Three people charged with killing at least two women, eating parts of their bodies and using their flesh to make and sell stuffed pastries have gone on trial in Brazil.
Jorge Beltrao Negromonte da Silveira, his wife Isabel Cristina Pires and mistress Bruna Cristina Oliveira da Silva were arrested in April 2012 in the city of Garanhuns.
They allegedly confessed to luring women to their house between 2008 and 2012 by promising them a job as a nanny.
But in chilling echoes of the story of Sweeney Todd, the fictional Victorian barber whose killing spree was most recently told in the 2007 film starring Johnny Depp, they killed them and stuffed their flesh into meat pies which they sold to neighbours, schools and hospitals claiming they contained tuna or chicken.
Police found the remains of two women in the back yard of the suspects' house.
At the time of their arrest they told police they belonged to a sect that preached 'the purification of the world and the reduction of its population'.
In chilling echoes of the film Sweeney Todd, authorities said the trio made thick empada pastries with the flesh of their victims, which the three and a young child who lived with the man and wife ate.
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Former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai has not stopped criticising President Goodluck Jonathan led Federal government over its handling of insurgency in the Northern part of Nigeria.

In his latest criticism of the FG, El-Rufai, who is a governorship aspirant of the All Progressive Congress, APC, in Kaduna State, posted a cartoon titled ‘Litany of confusion’ on his twitter handle, @elrufai, where he mocked the FG over series of confusion in the handling of the dreaded Boko Haram insurgency that has killed more than ten thousand Nigerians since 2009.

El-Rufai also made reference to the purported FG/Boko Haram ceasefire agreement which was denied by the leaders of terrorists group, the abduction of policemen in Gwoza, Borno State, the $1 billion loan to fight Boko Haram and the alleged death of Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau among others. Below is the carton as tweeted by El Rufai “Sad State of a Nation!
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The penchant of Nigerians for lavish publicity in foreign media has met a stonewall in CNN which has been rejecting political advertisement.

With the 2015 elections drawing close, several politicians are shocked that the American international cable channel, which is one of the favourites in Nigeria, has been turning down commercials with overt political messages.

CNN adverts are among the most expensive in the world ─ the network charges up to N5m for a 30-second spot at prime time ─ but many Nigerian companies and politicians typically value the prestige above the economic cost.

This has also created a bandwagon effect, with many falling over each other to get on the international media.

It is estimated that Nigerian companies and various state governments spend billions of naira every year advertising in foreign media, notably The Economist, Financial Times of London, CNN International and SuperSport.

“We approached CNN agents in Nigeria to place some adverts for our principal. We sent the creatives to them as requested and they returned them, saying they do not run commercials that are intended to campaign for votes. We could not believe it,” a consultant to a presidential aspirant said.

Another, who is working for a state governor seeking re-election, said he had a similar experience.

An official of CNN added that it was a general rule not to accept certain advertisements and there was no discrimination against Nigerian politicians.

Ashley Hogan-Gancarz, the account manager of CNN International, informed TheCable: “CNN International never accepted political or religious advertising. This is due to Ofcom regulations.

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cancelled

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is investigating a case of electronic fraud involving an unnamed state government in Nigeria which reportedly lost over N5 billion in three minutes.

According the EFCC, five banks were involved in the case in which 250 bank accounts were used by the yet to be unidentified cyber thieves to defraud the state government.

Mr. Olaolu‎ Adgbeti, director of Operations, EFCC, said that processes used in the fraud include: POS, NIP, ATM, cash withdrawal, fund transfers and NEFT.

Adgbeti, who was represented by Iliyasu Kwarbai,‎ head of Lagos zone at the 5th annual Payment Systems & Fraud Conference 2014 added that "since ‎the adoption of the ePayment system in Nigeria, the Commission is inundated with complaints related to electronic payments frauds. These compliments come from the financial institutions. Current fraud trends that is reported and Ben investigated include: Phishing and spoofing activities targeting local bank customers; Cloning of business websites e.g. banks and merchants; fraudulent online purchases made with fake foreign financial institutions and stolen credit card information.

"Online investment scams targeting local victims who divulge all their confidential information; deployment of malicious programs, mostly key stroke loggers, on target systems. Millions of naira are moved using electronic transfers.

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Former President Olusegun Obasanjo said the rot in the power sector came to office after he left office.

Obasanjo believed that if Nigeria must surmount the power challenge, it must start generating additional 2,000 megawatts every year.

He said apart from his efforts to ensure stable power while he was the military Head of State in 1979, subsequent administrations did nothing on power generation, up to the time he returned as a civilian president in 1999.

The former President said this on Monday at a programme tagged First Green Legacy Moment with Chief Olusegun Obasanjo on Leadership and Human Security in Africa, held in Abeokuta.

While he noted that part of the challenges confronting the nation was lack of political will by Nigerian leaders, he, however, warned that power should not be “privatised to friends.”

He said, “Part of our problems is lack of political will on the part of the leaders. What does a leader understands about development? Any leader worth his salt should know that power is very important. It is the driver of all development, be it social, economic, and even political.

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In a move that will raise the stakes in the rapidly evolving Nigerian cement market, leading cement manufacturer, Dangote Cement Plc, has announced huge cuts in the price of the essential construction product.

The group managing director of Dangote Cement, Mr. Devakumar Edwin, said the company had pegged the Dangote 32.5 cement grade at N1,000 per 50 kg bag, while the higher 42.5 grade is to sell for N1,150 per bag.

The new prices, exclusive of the Value Added Tax (VAT), represent about 40 per cent discount on the prevailing market price of the product, which currently sells for N1, 700 across the country irrespective of the grade.

Edwin said the move was in line with the company’s commitment to the nation’s dire need for the development of infrastructure and to boost the federal and state government’s ongoing effort to reduce the near 20 million housing deficit in Nigeria.

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“Without wasting time, we hereby send a message to the tyrants of Nigeria and other infidels as well as their world tyrants as a whole in Hausa language.

“You people should understand that we only obey Allah, we tread the path of the Prophet. We hope to die on this path and get eternal rest in our graves, rise up in bliss before our Lord and enter Paradise (quotes from the Koran). Our goal is the Garden of Eternal Bliss. May Allah protect us.

“Oh you followers of constitution, have you forgotten your laws? Since the time we were preaching in Maiduguri, in your constitution in Section 8, verse (paragraph) 2 to 3, in your accursed book called Constitution, which became law for those who are not fair to themselves on earth.

“You shamelessly declared in your radio and newspapers that you were fighting those determined to establish an Islamic state.

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After a few days of drama in Nigerian football, a deluge of court orders and a barrage of claims from two factions of the Nigeria Football Federation (led by Chris Giwa and Amaju Pinnick), all parties have finally found some middle ground, one of which was the reinstatement of sacked Super Eagles coach, Stephen Okechukwu Keshi on Friday afternoon.

According to an official statement from the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), the NFF technical committee accepted the plea for Keshi’s reconsideration made by Coach Shaibu Amodu on Monday.

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Ghana has been invited by African champions Nigeria to play an international friendly on November 7 to officially inaugurate the ultra-modern Akwa Ibom International Stadium.



But both countries will be unable to field their high-profile stars and home-based players will dominate the exhibition match in Uyo.

Nigeria President Goodluck Jonathan is scheduled to be in attendance and top football icons, including Brazil’s Pele, have also been invited to grace the opening of the stadium.



The newly built 30,000 capacity will host the Super Eagles 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against the Bafana Bafana of South Africa 12 days later, on November 19.

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Former United Nations’ secretary-general, Kofi Anan, has stated that the dreaded Ebola virus disease (EVD) is receiving less attention than other epidemics because it is considered a “poor man’s disease”.

In an interview with the international media, Annan blamed the vast spread and lack of action towards Ebola on the fact that it developed in the “poor” part of the world.

Annan opined that the best way to stop the virus was restricting it to West Africa and solving it there.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner also pushed for more support in terms of funding and the movement of health workers towards the affected countries.

Anan regretted the degree of action and response which the break-out of the disease was getting and specified that the “West has done better in less worse situations”.

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Many in residents of Chibok and the adjoining villages in Borno State waited in vain for their nieces and daughters to return home Monday in vain.

Also their relatives in the cities of Maiduguri, Yola, Abuja and across the world who had “enthusiastically” awaited their hand-over by the fundamentalists’ sect, Boko Haram were disappointed that it didn’t happen as promised.

Dr. Pogu Bitrus, the national chairman of the Chibok Development Association, had said on Monday that the community was enthusiastically expecting the release of the abducted girls.

Based on information available to him, the girls would be handed over to Idriss Deby, president of Chad, Monday.

“We are expecting the girls based on what the discussions would bring up. When we are told or informed that they have been handed over to the president of Chad, then we, the community, can talk. We are actually enthusiastically expectant of the girls,” Pogu said in an interview.

“They said the girls would be released today, but Boko Haram has reneged on promises. They said the government announced the ceasefire not them. And they have been attacking communities. So let’s wait and see if what they have said is correct. However, it also raises the question about the command of Boko Haram. They appear to be fragmented.”

On behalf of the federal government, Mike Omeri, the coordinator of the national information centre, had announced on October 17 that an agreement to ceasefire had been reached with Boko Haram.

“We can confirm to you that there have been contacts between the government and representatives of Boko Haram,” he had said.

“The discussions are essentially in relation to the general insecurity in the northeast and also the need to rescue all captives of the terrorists, including the students of Government Secondary School Chibok.”

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The All Progressives Congress has accused the Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, of churning out lies to the public when he claimed his predecessor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, spent a whooping N50m on beds in his and his wife’s bedrooms at the newly built Ekiti State Government House.



It challenged Fayose to release independently verifiable documentary evidence to proof his claims because no bed in the lodge cost more than N2m, adding that the money spent on the government house was less than N2bn.



The APC in a statement entitled, “Fayose’s season of lies” by the State Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, on Sunday said Fayose had been churning out the lies to draw sympathy from the public and to discredit Fayemi who had done well.



The party said, “This is how Mr. Fayose lied about a nonexistent N50m bed in the Government House when he knows there is no bed that is costlier than N2m in that lodge. Governor Fayemi served Ekiti with diligence, candour and deprivation.



“Mr. Fayose knows that he lied about the N3bn cost of the new Government House and a non existent N50m bed as no bed costs more than N2m in that lodge and we challenge him to release independently verifiable documentary evidence to proof us wrong.

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The local government assessment tour of Ogun State governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun came to a close Thursday at Abeokuta North local government with royal fathers in the area asking the people of the state to return Amosun as governor come 2015.

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President Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday finally declared interest in contesting the 2015 presidential election.

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The Ogun State Police Command has commenced investigation into the sudden death of a 78-year-old Peoples Democratic Party chieftain, Chief Christopher Adebayo Deru, who slumped and died on top of his lover allegedly after several rounds of sex.


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The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared Nigeria Ebola free on Monday after, after a 42-day period with no new cases elapsed.

“Nigeria is now free of Ebola,” agencies quoted WHO representative, Rui Gama Vaz,as saying at a news conference in Abuja.

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The Federal Government of Nigeria has said that it hopes to secure the release of over 200 schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram militants latest by Tuesday, a senior source at the Presidency told newsmen on Saturday afternoon.

This senior source, did not, however, reveal where or how the transfer will take place.

“I can confirm that the Federal Government is working hard to meet its own part of the agreement, so that the release of the abductees can by effected, either by Monday or latest Tuesday next week,” news agency reports quoted the source to have said.

The negotiations, allegedly facilitated by the Chadian and Camerounian governments, began early in the week and showed some sign of progress when a cease-fire was agreed, both on the side of the government’s security forces and the Boko Haram.

If the girls are released, it will be a huge plus for this administration and bring to an end, one of the issues which have defined the nation’s fight against insecurity in the last 180 days.

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Islamist militant group Boko Haram and the Federal Government have agreed to a ceasefire. Chief of Defence Staff Alex Badeh issued an order Friday, telling all service chiefs “to comply with the ceasefire agreement between Nigeria and Boko Haram in all theatres of operations.”
The text went out after Danladi Ahmadu, who calls himself the secretary-general of Boko Haram, told VOA that a cease-fire agreement had been reached.
Earlier, Ahmadu and a close advisor to President Goodluck Jonathan, Ambassador Hassan Tukur, told VOA that the sides were holding talks in Saudi Arabia, aided Chadian President Idriss Deby and high-level officials from Cameroon.
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Politics in all climes tend to be an uncertain endeavour. The game of politics is not like Mathematics where if one puts the right numbers in place and follows the correct procedure, one arrives at a sure answer.

In politics, someone may have done everything considered right and yet reap a different result. Thus politics is more like football. The fact that a team is star- studded does not mean it would certainly win the championship!



It for the reasons above that some political watchers have questioned the decision of some of the Ministers in President Jonathan’s cabinet who tendered their resignation effective the 15th of October, 2015 to pursue their political ambition. The Ministers, seven in number resigned from what many considered to be juicy and privileged positions in search of political fortune as their respective states’ chief executive.

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An advertising firm has promised to pay out to all those who were affected by its advert showing a woman’s bare breasts, which led to more than 500 auto-crashes in one day in a poorly thought-out public relations campaign.

The photograph showing a woman cupping her breasts with a thin blue strip across the nipples was posted on the side of 30 vans in Moscow, Russia.

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When is it OK to kiss a colleague? Two Tanzanian police officers, whose kiss was widely shared on social media, have prompted a discussion about just that - and both have also lost their jobs.

A relationship with a colleague can throw up any number of complications, but the two young police officers in the picture may not have thought it would end their careers. The photograph - taken in Kagera, north west Tanzania - shows the pair kissing whilst dressed in their work uniforms, and was considered grounds for dismissal. Residents of the country have taken to social media to voice their dismay.

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Former Nigerian President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has said that many of the abducted Chibok girls may never be reunited with their families.

Obasanjo told The Hausa service of the British Broadcasting Corporation on Sunday that many of the girls may also give birth to children belong to members of the Boko Haram insurgents.
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...We Killed "Abubakar Shekau" Impostor, Military Insists; I'm Alive, Says "Shekau" in Video

Notwithstanding the video released Thursday morning where the Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau “resurrected” and dismissed Nigerian military claims of his death, the military authorities said “Abubakar Shekau” was killed during a battle in Konduga on September 17.

Shekau had in the video claimed that the militants had “implemented strict Islamic law in captured towns".

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Embattled Chris Giwa vowed to resume work after the independence day break tomorrow.
Speaking to reporters, the Giwa FC owner said he sees no reason why he shouldn’t return to work considering he is still number one as far as Nigeria’s football is concerned.

Giwa will be coming back despite a court order which had directed that the process leading to yesterday’s elections in Warri be suspended.
“We shall resume on Thursday. I issued a statement to that effect. We have been working so we would be going back to office on Thursday,” Giwa said.
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With a number of online payment methods available to Nigerians out there on giant merchant sites, one may be wondering how well Nigeria's own financial technology start-ups will stand the test of time or how fast they would get integrated on a variety of e-commerce platforms.

Looking at the likes of QuickTeller, Paga, CashEnvoy, ReadyCash, and eTransact.

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President Goodluck Jonathan was spot on when he described the National Honours as an annual ritual. What he failed to say was that most of the honourees do not deserve to be dashed our patrimony.

Last Monday, when he doled out these treasured suffixes of CFR, CON, OFR, MFR, MON and medals to Nigerians, it is sad that even the President found out that the real people deserving of the honours are fewer that the different categories of the National Honours. Only FOUR of the 313 were called out for special mention.

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A Texas man just back from West Africa has been confirmed as having the first case of Ebola to be diagnosed in the U.S.
Authorities with the Centers for Disease Control revealed the finding Tuesday, a day after the unidentified patient arrived at a Dallas hospital with suspicious symptoms.
Officials at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas put the man into “strict isolation” and sent a specimen to the CDC in Atlanta for testing.

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Former President Olusgun Obasanjo returned to the National Open University, Lagos Tuesday morning to enrol for a doctorate degree, beginning first with a Masters degree in Christain Theology.


Obasanjo, in 2009, obtained a Post Graduate Diploma in the same discipline.
He said it was important for him to make some commitments towards achieving his aspirations in life.

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No fewer than five persons died on Monday when commercial motorcyclists went on rampage over a minor motorcycle accident in Dei Dei, a satellite settlement on the outskirts of the nation’s capital, Abuja.


Also more than 35 vehicles were destroyed.
A commuter said it started after a motorcyclist knocked down a woman by the roadside. The woman sustained serious injury.
An argument was said to have ensued between onlookers and sympathisers over the accident, until the motorcyclist brought out a dagger and stabbed five people.

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The Acting Governor of Taraba State, Alhaji Garba Umar, has said the expected medical report on the state of health of the state Governor, Mr. Danbaba Suntai, will determine if he is capable of returning to work or not.


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