Elderly woman killed in witchcraft claim

A Nigerian man has been arrested for allegedly setting fire to a 111-year-old woman whose family he believed had used witchcraft to kill his father. Police said the woman, who was blind, died after the suspect, Tyoakaa Ijoho, set 10 round huts on fire, Leadership newspapers reported Monday. Ijoho's father died a few months ago after being bitten by a snake and the son had consulted an oracle to determine the cause of his father's death, said Ahangba Chafa, the head of his family in the Adamgbe community in central Benue State. The oracle told Ijoho the Igyuse Chafa family had killed his father, Chafa said. The elderly woman, known as Mama Martha Igyuse Bonka, was alone in the home when Ijoho allegedly set fire to the huts, Chafa said. Another woman, Mama Mezaga Chafa, 78, heard the older woman's cries and tried to rescue her, but was unsuccessful, Ahangba Chafa said. Other people in the village seized Ijoho and turned him over to police. A police spokesman said an investigation of the incident was continuing. He described Ijoho as insane. Ijoho reportedly had left the village about 20 years ago because of cases of witchcraft in his family, but returned after his father's death.