has never occurred since I started administering the medicine.”

Ovey Friday, via a telephone call, rebutted the claims of the herbalist emphasizing, “he is lying, he burnt my hands” and the whole act didn’t happen in the presence of my stepmother and paternal grandmother, “they were in another room and we were in another”.

Ovey’s father, Friday who did not show up after the October 28th incident amidst several phone calls was also not present during the surgery. He, however, arrived Wulko community in Nasarawa Eggon Local Government Area of Nasarawa state, Monday,18th November which is three weeks after the ordeal and is yet to visit his son at the hospital.

The state police commissioner Bola Longe has assured to thoroughly investigate the matter after which the suspects will be charged to court.

“They are being subjected to exhaustive interrogation to know the veracity of their statement. We will definitely charge them to court when we complete the investigation and it will be very soon and we want to use the case to send a message to members of the public particularly those who are saddled with the affairs of taking care of children.

No one should show wickedness to any child, and who does so will face the full wrath of the law,” he said. (Channels TV)

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