Crime

By Hadiza Suleman The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen Christopher Musa, and the Inspector General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun, have debunked insinuations that their personnel provide security for illegal miners in the country. The duo made the denial at a public hearing convened by the House of Representatives Committee on Mineral Resources. The hearing was conducted on Thursday in Abuja, and coordinated by Rep. Jonathan Gaza, chairman of the committee. The security chiefs were responding to a query by the committee that the members of the armed forces and the police were providing security for illegal miners. According…

By Johnson Nwankwo Two male suspects arrested in Enugu for vandalizing a transformer and solar-powered streetlights, respectively, have been arraigned in court, with one jailed and the other remanded. They were arrested by the Enugu State Police Command's operatives serving in the New Haven Division. DSP Daniel Ndukwe, the state command's public relations officer, stated this on Thursday. According to him, "The vandalized transformer components and streetlights were recovered from them. The suspects have been separately arraigned in court, with one of them being convicted, and the other remanded." It was gathered that on July 16, 2024, around 8.50pm, while…

By Our Reporter Eight female bodies have been recovered from a Nairobi slum according to Kenyan police. It was gathered that the first six bodies were found on Friday, with an additional three discovered on Saturday. "They were severely dismembered in different states of decomposition and left in sacks. "I would like to assure the public that we are committed to conducting transparent, thorough and swift investigations," Kenya’s acting police chief, Douglas Kanja, said on Sunday during a press briefing. The proximity of the dumpsite to a police station, mere meters away, has raised questions about potential police involvement. The…

By Johnson Nwankwo Vehicles of suspected kidnap victims have been recovered in Anambra State. The state police public relations officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, in a release, quoted the state Commissioner of Police, CP Nnaghe Obono Itam, saying efforts were ongoing to arrest the assailants and rescue the victims of the abduction. Our correspondent learnt that the abduction occurred on 13/7/2024 along Ifite - Amansea road, Awka. CP Itam charged the command's tactical teams deployed to complement the Joint Security team to redouble their efforts "to deprive the hoodlums of the space they desire so much to perpetrate their evil acts".…

By Johnson Nwankwo About 200 criminal suspects were arrested and four convictions recorded in Anambra State within sixty day, police said on Friday. Also, within the period under review, four kidnap victims were rescued unhurt while over thirty-three different brands of arms, including AK47, pump action guns, and locally made pistols were recovered. The state Commissioner of Police, CP Nnaghe Obono Itam, stated this in Awka while briefing newsmen on efforts to combat crimes in the state. He said investigations were ongoing in matters partaining to over 1,644 ammunition of various types, twenty-seven stolen and different brands of motorcycles, and…

By Our Reporter An alleged drug cartel behind the production and distribution of deadly psychoactive substance, methamphetamine, popularly called ‘mkpuru mmiri’ has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA. This followed the arrest of the leader of the syndicate, 42-year-old Joachin Chikaodi Mbonu, and his associate in his mansion situated in his Umuomi village, Uzogba-Ezenomi autonomous community, Ikeduru local government area of Imo State. A statement from the spokesperson of the anti-drug agency, Femi Babafemi, says the cartel with operational bases in Imo and Rivers state became a target of the Agency following intelligence indicating…

By people & politics The video narrative that the two ladies rescued in a hotel room in Enugu are meant for organ harvest is misleading. Our correspondent reports that the viral video showed the two ladies tied up in an attempt to harvest their organs by two young men. The Enugu State Police Command, in a release issued by its spokesman , DSP Daniel Ndukwe, stated that preliminary investigation revealed a case of 'demanding money with menaces and fraud, and not murder or human organs or parts harvesting as being peddled'. Ndukwe said, "Further investigations revealed that the ladies, operating…

By Hadiza Suleman A former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disasters Management and Social Development, Sadia Umar-Farouk, has been ordered to account for the payments of ₦729bn to 24.3 million poor Nigerians for six months. A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos ordered Umar-Farouk to provide the list and details of the beneficiaries who received the payments, the number of states covered and the payments per state. The judgment was delivered in June by Hon Justice Deinde Isaac Dipeolu following a Freedom of Information suit numbered FHC/L/CS/853/2021, brought by the Socio-Economic Rights And Accountability Project (SERAP). SERAP said it obtained the…

By Our Reporter The Police Command of the Federal Capital Territory in conjunction with the Nigerian Army Guards Brigade have arrested suspected six bandits. The intelligence officers carried out the operations at bandits’ camps located in Kaduna and Niger states' forests bordering the FCT. SP Josephine Adeh, the FCT Police Command's PRO, in a statement dated July 5, 2024 and made available to newsmen, said the operatives of the FCT Police Command from the anti-kidnapping unit, in synergy with troops of the Nigerian Army Guards Brigade, conducted clearance operations in some identified bandits’ camps in Kaduna and Niger states, respectively.…

By Our Reporter Four men found guilty of kidnapping an ex-commissioner in Bayelsa State have been sentenced to 40 years in prison. The state High Court sitting in Ogbia Local Government Area sentenced each of the four men to 40 years for kidnapping Hon Federal Otokito, former commissioner for trade and investment in the state. Recall that Otokito was kidnapped on January 20, 2022, and taken to Igbomotoru bush, where the kidnappers demanded ransom for his release. The presiding judge, Justice S. W. Amaduobogha, while delivering judgment in the suit numbered OHC/4C/2022, declared that Kingsley Obhesi (24), Joshua Abi (32),…