Neo Black Movement of Africa or The Black Axe Confraternity | Principals & Principalities Podcast

On July 7, 1977, nine university students in Benin City led by anti colonialist ideals and a desire to unify and eradicate classism in their universities started a confraternity. They picked up a symbolic axe to break the chains of colonialism. Nearly fifty years later, that symbol belongs to one of the world's most powerful transnational criminal organizations — responsible for over 200 deaths in Nigeria in 2024 alone, and an estimated billions of euros in annual revenue across five continents.In this episode of Principals & Principalities, host Ayomide Odubonojo-Kinoshi traces the Black Axe Confraternity from its idealistic roots in Wole Soyinka's Pyrate Confraternity, through its founding as the Neo Black Movement of Africa, to the transnational crime syndicate Europol and the FBI are tracking today. We examine the campus massacres that built its reputation for terror, the deity Korofo at the center of its blood oaths, the advance-fee scams and human trafficking networks that fund it worldwide — and the leaked documents suggesting politicians and law enforcement have protected it for decades.This episode asks the question that defines this podcast: In Nigeria, is crime ever just crime?Listen wherever you get your podcasts, and follow us on social media for behind-the-scenes research, upcoming cases, and episode drops.Follow us On⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow us on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow Us on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠(x)