The Yam Challenge

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The Yam Challenge

Boy turned into a yam by witchdoctor

Nigerian police are investigating a bizarre claim that a boy has been turned into a yam by a witchdoctor.

Officers have even taken a large yam - a staple of African diet - into custody.

Three schoolboys in Maiduguri told their headteacher their friend had been transformed into a vegetable in front of their eyes after accepting a sweet from a stranger.

The teacher called police who came to the school to 'rescue' the boy, reports The Daily Star.

Now police are trying to track down the man who gave the boy the sweet, according to Divisional Police Officer Amamu Tukur.

As word spread about the schoolboy yam, hundreds of curious people began flocking to the police station to catch a glimpse of it.

Mala Kachalla, an official from the governor's office in Borno state, Nigeria, said: "There has been a mysterious incident here."

Last updated: 08:51 Sunday 11 February 2007