₦airaland Forum

The Police on Saturday said they have disrupted plans by some kidnap gangs to abduct students and other citizens in Niger State and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, said during a media briefing in Abuja on Saturday that three members of the gangs have been arrested.

He said the suspects were arrested on 17 January by operatives of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) following credible intelligence.

Mr Adejobi said the IRT on 15 January received credible intelligence that a GSM number under surveillance belonging to one of the suspects called another GSM number, informing the recipient of a plan to carry out a kidnap operation.

FIRS

According to him, in the GSM conversation, the suspect also told the recipient that he had invited other kidnapping gangs and promised to carry out the operation with him.

Mr Adejobi said the suspect also called another person on the phone, who was later discovered to be a member of the gang, informing him that a civil servant in their custody was a very wealthy man with a lot of assets.

He told the gang member not to release the civil servant unless he paid a minimum of N50 million ransom.

According to him, the same conversation, the suspect said he was still carrying out surveillance on a polytechnic in Niger State to kidnap students.

“Investigation has shown that the suspects have been involved in several kidnapping operations in the FCT, including some that happened in the Bwari axis.

“Our operatives are intensifying efforts to rescue the kidnap victims in their captivity and ensure that other members of the gang are arrested,” Mr Adejobi said.

The force spokesperson said police operatives also arrested a suspect on Thursday in Kaduna over armed robbery and kidnapping.

Mr Adejobi said the arrest followed a report that a man was abducted by four armed men from his house in Abuja and driven away in his Hilux van, registered RBC 90 DL.

The four armed men were said to have blocked their victim with their Mercedes Benz car.
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“But luck ran out of them as they were intercepted by police operatives at a filling station in Kaduna where three of them escaped while one was arrested with the Hilux van recovered.

“The victim was being taken to Kano, but they stopped at Kaduna where they dispossessed him of his ATM cards and transferred N500,000 from his account,” he said.

He added that investigation had revealed that two of the four armed men were based in Abuja.

Mr Adejobi recalled that the suspect and his accomplices were earlier arrested in November 2023, but granted bail by an FCT High Court.

He denied that the suspected kidnapper was shot dead to cover up the investigation.
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“We are here to correct some misinformation being circulated in social media that the Police have killed the arrested suspects to silence some facts.

“With the inauguration of the Special Intelligence Squad (SIS), the game has changed, there is no need to cover up for anybody or deceive Nigerians when we have cases like this.

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has officially confirmed the arrest of Chinaza Phillip, a notorious kidnapper believed to be behind a series of high-profile abduction cases in the Abuja area.

The operation, executed by police operatives from the Kaduna State Police Command on Thursday, January 18, 2024, marks a significant breakthrough in combating criminal activities within the Federal Capital Territory.

Chinaza Phillip, the alleged mastermind behind a string of kidnappings that had instilled fear among Abuja residents, was taken into custody on the aforementioned date.

According to a statement released by the FCT Command Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Josephine Adeh said the suspect’s arrest is a result of extensive investigations into recent kidnappings and killings in the FCT.

“The accused, identified as Chinaza Phillip, was promptly handed over to the FCT Police Command on Friday, January 19, 2024, and is currently in police custody”, the statement said.

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, has vowed that it is the end of the road for kidnappers terrorising some parts of the FCT, saying that some informants working for them have been arrested.

Wike, who disclosed this on Friday during a town hall meeting with various stakeholders, including residents, in Gwagwalada town, Gwagwalada Area Council of the territory, vowed to go after the kidnappers and their informants.

The minister, who spoke in pidgin, said, “The president has asked me to come here today. The other day I was in Bwari and next week I will go to Kwali.

“Security is one thing the president promised Nigerians because his job is to protect lives and property. If we can’t protect lives and property, then we have no reason being in government.

“The president has asked me to assure you that he will not abandon you. So, all these criminals, be ready. Your time is up. You know if I say I will do something, I will do it. And now that I am here today, if you know you are an informant or even one of the criminals, the end has come for you. I and security agencies will follow you to the point that you won’t enter Gwagwalada again.

“Some of the people giving them information, we have arrested them. If they haven’t arrested you, it doesn’t mean that we won’t arrest you tomorrow or even before we leave this place”.

Responding to requests for more police divisions in the council, the minister told the representative of the police commissioner to work out the modalities.

He said, “The CP should work out how we can provide two more police divisions in Gwagwalada. We must do this immediately. It is a security matter and must not be bogged down by bureaucratic bottlenecks.

“The president has given me power to buy more vehicles. By next week, we shall give more vehicles to all police stations. We shall give them modern communication gadgets. The president has said he does not want to hear any story of kidnapping in Abuja again and the security agencies have promised to rise to the occasion. We are very serious. We are not playing. But we need your support too because security agencies cannot do this work alone. They need information. When you give them information, they will work better”.

He reiterated his earlier advice to residents to stop crowdfunding for ransom, saying such action fuelled more kidnapping.

He said, “It is not also good to go to the radio to raise ransoms. It is a way of encouraging criminals. We know it is not easy when your people are in captivity but we have to avoid raising ransom. It fuels the activities of kidnappers”.

LegendHero:
Same one Tweeted by FCT command or not?

Source: https://x.com/fct_policeng/status/1748349649059008824?s=46&t=oGAxjhiGeufNKlYA6fDTyA

It seems the editor of the news from OP don smoke loud. No details given, he just mentioned in one line that Adeh did not confirm.

Yet policemen showed the criminal in handcuff with guns recovered from the Chinaza guy.

This is why I support shoot at sight. If the kidnapper Chinaza had been shot at sight, all his symphatizers wouldn’t have been parroting nonsense.

SharingIsLife:
Nigerian Police that has never arrested one killer herdsman cannot be trusted. This may well be a frameup by a like of you looking to give a bad name to an ethnic group. If Fulani have been killing for 10 years and no one arrested them, only fools and haters will easily believe it when an Igbo is arrested. They haven't even told you how they made their rest and you already masturbating on it, because you are already prejudiced and looking for that opportunity to blame that tribe well done.

The Supreme Court has affirmed the election of Nasir Idris of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the governor of Kebbi State.

A five-member panel of the apex court, in a unanimous judgment on Friday, dismissed the appeal by Bande Aminu, who was the candidate of the PDP in the last governorship election in the state.

Justice Uwani Abba-Aji, who read the lead judgment, held that the appeal was without merit.

olola4:
This makes sense, I go set simple questions I understand for myself

greatness22:
Bigot, You don run commot from politics section because of ban?

Jagua was a legend

• Marketers await company’s product price list
• Diesel, aviation fuel available by month’s end

President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has expressed appreciation to President Bola Tinubu for his vision and support which he said encouraged him to embark on the Dangote Refinery project some years back.

The refinery formally took off on Friday with the production of diesel and aviation fuel.

Speaking with stakeholders in the oil and gas industry on the historic start of domestic refining of petroleum products that will eliminate dependence on importation of refined products in the country, Dangote recalled the support, encouragement, and thoughtful advice he got from President Tinubu towards the actualisation of the refinery project.

“This production, as witnessed today, would not have been possible without his (Tinubu’s) visionary leadership and prompt attention to detail,” Dangote said.

He added: “His intervention at various stages cleared all impediments, thereby accelerating the actualisation of the project.”

The Group Head, Corporate Communications, Dangote Group ,Mr Anthony Chiejina quoted Dangote as saying the diesel and aviation fuel from the refinery would be available at the stands within the next two weeks.

Dangote said: “We have started the production of diesel and aviation fuel, and the products will be in the market before the end of the month.

“This is a big day for Nigeria. We are delighted to have reached this significant milestone.

“This is an important achievement for our country as it demonstrates our ability to develop and deliver large capital projects.

“This is a game changer for our country, and I am very fulfilled with the actualisation of this project.

“The refinery has so far received six million barrels of crude oil at its two SPMs located 25 kilometres from the shore.

“The first crude delivery was done on Dec. 12, 2023, and the 6th cargo was delivered on Jan. 8, 2024,” he added.

He said that the refinery can load 2,900 trucks a day at its truck-loading gantries.

He added that the products from the refinery will conform to Euro V specifications.

Dangote boss said that the refinery design complies with the World Bank, US EPA, European emission norms, and Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) emission/effluent norms. State-of-the-art technology.

He also acknowledged the support of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd., the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and Nigerians for their support and belief in the historic project.

“These organisations have been our dependable partners in this historic journey,” he said.

The National President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Alhaji Abubakar Maigandi, told The Nation by phone yesterday that members of the association could not wait to have the price list of all the products.

“We want to know Dangote petroleum products prices. We will request the list so that we can give it to our members,” Maigandi said.

He also said the association was pressing for allocation of the products to independent marketers from the refinery.

Petroleum product marketers are eagerly waiting for the Dangote Petroleum Refinery product price list, The Nation learned at the weekend.

Abubakar Maigandi, the National President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), expressed the association’s urgency to obtain the list during a phone conversation with The Nation.

He said the intention is to promptly present the list to its members.

He said: “We want to know Dangote petroleum products prices. We will request it so that we can give it to our members.”

Maigandi also revealed the intention of the association’s executive members to follow up on the request for product allocation from the refinery.

The Nation on Monday reported that IPMAN has applied for allocation of products from the refinery.

Meanwhile, the national president at the weekend noted that with the commencement of production at the refinery, the association is now more desirous of the request than ever.

This is coming on the heels of the refinery’s announcement of commencement of production in a press statement on Saturday.

According to the statement, the plant has kicked off with the production of diesel and aviation fuel.

President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, elatedly thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his support, encouragement, and thoughtful advice towards the actualisation of this project.

Dangote, said the statement, also thanked the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Limited), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), and Nigerians for their support and belief in the historic project.

He said: “We thank President Bola Tinubu for his support and for making our dream come true. This production, as witnessed today, would not have been possible without his visionary leadership and prompt attention to detail.

His intervention at various stages cleared all impediments thereby accelerating the actualisation of the project. We also thank the NNPC, NUPRC, and NMDPRA for their support. These organisations have been our dependable partners in this historic journey. We also thank Nigerians for their belief and support in this project. We have started the production of diesel and aviation fuel, and the products will be in the market within this month once we receive regulatory approvals.”

“This is a big day for Nigeria. We are delighted to have reached this significant milestone. This is an important achievement for our country as it demonstrates our ability to develop and deliver large capital projects. This is a game changer for our country, and I am very fulfilled with the actualisation of this project.”

The refinery has so far received six million barrels of crude oil at its two SPMs located 25 kilometres from the shore. The first crude delivery was done on December 12, 2023, and the 6th cargo was delivered on January 8, 2024.

The Refinery can load 2,900 trucks a day at its truck-loading gantries. The products from the Refinery will conform to Euro V specifications. The refinery design complies with the World Bank, US EPA, European emission norms, and Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) emission/effluent norms, employing state-of-the-art technology.

He added: “I must extend our sincere appreciation to our Bankers and financiers, both local and offshore, who demonstrated a great deal of patience, in seeing us through many difficult times. In the same vein, we thank the Government of Lagos State, under the leadership of Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who has been incredibly proactive in ensuring that the many challenges we encountered in the course of executing this project were quickly resolved. I thank him immensely.”

“I also sincerely thank our host communities and their Traditional leaders for their sustained patience, forbearance, and admirable willingness to work with us to find amicable and win-win resolutions to the many issues we have had to deal with as the construction of this huge facility progressed. Our staff have also contributed so immensely to the success of this project. I thank them profusely.”