₦airaland Forum

Posted By: Duku JOEL,



The abducted students of Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State, have been released by Boko Haram.

At least 110 girls were abducted from their hostels on February 19 by a faction of Boko Haram loyal to Abu Musab Al-Barnawi, son of the late founder of the terror group, Yusuf Mohammed.

The Chairman of the Abducted Girls Parents’ Forum, Alhaji Bashir Manzo, told our correspondent that the girls have been released.

However, he has not ascertained the number of those freed by Boko Haram.

A prominent member of Dapchi Community also confirmed that they are presently taking the girls’ roll call.

“As I speak with you, we are presently trying to take the roll call of the girls to ascertain the exact number,” the source said.

The girls’ release coincided with a solidarity visit of parents of the abducted Chibok girls who are currently in Dapchi.

A security source said: “Boko Haram militants drove into Dapchi and dropped off the girls at the heart of the town and went back with no shot fired at them. We were asked to leave our camp which is the same route that Boko Haram followed to drop off the girls.”

A residents said the girls are currently receiving treatment at the General Hospital in Dapchi.

“The girls are looking terrible. Most of them are on drip because they very exhausted and underfed, ” a medical personnel at the hospital said.

Speaking on number of girls released, another security source said some of the parents took their children away immediately Boko Haram dropped them.

“We are having challenges getting the exact number of girls released because some of the parents came and took their children away immediately Boko Haram came and dropped them off. We are trying to retrieve some of the girls now but it is difficult,” he stated.

lalasticlala

By Ismail Mudashir



Sani, who chairs the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, revealed the jumbo pay of the federal lawmakers regarded as “hallowed secret”. In a recent interview, he said he and his colleagues received N13.5 million monthly as running cost and N750,000 as basic salary.

The disclosure confirmed an exclusive report by Daily Trust that showed that the running cost of senators and Reps gulped N46 billion annually.

Headlined: “ Senators, Reps share N46bn annually as running cost,” the Daily Trust report was published on October 10,2016.

Rather than being castigated, Sani was indirectly commended by the Senate through a statement tagged ‘Senators’ Salary: Shehu Sani Said Nothing New.’

Signed by the Senate spokesman, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi (APC, Niger), the Senate said Sani did not disclose anything new as the figure he gave out about running cost of the offices of senators was contained in various line items and expenditure heads of the budget of the National Assembly which had been made public.

Daily Trust reports that the budget of the National Assembly that had been shrouded in secrecy for over a decade was made public last year. It was however raised from N115bn to N125bn for the period under review.

Contrary to the reports that filtered round that the activist-turned lawmaker was rebuked by his colleagues at an executive session of the Senate last Tuesday, it was gathered that his issue was not even on the agenda of the meeting.

The session, presided over by Senate President Bukola Saraki, started by 11.07am and ended by 11.36am. At end of the session, the senators were seen in groups discussing.

Sources at the meeting said the issue was not discussed. A senator said, “Nobody discussed Sani even though we had our reservations but what can we do? He is one of the dons in the Senate even though a first timer.”

He also said that Sani was in the good books of the powers that be in the Upper Chamber.

“He is one of the corruption fighters in the Senate. Remember the way he dealt with the issue of the sacked Secretary of the Government of the Federation, Babachir David Lawal. As the chairman of the ad hoc panel, he ensured that everything was perfectly done.

“That’s why when President Muhammadu Buhari referred the ex-SGF’s matter for further probe, nothing different came out of it,” he said.

Another senator said any attempt to punish Senator Sani will only expose the Senate to more attacks in view of the negative perception of the lawmakers’ pay package.

“For the issue to be discussed, it has to be raised on the floor of the Senate through a point of order. Who will do this? The backlash that will follow it will be deadly especially for those of us that are from the North; the person’s constituents will deal with him,” he said.

He added that Sani also escaped the hammer because, “he is not a member of those who are against the reordered election sequence. If he is in Senator Abdullahi Adamu’s camp, by now his case will be in the ethics committee. But because he is not, he is free,” he said.

It was also gathered that Sani, who was the President of the Civil Rights Congress (CRC), was left unpunished because he is neither pro-Buhari nor pro- Vila cabals.

“He is seen as fighting common enemies with the Senate’s power brokers. He has issues with the Kaduna State governor and the powers that be in the Senate do. So he is seen as being on the same page in terms of fighting enemies,” another lawmaker said.

By Tom Malaba


Somewhere in Stella Zone in Najjanankumbi, Kampala, it is 9pm and people are planning to go to bed. A young, energetic man hides in a banana plantation and waits his chance to pounce on his prey, perhaps no one in particular. A woman in her late 30s rushes home.

The young man, Charles Lutaaya, summons all his energies, grabs the woman from the back and in one throw lands her on the ground.

Before the woman could recover from the crash as her body touched the ground, the young man tears her fabric and has sex with her.

When the damage is done, the woman gathers her belongings and proceeds home.

Though she had recognised the man as the porter who does casual work around the village, the woman kept mum in fear of the shame that would come with revealing that the porter had raped her, she later narrated.


Breaking the silence

She did not say anything to her husband, a butcher, when he returned home that night after the incident. Four days later, rumors start circulating in Stella Zone that the woman had been raped by the porter.

Fearing that her husband and other people would find out by other means, to her detriment, she decided to report a case at Kibuye Police Station. To prove her claim, she presents her knickers that had been ripped up in the middle as an exhibit.

The police give her an examination form to go and see the police surgeon at his Bombo Road clinic.

When she was examined by a doctor assigned by the police, there was no evidence of forceful penetration.

However, the doctor noted the scratches the woman had sustained around the neck.

On getting the report, the police proceeded to arrest Lutaaya and locked him up at Kibuye Police Station as investigations continued, which involved detectives taking him for a medical examination.

At that moment, they found no evidence to incriminate Lutaaya in the alleged rape; no unusual tears or scratches on his body.

“We did not take him for DNA examination,” a detective who worked on the case says.
According to him, DNA is a new thing.

Though there had been forensic science, it was not something everyone embraced.

In his statement to the police, Lutaaya maintained that he had not raped the complainant, claiming that he had had a love affair with her.

On hearing Lutaaya’s claims, the complainant realised that she could actually lose her marriage.

She then knelt down in the police station and begged her husband to forgive her for what happened.

“We did not expect that; but we later understood her point,” says the detective, adding: “She felt she was going to be accused of infidelity; she denied having an affair with Lutaaya.”

“When she apologised that seems to have cooled down the man and saved her marriage,” the detective says.

She would later tell her husband that she had been raped contrary to what Lutaaya was asserting that they were in a relationship.

“My only problem was failure to report in time. I only decided to report the case after realising that some people had got to know I had been raped,” she told the father of her two children before the police.

After Nangendo’s confession to her husband, the husband always escorted her to the police station while the police conducted the investigations. “It was a difficult case,” says the detective, adding that at least they needed to satisfy the family that something had been done.

The detective says the woman was the only eye witness, no one else could corroborate this information.

“It was her word against his. We decided to charge him in court and let the judge decide at an appropriate time,” the detective says.

The police surgeon had also failed to prove that there was rape apart from the scratches the complainant had on both sides of the neck.

Though there was not much evidence pinning Lutaaya to the alleged crime except the torn pair of knickers, the police decided to have him charged in court. Lutaaya was arraigned before the magistrate’s court in Makindye and he was remanded to Luzira prison for rape.

The case always came up for mention until Lutaaya’s remand period was finished and he was committed to the High Hourt for trial.

In the High Court, Lutaaya maintained his plea of innocence but the case still went to full trial.

“We were relieved when the case was allocated to a lady judge because we knew we had a weak case but at least we were sure a female judge would hear it so that she either acquits or convicts the accused before a court of law,” says the detective.

The State had only three witnesses – the victim, the investigating officer and the police surgeon.

The investigating officer testified first, showing court how he had been allocated a file that he investigated and had gone ahead to arrest the suspect Lutaaya who he positively identified in court.

When the complainant’s turn came, she testified how on the fateful day while returning home she had been grabbed by Lutaaya from behind, wrestled down, got her knickers torn and raped.

According to her, she had always left her place of work in Kiyembe, Central Business District, after 8.30pm and used the same path without any suspicions that there was any danger.

She told court that she had not reported the case at first but when rumours about her alleged rape started spreading on the village she was forced to report to the police at Kibuye.

She presented her torn pair of knickers before court. Then it was the defence lawyer’s turn to cross-examine the complainant/victim.

“The lawyer tore down even the little evidence we had assembled,” recalls the detective.

The lawyer called the complainant’s name to get her to pay attention. He then told her: “You have told court that Lutaaya threw you down and raped you.” The complainant answered in the affirmative. The lawyer then asked about her children and family life.

When she seemed to be answering all the questions correctly and seemed more relaxed, the lawyer asked her whether when she was raped she had enjoyed the sex.

Here is what the complainant answered: “Yes”.

“All of us who were in court burst out and laughed,” recalls the detective. The lawyer then put it to the complainant that since she had enjoyed the act of being raped, that is why she had not told her husband. The complainant still answered “yes”.

“When I heard that I knew we had no case; we had lost the case,” the detective says.
“After those brief questions the suspect’s lawyer told the Judge he had no further questions to ask,” recalls the detective.

Reading from his examination report, the police surgeon told court that he had examined the complainant and failed to prove she had been raped. He also said he had examined Lutaaya but found no cuts to suggest he had been involved in a rape.

“We failed to prove rape in that case. All the ingredients of rape in that case were lacking, the lady reported late [and] she had taken a bath,” the detective says.

According to the detective, the case had been shot down by the lawyer but he thinks the judge just wanted to help the victim when she ruled that Lutaaya had to defend himself.

When Lutaaya took to the stand, he denied having raped the complainant but claimed that he had had a running affair with her.

According to him, the few times he had had sex with the complainant, it had been with her consent.

When the case later came up for ruling, the Judge said the State had failed to prove all the ingredients of rape but took exception to the fact that the lady was risking her reputation in public as the reason for her late reporting.

Lutaaya was acquitted.

CYRIACUS IZUEKWE


A man simply known as Jimoh (surname withheld) has ended up marrying two wives after he engaged a Lagos State Polytechnic student simply known as Ola in a sex romp and impregnated her.

The incident happened at Oboye area of Ejigbo, Lagos where Jimoh met Ola and took her to a nearby hotel for the romp despite the fact that he was married and had three children.

It was gathered that Jimoh who deals on petroleum products met Ola and convinced her for sex romp in a hotel in the area, she accepted and followed him. P.M.EXPRESS reports that after the romp, Ola became pregnant and informed Jimoh. She then asked him to meet with her family to consummate the marriage and rent an apartment for her so that she will stay there as his second wife.

However, Jimoh refused saying that he had no such plans to marry a second wife and that she should terminate the pregnancy as he was ready to compensate her but she refused.

It was gathered that when Ola waited for Jimoh to come to her family to fulfill the marriage rites and he was not forthcoming, she then carried all her belongings and moved to his house in Ejigbo. She met with his wife and informed her about the pregnancy and that she had come to join Jimoh as his second wife.

It was gathered that the first wife welcomed her and asked her to wait for Jimoh to come back from work so that he will see her and make arrangements where Ola will stay. When Jimoh eventually returned from work and met Ola, he was surprised and asked her to go in order not to destroy his marriage to his wife.

The wife then insisted that Ola was not going anywhere since Jimoh had impregnated her and she was willing to join as second wife and that she had accepted her.

P.M.EXPRESS gathered that Jimoh had no choice than to go to Ola’s family in the same Ejigbo and formally did the introduction and then rented another apartment for her and the baby.

Jimoh is now reportedly complaining that he will not be able to cope with two wives because of his financial status. But his first wife has insisted that he walked himself into the marriage and so had no choice than to continue to marry them because it was what he desired.

Posted By: Yusuf Alli,



Some Senators are planning to resist the National Assembly’s plot to override President Muhammadu Buhari’s veto on amendments to the Electoral Act, The Nation has learnt.

Their major concern is to ensure that the President’s veto survives, especially the rejection of the new Order of Elections for 2019.

No fewer than 46 of the 108 senators have signed a register to stop moves by the Senate to pass the amendments to the Electoral Act without Buhari’s assent.

Besides, some supporters of the President are lobbying members of the House of Representatives to oppose the plot to override his veto.

The lobbyists are targeting about 260 members to sustain the veto.

Twenty All Progressives Congress (APC) governors have joined the battle to prevail on Senators and Representatives to retain the present Order of Elections.

Each of the governors is lobbying members of the National Assembly in his state to have a rethink on the controversial amendments.

The President, last week, rejected three amendments to the Electoral Act.

Of the three issues, the most contentious one is the new Section 25(1), which states that elections shall be held in the following order: (a) National Assembly; (b) State Houses of Assembly and Governorship and (c) Presidential election.

In spite of alleged misgivings by the House of Representatives, the Chairman of the National Assembly, Dr. Bukola Saraki (who is also the President of the Senate), said he was on the same page with Speaker Yakubu Dogara and other leaders of the legislative arm on an “appropriate” response to the President’s veto.

To many an observer, this is tantamount to drawing the battle line.

Although there have been behind-the-scene manoeuvres to end the row between the Executive and the Legislature on the Electoral Act, the two arms are said to be plotting to outwit each other.

But while the leaders of the National Assembly are on the same page, there appears to be cracks among senators and members of the House of Representatives.

The case of the Senate was more pronounced yesterday, following the emergence of some pro-Buhari senators, who have launched a move to avert the overriding of the President’s veto.

It was gathered that the senators formed a Parliamentary Support Group (PSG) to “push through their minority strength” in the Senate.

In the group are 46 senators, who have subscribed to the new group and signed to reject plans to override the President’s veto on amendments to the Electoral Act.

The group, which has held a series of meetings in the past two weeks, may hold another session in Abuja today (Tuesday).

Although the group is not opposed to Saraki’s Senate presidency, it is out to “ensure that laws are passed in the overall interest of Nigerians and in line with the spirit and letters of the 1999 Constitution, but not based on whims and caprices or political sentiments.”

A ranking Senator said: “We have come together to protect the larger interest of Nigerians. We do not want any amendments that can derail preparations for the 2019 general election.

“In exercising his constitutional power to veto a bill, the President has raised three issues on the amendments to the Electoral Act, including the Order of Elections.

“In fact, the House of Representatives admitted that two of the issues were fundamental, leaving only the Order of Elections.

“Our position is that we will not support plans by the National Assembly to override the President’s Veto on amendments to the Electoral Act.

“So far, from the signatures collected, we are 46 senators backing the veto. We may be in the minority out of 109 senators but our figure is significant because to override a veto by the President, the Senate needs the consent of 73 senators.

“With 46 senators on our side, those for the overriding of the veto will end up being either 63 or 62 depending on the disposition of the President of the Senate.”

Another member of the group said: “Actually to stop the Senate from overriding the presidential veto, we just require a blockade from 37 senators. We are prepared to use our minority influence on the amendments to the Electoral Act.

“This may also be the beginning of veto and overriding politics in the National Assembly. We want the minority voice to count this time around in the Senate and in the House of Representatives.”

A first term senator from the North, who pleaded not to be named, said: “When we get to the stage of overriding the President’s veto, we will call for a division in the Senate in line with the rules. We are prepared to stand to be counted.

“As a matter of fact, the provision is that all the 109 senators must be present, unless there is a genuine written excuse. Such overriding of veto cannot be done by voice vote; it must be through division. It is not a question of ambush, of saying the “ayes” or the “nays” have it. This means, each senator will be counted for what he or she believes in. Therefore, we know the implications of what we are doing.”

A senator from the Northwest said: “We are not stopping at 46 signatures; we are reaching out to some of our colleagues in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to reject any demand for the overriding of the President’s veto on amendments to the Electoral Act.

“So far, we have secured commitment from 10 senators from the opposition. We will not expose them yet but when we get to the bridge, we will cross it.

“We love the President of the Senate but it is time to call a spade its name. Our party, the APC, is opposed to the change of the Order of Elections. We are standing by the position of the platform upon which we were elected.”

The source added: “We were no doubt in the Senate when the amendments were passed but the majority had their way. The veto and its attendant politics will enable our tiny but significant votes to count.”

Some .supporters of the President have invaded the House of Representatives to secure the required 180 votes to stop the chamber from overriding the President’s veto.

A source said: “Ahead of a full blown crisis, the supporters have started reaching out to members of the House of Representatives to disallow the National Assembly from overriding the veto.

“The target is to get support from about 260 members. These lobbyists are working hard on how to make this realistic.

“The lobbying is part of a Plan B put in place, in case there is a total breakdown of dialogue between the Executive and the Legislature.

“With many interventions, I think the two arms may reach a truce. Already, a case is in court on the amendments to the Electoral Act. The Senate has written a protest letter to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen.”

No fewer than 20 APC governors are backing the senators and lobbyists who have reached out to members of the House.

The governors are said to be coordinated by those from Jigawa, Kaduna, Adamawa, Plateau and one of their colleagues from the South.

“I think the role of the governors is to mediate between the Executive and the Legislature on amicable resolution of issues on the amendments to the Electoral Act.

“We do not know how far these governors can go, but they are trying their best to facilitate some understanding.”

Where the two arms remain adamant, they will be forced to test their might based on the provision of Section 58 of the 1999 Constitution.

Section 58 says: (1) “The power of the National Assembly to make laws shall be exercised by bills passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives and, except as otherwise provided by subsection(5) of this section, assented to by the President.

(2) “A bill may originate in either the Senate or the House of Representatives and shall not become law unless it has been passed and, except as otherwise provided by this section and section 59 of this Constitution, assented to in accordance with the provisions of this section.

(3) “Where a bill has been passed by the House in which it originated, it shall be sent to the other House, and it shall be presented to the President for assent when it has been passed by that other House and agreement has been reached between the two Houses on any amendment made on it.

(4) “Where a bill is presented to the President for assent, he shall within 30 days thereof signify that he assents or that he withholds assent.

(5) “Where the President withholds his assent and the bill is again passed by each House by two-thirds majority, the bill shall become law and the assent of the President shall not be required.”

Last week, the President rejected three amendments to the Electoral Act.

In a letter to the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon Yakubu Dogara, Buhari said: “Pursuant to Section 58(4) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), I hereby convey to the Senate my decision, on 3rd March 2018, to decline Presidential Assent to the Electoral Amendment Bill 2018 recently passed by the National Assembly.

“Some of my reasons include the following:
“The amendment to the sequence of elections in Section 25 of the principal act may infringe upon the constitutionally guaranteed discretion of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to organise, undertake and supervise elections provided in Section 15(A) of the third statue to the Constitution;

“The amendment to Section 138 of the principal act to delete two crucial grounds upon which an election may be challenged by candidates unduly limits the rights of candidates in elections to a free and fair electoral review process;

“The amendment to Section 152 Subsection 325 of the Principal Act may raise constitutional issues over the competence of the National Assembly to legislate over local government elections.”

A former Chief Judge of Enugu State, Professor I.A Umezulike, has asked the National Security Adviser (NSA), Brigadier-General Babagana Monguno (retd), to order the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe how Mr. Ike Ekweremadu, Deputy Senate President, acquired 32 choice properties in Nigeria and abroad.

The demand for investigation was made in a 16 June 2017 letter addressed to NSA by the retired Chief Judge.

In the letter, exclusively obtained by SaharaReporters, Professor Umezulike said Mr. Ekweremadu's lifestyle and the properties he has acquired are not justified by this source of income and should be probed under Section 7 (1) (b) of the EFCC Act.

Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu
According to the retired judge, the EFCC has the power to "cause investigation to be conducted into the properties of any person if appears to the Commission that the person’s lifestyle and extent of the properties are not justified by his source of income”.

He noted that Mr. Ekweremadu is in his fourth term as senator representing Enugu West Senatorial District.

Before being elected as a senator, said Professor Umezulike, Mr. Ekweremadu spent four years as an aide to former Enugu State governor, Mr Chimaroke Nnamani, first as the Chief of Staff and later, as Secretary to the State Government.

"In sum, from 1999 till date, he has been in the realm of public office without any break to engage in any personal business. Thus, his emoluments in the past 18 years are easily ascertainable from Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission," asserted the retired judge.

He equally claimed that prior to his entry into public office in 1999, Mr. Ekweremadu was a struggling lawyer, who lived in a depressed suburb of Enugu at No. 17. Mike Ejeagha Street, Abakpa-Nike, Enugu.

"He managed to eke out a living as a 'charge and bail' legal practitioner," said Professor Umezulike, who attached photographs of buildings that housed the Deputy Senate President's law office.

Professor Umezulike noted that within a space of 18 years in public office, Mr. Ekweremadu has amassed billions of naira and used part of the money to buy high-end properties across four continents. He added that Mr. Ekweremadu has money in the vaults of Sterling Bank Plc and United Bank of Africa.

In Enugu alone, said the retired judge, the Deputy Senate President own
No. 14, Iyienu Street, Independence Layout;
7 O'Connor Street, Asata;
14/16 Charles Street, G. R. A, Enugu;
9B Isuofia Street, Shagari Low Cost Housing in Trans-Ekulu;
28 Owerri Road in Asata,
House 2, Local City Garden, G. R. A;
an a plot at Republic Layout.
He also owns 69.4 hectares of land in Ogbeke-Nike, Enugu.

Mr. Ekweremadu's property portfolio in Abuja includes Plot 1518 Maitama,
11 Evan Enwerem Street, Apo Legislative Quarters,
Plot 2633 Kyami, Housing Estate
(Plot 1106 CRD, Cadastral Zone 07-07,
Lugbe, 2, Jim Nwobodo Street, Apo Legislative Quarters and
Plot 2782 Asokoro Extension.

He equally owns houses at Citi Park Estate, Gwagwalada;
Plot 1474 Cadastral Zone BD6, Mabushi; Congress Court, Abuja;
Flat 1, Block D25, Athletics Street, (24th Street) Games Village; and
Plot 66, 64 Crescents, Gwarimpa Estate.

In the British capital of London, Mr. Ekweremadu owns
Flat 4 Varsity Court, Hormer Street, WIH 4NW, London;
and 52 Ayleston Avenue, NW6 7AB, London. Both properties were subjects of a recent exclusive report by SaharaReporters.

In Dubai, as also previously reported by this website, Mr. Ekweremadu is the owner of Room 1903, The Address Hotel, Downtown Dubai; The Address Boulevard, 3901, Dubai; 2 Flats of Burij Side Boulevard (The Signature), Dubai; Emirate Gardens Apartment No. EGG1/1/114, Dubai; Emirate Gardens Apartment No. EGG1/115, Dubai; Apartment No. DFB/12/B 1204, Park Towers, Dubai; Flat 3604, MAG 214, Dubai; and Villa No 148, Maeen1, The Lakes Emirates Hills, Dubai. In Florida, United States of America, the Deputy Senate President owns 4507 Stella Street, Bellavida Estate; 2747 Club Cortile Circle and 2763 Club Cortile Circle, all in Kissime, Florida.

"Given the foregoing, we urge and beseech you to direct thorough investigation of these properties of Senator Ike Ekweremadu with a view of bringing him to book and edify the fight against economic and financial crimes in Nigeria," said Professor Umezulike.

Posted By: Kunle AKINRINADE

https://thenationonlineng.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/The-Suspect-700x470.jpg

Two suspected robbers, Yemi Adeyemi and Segun Ikudaisi have narrated how they improvised sedative by mixing dusting powder with petrol to dispossess commercial motorcyclists popularly called okada of their motorbikes.

The suspects, who are members of a three-man robbery gang are currently being held at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Eleweran, Abeokuta, Ogun State.

It was learnt that they had been terrorising okada operators in the Atan area of Ado Odo/Ota Local Government Area of the state lately.

They were paraded by the Commissioner of Police, Mr Ahmed Iliyasu at the state’s police command headquarters in Abeokuta.

According to the police, the suspects would board a commercial motorcycle, cover the rider’s nose with a handkerchief containing the powder mixed with petrol. Once their victim become tranquilised, they would disposess him of the motorbike.

Luck ran out on the duo after they were intercepted by policemen during another operation a few days ago.

Ikudaisi, said he sold the first motorbike for N75,000 after he and Adeyemi tranquilised the owner with their improvised substance.
He said the gun found in his possession was given to him by one of his friends who is also a robber.

”I have built a house. I was into trans-border smuggling activities between Benin Republic and Nigeria. I used to smuggle contraband like turkey and rice until I had a road accident following which I decided to join a robbery gang.”

Adeyemi echoed Ikudaisi’s confession adding that they had been operating on Atan-Idiroko Road for a very long time.

”We have been operating along Atan-Idiroko Road and stole motorbikes from okada operators. We mixed dusting powder with petrol and wrapped the substance with a handkerchief which we used to tranquilise our victims by covering their face with it. Once they fell asleep we would push them off the motorbike and steal it.”

CP Iliyasu said the fleeing member of the gang would be arrested adding that they would be charged to court at the completion of investigation.

By Eric Dumo



Three pupils of Ikosi High School, Ketu , have reportedly collapsed following heavy smoke from the Olusosun dump in Ojota area .

The pollution, which began on Wednesday after a fire outbreak at the site , has forced many residents and business owners to run for safety .

On Friday when our correspondent visited Ikosi , primary and secondary school , pupils could be seen rushing out of their schools and going home .

A Senior Secondary School 2 pupil of IHS named Lateef told our correspondent that teachers asked them to go home at 11 am as a result of the danger the smoke posed to their health .

He revealed that three pupils of the school collapsed on Thursday and were rushed to the hospital for medical attention.

While confirming the development , a handful other pupils our correspondent spoke with said their colleagues ’ health situation really left everyone panicking.

Apart from IHS, other schools where pupils were released to go home on Thursday and Friday as a result of the heavy smoke include Ikosi Junior High School , Ikosi Primary School and Express Nursery and Primary School 1 and 2 .

A teacher in one of the schools , who asked not to be named , said academic activities have been seriously affected as a result of the situation.

He declined to confirm if indeed the three pupils collapsed or not, saying he had no power to speak on the matter.

By Pamela Eboh 


Police in Anambra State have arrested a man and his sister for conniving to abduct ladies desperate for job, rape and later collect ransom from their worried parents.

The suspects, Treasure and Lillian, from Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers State, were alleged to have tricked a lady, Peace, from Enugu State to Mgbachu village, Nkpor-Uno in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State under the pretence that they were going to employ her in a modelling company at Nkpor.

The Commissioner of Police, Mr. Garba Umar, explained that while Peace was in captivity, Treasure demanded N1,000,000 ransom from her parents before she could be released.

He said: “While Peace was in captivity, Treasure went through her phone, saw the contact of Nche Thelma Blessing and called her. He told Blessing that he had a modelling work contract, which would last for two years. He told her that she would be paid N250,000. On January 15, 2018, Blessing arrived Nkpor and was received by Treasure.

Treasure tricked her to his apartment and locked her up. He later demanded N50,000 ransom. When he noticed that the money was not forthcoming, he collected her two handsets and a cash of N31,000. He striped and attempted to rape her. But she managed to escape from captivity.

“Since he was still in possession of Blessing’s phone, Treasure went through her contacts and latched on the name Victoria. He copied the phone number and gave it to his sister, Lillian to dial. Thus, Lillian, posing as Blessing, called and lured Victoria, who hails from Akwa Ibom State, to Nkpor where Treasure took her to his house and raped her and later collected ransom of N145,000, from her parents.

“Treasure would later handover Victoria’s Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card to Lillian, to go and empty the victim’s account before she was released.”

Umar said that the suspects had both confessed to the crime, stressing that they would soon be arraigned in court.

The commissioner also paraded seven other persons involved in child trafficking and robbery. They were arrested in different parts of the state, said Umar.

He added that a police inspector, Mr. Hassan Ahmadu, and a team of 55 Police Mobile Force, Aba, Abia State, while on duty on Osisioma Road junction in Abia State, saw two persons, Abuchi David Onochie and Obinna Ekwugo, with a three-year-old boy. When the men were stopped and questioned, they couldn’t give convincing account of the boy’s identity or where they were heading with him.

Umar said: “The suspects were subsequently taken to Osisioma Police Station, where they eventually confessed that they lured the little boy, Chikamso Chukwudube Emmanuel, from his family house at Aguleri in Anambra East Local Government Area of Anambra State. The parents of the boy have since claimed their child.”

Five other persons were also paraded for allegedly robbing Ozoali Ebere Cynthia and six others at Abagana, of various items which include ATM cards, gas cooker, plasma television, telephones, stabiliser, money and generators.

Umar said the gang also robbed Dr. Onuorah Benjamin at Bekee Memorial Hospital, Nimo, of his I-Phone valued at N140,000, laptop valued at N300,000, two wristwatches worth N60,000, among other items.

lalasticlala

By Gibson Mhaka


IN an act of unbridled betrayal, a married woman from Nkankezi area in Insiza district, Matabeleland South is being accused of allegedly having sex with a boyfriend in the presence of her three children aged 16, 13 and 8 recently chased away her husband from their matrimonial home to accommodate her lover.

Thembekile Ncube (35) allegedly chased away her husband Patrick Chauke (47) from their matrimonial home through a protection order so that she could liberally romp with her boyfriend only identified as Dau.

This was after her husband reported her to the police for abusing their children by allegedly having sex with her boyfriend in their presence.

Speaking to B-Metro, Chauke, who is employed as a security guard in Bulawayo, said when he went to his rural home he was forced to sleep in the bush while Dau was allegedly holed up in his bedroom the whole night.

He said the two love-birds conspired to take advantage of the fact that Ncube had been granted a protection order that allegedly bars him from accessing his matrimonial home for the next five years.

He said his wife was granted the protection order in question after she falsely claimed that he was in the habit of verbally and physically abusing her while also threatening to kill her.

“I am really shocked by the court’s decision to bar me from accessing my matrimonial home for five years after my wife lied that I was verbally and physically abusing her.

My wife is now exploiting that shocking ruling by inviting her boyfriend to have sex at our matrimonial home and in the presence of our children.

“Just imagine on the day (26 February) she was granted that order, I slept in the bush together with my eldest son whom she also threatened to kill as punishment for alerting me that she was bringing her boyfriend home during my absence to have sex with him,” said Chauke.

He said the magistrate who presided over their civil case at Filabusi courts never gave him the chance to respond to his wife’s accusations.

Chauke, who once tried to kill himself after he initially learnt that his wife was allegedly having sex with her boyfriend in their children’s presence, said Ncube sought the restraining order as a way of “fixing” him for filing a case of child abuse against her.

“She hatched a plan with her boyfriend to seek a protection order against me after I filed a report of child abuse against them at the Bulawayo Central Police Station under case Number IR1037 /18.

“I am also worried that officers at Filabusi Police Station where the matter was transferred are taking too long to investigate.

“Just imagine, it’s almost a month since I reported it and nothing has been done so far. My wife is also bragging that the matter will never see the light of the day since she is heavily connected to both the police and courts at Filabusi Business Centre.

“Our eldest son who is doing Form Two is also no longer going to school since he is afraid to go back and stay with his mother,” said a sobbing Chauke.

Ncube’s comment could not be sought as her mobile phone was unreachable by the time of going to print.

Afeez Hanafi


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Residents of Abule Ijesha community, Yaba , Lagos State , say the neighbourhood is not safe until the police arrest hoodlums who killed a senior member of staff of the University of Lagos , Akoka , and a final year student of the institution .

They claimed that the mastermind of the crime was a drug dealer known to the police and demanded that he and his accomplices be apprehended and prosecuted .

The victims , Akintunde Fadugba , of Centre for Information and Technology System, UNILAG , and the 400 -level student , Rasaq Akokia , were shot dead on Opayemi Street, Abule Ijesha .

PUNCH Metro learnt that the hoodlums , numbering six and reportedly led by the drug dealer had stormed the community around 11pm on Friday on motorcycles and shot indiscriminately.

Fadugba , who was said to be relaxing in front of a barber ’ s – a stone ’ s throw from his residence – was shot and died on the spot.

It was learnt that Akokia was ill and had gone to buy drugs from a chemist on the street .

He was returning home when a bullet hit him in the chest .

Our correspondent, who visited the community on Tuesday, observed that residents were still in panic as many of them declined to speak on the incident.

However , an eyewitness , Sunday Ebah, said he was at a restaurant on Opayemi Street when the hoodlums struck .

He said , “ I was with a food vendor around 11pm when I saw three motorcycles . While they were approaching a church, they put off the light of the motorcycle. Two persons were reportedly on each motorcycle .

“Two men came down and one of them , a tall guy, started shooting . The drug dealer was directing him .

“ When I saw them, I ran to Martins Street . Two men faced Martins Street, while two others headed towards Odenike Street, shooting .

“ The UNILAG worker was outside a barber ’ s when he was shot . They saw the light of a pickup truck arriving in the community and fled. They thought it was a police van .

“ As they were leaving through Fatai Kadri Street, Rasaq (Akokia ), who had been hiding , thought they had gone . As he came out from hiding, they shot him and he fell into the gutter . He was a final year student at UNILAG . ”

The food vendor, who spoke on condition of anonymity , confirmed Ebah’ s account , adding that she abandoned her food and scampered to safety .

She said , “ I was selling amala to a customer when I suddenly heard gunshots . I abandoned my wares and ran away . The hoodlums collected a phone from one of my customers . Rasaq (Akokia ) was ill and had bought drugs on Opayemi Street. He lived alone . ”

The food seller ’ s husband, who was shot in the hand, Lateef Olalekan , said he escaped death by a whisker .

He said , “ I was at Odenike Junction when I heard gunshots . I initially thought it was fireworks . I was rushing to alert my wife who sells food on Opayemi Street when two hoodlums came down from a motorcycle . One of them shot at me . The bullet grazed my hand and shattered the windscreen of a car parked by the roadside."

A bread seller , who did not want her name in print , told

PUNCH Metro that she was attending to a customer when the attack broke out.

“ My customers and I hid in my shop . The attackers were shouting ‘ where are you ?’
“ After they left , somebody raised the alarm that they had killed a man .

His corpse was brought to the junction and after some minutes , Rasaq ’ s corpse was found inside a drainage channel, ” she added .

When our correspondent visited Fadugba ’ s residence, it was learnt that his family members did not live with him , while residents of a bungalow , where Akokia lived, had gone to work.

A community leader, Mr. Omolaja Johnson , said the drug dealer had been unleashing terrors on the community since 2016 when he was sent out of the community.

He said the mastermind had used some policemen to harass residents , adding that a petition was sent to the Zone 2 Police Command, Onikan , against the policemen and the hoodlums .

He said , “ The community sent him away because he sold all sorts of hard drugs . When we met with the AIG , Zone 2 , the policemen he used were dealt with. Everything went well until on March 9 around 11pm when the community was attacked and two persons were killed .

“ That day , I slept early . I heard gunshots , but thought it was policemen shooting into the air . About 15 minutes later , a neighbour called me and said two persons had been killed . I rushed to the scene of the crime and met the corpses . I called the Sabo Divisional Police Officer who came to take away the corpses . ”

The Chief Security Officer of the community, Mr . Paul Ebite, said , “We want the police to immediately apprehend the hoodlums ; without that, the attack will continue .

The community is still in fear. We appeal to the AIG Zone 2 and the Lagos State Commissioner of Police to ensure that these hoodlums are apprehended. ”

The spokesperson for the police in Lagos , SP Chike Oti , said the command had launched a manhunt for the hoodlums .

He said , “ There were four individuals who were known for negatively influencing children and youths in that community.

They had issues with the community and they were chased away . They regrouped and unleashed mayhem on the community, years after they were sent out . They killed a university worker and a student . The command is investigating and effort is ongoing to arrest the criminal fugitives . ”

The spokesperson for UNILAG , Mrs . Taiwo Oloyede , confirmed Fadugba ’ s death , but said she was not aware a student was also killed .

She said , “Mr. Fadugba was shot on Friday and we lost him . He was a senior non -teaching staff member of the Centre for Information and Technology System. He will be buried this week . I am not sure we lost any student , but I will confirm and get back to you . ”

She had yet to get back to our correspondent as of press time.

lalasticlala

Posted By: Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin



Herdsmen have again allegedly destroyed about 67 hectares of cassava plants belonging to ex-chief of Naval Staff, Vice-Admiral Samuel Afolayan in Kwara state.

January this year, the ex-naval chief accused the herdsmen of destroying about 45 hectares of his farm land located at Obbo-Ile, Ekiti local government area of the state.

The former naval chief told reporters in Obbo-Ile, describing the action as intentional.

“After the earlier report, the situation as at now is that seven people are under arrest. They have caused more damages since after the burning of the first farm that was reported. They have burnt 50 hectares of palm tree carrying bunches. This is after the initial report,” he added.

Admiral Afolayan said: “They have destroyed 67 hectares of cassava worth N57 million, they have destroyed four hectares of sweet corn ready for harvest valued at N2.5 million. I am still costing the palm trees because many of them may not survive. I am getting experts to quantify it knowing that palm trees can be harvested for 20 years.

“I am also working on the valuation of the oranges they destroyed. Since after the first report, I have not gotten help from anybody (Federal and Kwara State Government) except the local government chairman that visited the farm and saw the extent of damages and expressed his opinion on what he saw.

“Seven herdsmen have been arrested and handed over to police”.

“The action has proved to be that it is a deliberate act now that I can trace their cows to their camps and that is why I conclude that somebody living a distance of between three and six kilometers go inside my farm, I believe it is intentional”.

lalasticlala

National Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP ), Mr Uche Secondus, on Wednesday said the party was coming up with “Generation Next” programme for repositioning youths to take over leadership in 2019.

Secondus made the disclosure at the opening of PDP Youth Leaders meeting in Abuja.

He said that the programme was designed to prepare the youth to take over political leadership in the country.

According to him, with the programme, age barrier will be removed and a 25-year old that is popular and intelligent can be voted into power as governor.

Secondus urged the youths to mobilise young people in their communities irrespective of party affiliation to rescue the country in 2019.

He also charged the youths to rise and defend marginal unity and democracy in the country.

According to him, any nation whose youths are not participating in the development process is heading for doom.

The chairman recalled that at 32, Gen. Yakubu Gowon became Head of State and that with youthful energy, presided and piloted over the affairs of Nigeria.

He said that Gowon succeeded in keeping Nigeria as a united entity along with other military governors who were also youths.

“Unless you come out and volunteer to make that sacrifice, you will not be noticed and the country will be missing you.

“Today is the day to go into memory lane, make firm declaration and stand by it; the country needs the youth and the party is ready to allow you participate,” he said.

Secondus said that Nigeria had never been polarized as being witnessed currently, adding that unless the youth rose to rescue the nation, there would be nothing left for the next generation.

He said that the rebranded PDP was practicing internal democracy and assured that henceforth, they would be no imposition of candidates in the party.

He revealed that there was a new reward system in PDP and that only those who delivered their polling units for the party at elections would get appointment.

Earlier, the National Youth Leader of the party, Mr Sunday Ude-Okoye, had said that the meeting was to avail youths the opportunity to deliberate on strategies to take over power in 2019.

He said that youths in the country were angry as majority of them had no jobs, yet they were being displaced and losing their lives and property to violence.

Ude-Okoye said the youths wished to return home to a healthy living, stating that democracy must be allowed to run smoothly.
NAN

lalasticlala

Posted By: Bolaji Ogundele,



A university admission-seeker simply identified as Loveth has reportedly committed suicide in Ekiugbo, Ughelli North local government area of Delta State.

Loveth, who was said to be displeased with the 163 mark she garnered in the ongoing Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), was found dead at her home on Wednesday morning.

Our correspondent gathered that the deceased picked medicine as her choice of study.

The Nation gathered that the deceased took three bottles of Sniper and these were found by her side on Wednesday morning.

According to sources, Loveth had gone to check her UTME result on Tuesday and discovered to her amazement that she had scored far lower than she had expected and would not secure admission to the university to study her “dream course.”

The 18-year old reportedly left the centre very distraught and wept profusely.

The eight-man committee investigating underage voting in Kano State, SaharaReporters has gathered, may have started working to cover up the widely reported anomaly, which was alleged to have occurred in the recently concluded council polls in the state.

Sources at the headquarters of the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja told SaharaReporters that some of the committee's recommendations on the matter have been slated for rejection or being watered down as a way of covering up underage voters in the electoral registry.

Social and mainstream media were recently awash with pictures of kids dropping ballot papers in ballot boxes at polling booths said to be in Kano.

Two days after the committee began sitting in Kano, the chairman of the Kano State Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC), Professor Garba Ibrahim Sheka, denied that the images of kids seen voting were not captured in Kano State. He argued that the pictures could not have been taken in the state because card readers were not used in the council polls.

"We saw in a video clip, posted by those complaining that kids voted in the 2018 council polls held in Kano State. However, we quickly noticed that they were using card readers. Unfortunately for the mischief makers, KANSIEC did not use card readers throughout the conduct of that election.

But upon noticing the outcry in the media, we were able to trace the source and we defended ourselves adequately when the committee set up by INEC later arrived the state to investigate how small kids were allowed to vote during the exercise."

"In fact, we had publicized our stand not to use the card reader to the listening ability of most people in this country," Professor Sheka told a national daily.

INEC also followed up with a denial. However, the denial, which won the commission some breathing space, has since been shredded, raising questions about the integrity of Professor Mahmoud Yakubu, INEC Chairman.

The commission itself has reported incidences of underage registration in Taraba State, which should compel an audit of its register nationwide.

Sources doubted the capacity of INEC under Professor Yakubu to conduct credible elections if it cannot deliver a voter registration process with fidelity.

They recalled that Professor Attahiru Jega, immediate past INEC boss, enjoyed public goodwill because he never shied away from admitting the commission's shortcomings while in office. They gave an example of the two postponements of the 2011 elections because vendors could not deliver sensitive materials on time.

lalasticlala

By Perez Brisibe & Paul Olayemi


JESSE—The burial reception in honour of a 111-years-old woman (name withheld) at Boboroku community of Jesse in Ethiope West Local Government Area of Delta State turned awry weekend, as a plain clothes policeman reportedly slumped and died during a clash between the community youth and a team of soldiers drafted from the 19 Battalion, Koko, to maintain peace.

It was gathered that there was rowdiness during the sharing of food and drink at the party and in the process some of the youth allegedly made attempts to disarm two soldiers, who had tried to restore orderliness.

One person was reportedly shot on the leg as others sustained various degrees of injuries in the melee that ensued, while the windscreen and windows of at least five cars, including one hilux belonging to the soldiers, were also destroyed by the youths who went berserk over the incident.

Community sources disclosed that the late policeman simply identified as Imomoh, who resides in the community, was said to have tried to intervene during the rowdy session between the soldiers and the youths.

Giving details of the incident, a guest at the reception said: “The soldiers were called in to restore calm after the youths in the community tried to hijack food meant for guests at the reception.”

The guest, who gave his name as Paul Amodu, said: “Vexed by the presence of the soldiers, the youths turned their anger on them, leading to fisticuffs amidst gunshots by the soldiers, during which Imomoh was said to have been hit by a bullet; he slumped and died.”

Also speaking, a security source at the Sapele Area Command, said: “The death of the policeman who is a resident of the community, enraged the youths who went wild, attacking guests and destroying vehicles.

“The soldiers had to apply minimum force in trying to defend themselves by shooting into the air to scare the rampaging youths, who were trying to disarm them leading to the shooting of one person in the leg.”

Confirming the clash, Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Andrew Ania-maka, described the incident as “quite unfortunate.”

An Enugu State High Court on Monday gave Kyrian Ibe , a policeman , and his wife , Lilian , till May 28 to settle their marital differences.

Lilian had urged the court to dissolve their eight -year marriage for alleged maltreatment of the husband .

The petitioner also begged the court to award her custody of their four - year - old son held hostage by her husband.

She told the court that her husband, a policeman was maltreating her , adding that he locked her up in police custody for six days for no reason and took their son.

“ My son is in the custody of his brother, Philip , and he also locked me up in the police cell for six days without cause , ” he said .

Ibe , in his response , had told the court that his wife was not submissive .

He said his wife had been having extra - marital affairs , adding that this led to her arrest and detention by the police .

“ She left my house for another man ’ s house and I led some policemen and arrested her , ’’ he said .

The respondent said that he still loved his wife and was ready for reconciliation to ensure that his family got back to its original state .

The judge, Justice Afamefuna Nwobodo , asked Lilian if she was ready to let her matrimonial home go .

Lilian told the court that she did not want to leave her matrimonial home but wanted the court to save her from the husband’ s maltreatment .

Nwobodo urged the respondent ’ s younger brother and wife , Philip , to do their best and resolve the couple ’ s differences before the next sitting .

He adjourned the matters till May 28 for reports of the proposed settlement.
(NAN )

lalasticlala

Chukwudi Akasike , Port Harcourt


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A victim of police brutality has said that he paid N 30, 000 to the men of the Special Anti -Robbery Squad last Thursday to secure his freedom when he was arrested on trumped - up charge of possessing Indian hemp .

He said the SARS officials stripped him naked and dragged him with his manhood when he resisted arrest .

He also claimed that the officers doused him with two canisters of tear gas.

The victim , 38- year - old Lucky Joseph , said his arrest was borne out of prejudice , saying he was familiar with the SARS officials , alleging that they all meet at the joint where Indian hemp is sold and smoked in their neighbourhood at Choba Extension in Obio Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.

He alleged that the men of the SARS Unit of the Nigeria Police , who wanted to arrest him , actually had several wraps of marijuana on them , hence his refusal to go with them .

It will be recalled that Joseph ’ s ordeal was caught on a video that found its way to the web, sequel to which it became Internet sensation , shared by many people on various social medial platforms .

The person who shot the video had claimed that Joseph was rough - handled when he refused to present the receipt of his mobile phone .

However , our correspondent who tracked down the victim and spoke to him , authoritatively revealed that the SARS men manhandled Joseph for an entirely different matter.

Some residents of Odums Streets , Choba Extension in Obio Akpor Local Government Area where Joseph was stripped naked by the security operatives , explained that the victim was treated like “a common criminal . ”

To prevent his forceful arrest or being shot as threatened by the SARS men , the residents said they contributed N 30, 000 among themselves and handed it over to the SARS operatives , who allegedly demanded it before Joseph could be released .

The highest donor was alleged to be the owner of a mechanic workshop where Joseph works .

The video and photos posted online indicated that Joseph was stripped naked by the security agents , who insisted that he must go with them , even as residents continued to plead on his behalf.

Our correspondent met the victim , who explained that the SARS men inflicted machete cuts on him without telling him his offence ; adding that he decided not to follow them when he was told that the attempt to arrest him was because he was one of those smoking Indian hemp in the area .

He identified one of the SARS officials as ThankGod , known to some residents of the street.

Narrating his ordeal , he said , “ I was just passing and when I got to this point , two SARS officers grabbed me from the back . They then went on to search me .

“ They brought out only my handkerchief . When they wanted to put it back into my pocket, I refused and the hand of the officers and the Indian hemp in his hand fell down .

“ When that happened , one of them quickly picked it and ordered me to enter inside their vehicle , which I vehemently.

“ A huge crowd gathered and insisted that they wanted to know the exact place they were taking me to .

“ Four of them (SARS men ) began to drag me and stripped me naked . They began to drag me with my manhood, but I did not relent . I also dragged them because I believe I did nothing wrong .

“ Two of them later brought out machetes and rifles . I told them that if they wanted to shoot me , they should go ahead and do so . I said that because I was sure I did not commit any offence .

“ As we were dragging each other , some wraps of Indian hemp were falling off from their pockets .

“ They began to use the machete to inflict injuries on my body and tried to handcuff me , which I resisted. ”

Our correspondent learnt that when they eventually threw Joseph inside the boot of their car , the residents began to beg for the artisan’ s freedom and were asked to pay N 30, 000 .

Joseph maintained that it was after the N 30 , 000 was handed over to the SARS officers that he was eventually released ; adding that his entire body was inflicted with injury .

He said before the machete cuts , the security agents had emptied two canisters of teargas on him .

Mudiaga Affe , Calabar


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THE Cross River State Police Command on Friday arrested three Internet fraudsters , also known as yahoo- boys, with charms which they used in defrauding and dispossessing their victims of money and other valuables.

This was just as another group of five yahoo- boys were also arrested on the streets of Calabar .

The Commissioner of Police in the state , Mr. Hafiz Inuwa , who disclosed this in Calabar during the parade of the suspects , gave the names of the yahoo boys that were arrested with charms as 22-year - old Chukwuemeka Ahunanya ; Francis Ugochukwu , 25 ; and Emmanuel Chukwuma, 25.

The CP said the three - man gang had confessed to belonging to a syndicate that was using charms to hypnotise potential victims .

Inuwa said , “ On February 23 , 2018 , at about 0940 hours, the following suspects were arrested in the Akpabuyo Local Government Area on a tip - off . They are Chukwuemeka Ahunanya , Francis Ugochukwu , and Emmanuel Chukwuma.

“ During interrogation , the suspects confessed to belonging to an Internet fraud group also known as yahoo boys. They used charms to defraud and dispossess unsuspecting members of the public of their hard - earned money and other valuables. Some charms were recovered from them during the search . ”

He said that investigation was ongoing to identify their victims , adding that the suspects would soon be charged to court.
Similarly, Inuwa disclosed that the command also on March 8 , 2018 arrested another set of Internet fraudsters .

“ We got a tip - off that five young men who specialise in Internet fraud were sighted along Itu Street , off Mary Slessor Avenue, in Calabar , ostensibly to commit a crime .

“ The following five suspects were arrested by men of the Special Anti - Robbery Squad : Emmanuel Anthony , 33; Victor Eyo, 23; Joshua Archibong , 22 ; Michael Oyo , 23 ; and Edet Emmanuel , 20 , ” he said .

Inuwa disclosed that items recovered from the suspects were a pair of scissors , bottles of CSP Codeine, some mobile phones , ATM cards, play station and ML 350 Mercedes Benz SUV.

When interrogated by Southern City News, one of the suspects who specialised in using charms, Ahunanya , said the gang introduced the use of charms to defraud their victims two weeks ago .

Ahunanya , who claimed to be a graduate of the Maritime Academy in Akwa Ibom State , said , “ We just introduced the use of charms into our business . Though we have not perfected it , we think it will work . We have seen others using it . We started it like two weeks ago. We get information that it works for others using it . ”

Another suspect , Chukwuma, said , “ We only started using the charms like two weeks ago and we have not seen its potency . We cannot tell if it will work because it has not worked for us . I am new in the yahoo business . ”

The Commissioner of Police said the suspects would be charged to court as soon as investigation was concluded .

MzMe:
And what is your business wwwkaycom, do you know if her husband is cheating on her? You men cheat a lot and when it's the woman's turn, you guys say something else calling the woman many names. It is cheat make I cheat, nobody dey vex. Oh yes! that's gender equality.

A referee is facing murder charges after football players allegedly forced him to kill a member of the opposing team in southern Malawi, police said Friday.

The referee was overseeing a football match between two local teams , Billiat FC and Chilengo FC, in the town of Thyolo on Wednesday , when Chilengo FC players refused to accept the referee ’ s decision to invalidate a goal, district police spokesman Benjamin Foster told dpa .

In the ensuing scuffle , the referee fled to a nearby house , which the players lit to smoke him out, according to Foster .

When the referee ran out of the burning building, the players forced him to smack a Billiat FC player repeatedly with a stick , the spokesman said .

The player later died of his injuries in hospital, added Foster .

“ The referee turned himself over … He is facing murder charges , ” he said . (dpa /NAN )

By Babatope Okeowo 


Police in Ondo State Police have arrested a three-man gang, who specialised in stealing Honda Sport Utility Vehicles (SUV) in different parts of the state.

The suspects, Fadamitan Desmond, Olayemi Adeoye and Imafidon Roland, said there was nothing wrong in stealing and selling cars. The gang members have a special key, which they used in igniting the vehicles’ engines, before moving them from where they were parked.

Adeoye, the prime suspect, told our correspondent that he bought the master key purposely to unlock and steal cars parked at market places. He confessed that he sell each of their stolen vehicles for a paltry sum of N50,000. According to him, he usually sells the cars to Desmond and Roland.

He said: “Anytime I identify a vehicle, which I wish to steal, I would go to the area with my special key. I will take the car to Desmond and he would give me N50,000.”

According to Desmond, who is a graduate of Mechanical Engineering from Osun State Polytechnic, Esa-Oke, the prices at which he buys the cars made him culpable of receiving stolen property.

He said: “I used to repair the cars before selling them to unsuspecting buyers.”

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Gbenga Adeyanju, said that Adeoye specialised in stealing vehicles in Akure, while the duo of Roland and Desmond were in the habit of selling stolen vehicles.

He said: “The suspects confessed to have stolen the vehicles. Their leader, Adeoye, narrated how they had been perpetrating the crimes within and outside Akure. Efforts are on to arrest other fleeing members of the gang.”

Adeyanju disclosed that the command had set up a three-man task force in compliance with the Inspector General of Police’s directive.

He mentioned Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Mr. Alani Adegoke, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Mr. Emmanuel Ojemu and Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Mr. Dapo Omomuwasan, as members of the task force.

By Joseph Erunke


ABUJA— NORTHERN leaders declared, yesterday, that their support for who flies the country’s forthcoming presidential flag from the region will be based on consensus after assessment of all the candidates of Northern extraction adopted by the various political parties.

To this end, they inaugurated standing committees that will not only drive home their political consideration, but also ensure the crises that have since plagued the region were adequately tackled with attendant restoration of permanent peace.

They include committees on 2019 presidential elections, restructuring, security and other strategic areas. They are to submit their reports on March 31.

The zones’ leaders, on the platform of Northern Leaders and Stakeholders’ Assembly, at the inaugural ceremony in Abuja, also dismissed the adoption of President Muhammadu Buhari for the 2019 by some state chapters of All Progressives Congress, APC, saying their actions hold no water as only the party’s convention can adopt him for his bid.

Elder statesman and Chairman of the organisation, Alhaji Tanko Yakassai, who spoke at the event, insisted that Northern leaders will only throw their weights behind generally-acceptable candidate after considering all the candidates put forward by the various political parties.

According to Yakassai, there is a provision for adopting candidates and so far, we have not seen that happened to President Muhammadu Buhari, following his rumoured second term bid. And until that is done, any adoption by state chapters of his party is not legal.

“The constitution of APC or other political parties has not provided for the executives of the parties to nominate candidates; it is only the convention that does that. Ours is an organisation whose doors are opened to all, we are not here for a particular political party.”

Yakassai, who said the biggest challenge the country was facing at the moment, besides security problem, was how to conduct free, fair and peaceful election.

He added: “If the President had summoned a stakeholders’ meeting between farmers and herdsmen, traditional rulers, political and religious leaders, National Assembly and all of that, and laid the issue before them, some ideas would be developed to provide direction for the government to follow.”


On farmers, herders’ crisis

He also said adoption of ranches instead of grazing reserves could permanently solve the herdsmen, farmers’ clashes, which have led to loss of lives besides wanton destruction of property.

His words: “I am from Kano and I served past government of Kano State for eight years and one of the programmes initiated by the late governor of Kano State, Audu Bako, was ranching. And I think it’s a good idea if the whole country can adopt it.

“We have an interesting geographical distribution. While there is rain here, in the next place, there is no rain. So you can see that these are challenges that have to be tackled through collective efforts.”

Samson Folarin


Doctors at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital , Ikeja , are battling to save the life of a civil servant in the state , identified only as Mistura, after she was allegedly attacked by her maid in the Ejigbo area .

PUNCH Metro learnt that Mistura had been in a coma since Monday , March 5 , 2018, when she was attacked with blended pepper and a wine bottle by the maid, identified as Susan Samson .

Our correspondent was told that despite a three - hour surgery on Wednesday , the victim had yet to come round and was in the intensive care unit of LASUTH .

It was learnt that Mistura, who taught in a public secondary school in Lagos , had employed Samson on February 4 , 2018 to assist her with domestic chores .

The 18- year - old suspect was reported to have stolen her boss ’ money last Friday and Saturday .

After the stolen money was recovered from Samson ’ s bag , Mistura was said to have alerted the agent who brought her .

The Ogoja , Cross River State indigene , in a desperate bid to escape from the house , which Mistura had locked , allegedly poured blended pepper on the boss while she lay on the bed .

She then grabbed a champagne bottle and smashed it on the victim ’ s head repeatedly until she passed out .

The suspect was reportedly apprehended by residents who heard the victim ’ s scream for help .

PUNCH Metro was told that the suspect was handed over to policemen from the Ejigbo division.

The victim ’ s husband, who identified himself only as Alhaji Sikiru , said he had gone to work when the incident happened .

He said , “ An agent brought her to my wife on February 4 , 2018 . The girl said although she was from Ogoja, Cross River State , she had her primary and secondary education in Ikorodu , Lagos State, where she had lived the better part of her life .

“ I had gone to work around 6 am on Monday when my wife was attacked . But when I was called , I went to make a statement at the Ejigbo Police Station where the girl was being detained . That was where she told me everything that happened .

“ She said last Friday, my wife accused her of stealing some money . Again on Saturday , there was an allegation she stole another money. I was surprised because my wife did not tell me that the maid she employed was stealing her things.

“ After I left the house on Monday , my wife asked her to buy balm for her down the street . While she was away , my wife went to her room and found the stolen money in her bag , including some other items which she (Samson ) stole from her shop .

“ My wife called the agent that brought her and asked him to come over to the house . The agent immediately called the girl to know what happened . The girl said she didn’ t know why she (Mistura ) called him .

“ At this time , she had become suspicious . So , when she got back to the house , she went to her bag and discovered that the stolen money and other items had been recovered by my wife . ”

He said Mistura , while awaiting the agent , locked up the two gates in the house and kept the keys .

She was said to have lain on the bed.
“ When the girl saw that her secret was about to be exposed , she wanted to escape. On discovering that the pedestrian and drive gates had been locked , she became desperate .

“ She went to the kitchen, took a bowl of blended pepper , and poured it on my wife on the bed. My wife could not see again , but she groped to the main gate. She started calling for help because she could not also open the gate .

“ The girl went inside the house and found a bottle of champagne , which I had kept for an occasion . She smashed it on my wife ’ s head five times. And she collapsed .

“ Some residents , who had gathered outside the gate after hearing my wife ’ s call for help , caught her as she tried to escape. They also found my wife in a pool of blood and rushed her to a hospital , ” he added .

He noted that during a visit of the police to the house , they found more stolen items in the suspect’ s room.

Alhaji Sikiru , while expressing fear over the condition of his wife , said he hoped she would make it out alive .

“ She lost a lot of blood and I had to get six pints of blood yesterday (Tuesday).

Because her blood level was low, the doctors gave her four pints so she could go through a surgery which started from 1 am and ended around 4 . 30 am on Wednesday. The surgery didn’ t bring out anything . She is still in a coma .

“ My wife is in the intensive care unit of LASUTH . Her brain has collapsed and has been removed from the body and kept somewhere . Her kidney is already packing up . I hope she makes it out alive , ” he added .

A source told PUNCH Metro that the couple had a disagreement late 2017 over the issue of getting a maid as the husband was against the idea .

The source said the dispute was so intense that some relatives had to wade in.

“ The woman has high blood pressure and her personal doctor told the husband in January that the woman’ s BP was still high but she said she would be better if he allowed her to have a maid. That was when the man succumbed . But see what it has caused , ” she said .

The state Police Public Relations Officer , SP Chike Oti , said it was a case of attempted murder.

He said , “ The said Susan Samson suspected that her boss had discovered some items she stole and hid in her room. She subsequently mixed a large quantity of pepper in water and poured it on the woman’ s face to render her defenceless .

“ She subsequently hit her head repeatedly with a big bottle of wine which grievously harmed the woman. The state Commissioner of Police , Edgal Imohimi , has decried this act wickedness and ordered a thorough investigation and diligent prosecution of the case . ”

The Chief Medical Director of LASUTH , Professor Wale Oke , said the victim was receiving treatment at the hospital .

He said , “ She had a surgery yesterday , which was successful . She is, however, not out of the woods yet . She is still in a coma . We have to wait for the brain to heal from the injuries. ”

The Nigerian Army on Wednesday ordered drivers of articulated and other heavy-duty trucks to vacate the Carter Bridge and other overpass in Lagos with effect from Thursday.

There were claims that the bridges may buckle under the weight of the articulated trucks and these may have forced the army to swing into action and prevent a major disaster in the nation’s economic and commercial capital.

The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) had last year warned that the gridlocks created by trucks on the bridges were dangerous and had damaging effects on the overpass.

The movement of the trucks to the bridges followed the state government’s directive to owners and operators of articulated vehicles, trailers, and petroleum tankers to stay away from Apapa and its environs until it finds a lasting solution to the unending traffic bottleneck in the city.

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