The Nation Newspaper

Category: Crime Diary

  • Sallah tragedy: 27-yr-old man stabbed to death

    Sallah tragedy: 27-yr-old man stabbed to death

    THE Eid-el-Kabir celebration in the Odoshiwola area of Epe, Lagos State, last Saturday ended abruptly on a tragic note when a 27-year-old man, Segun Alatishe Boccos, was allegedly stabbed to death by one Nafiu, now at large. Panicky residents were said to have hurriedly halted the festivities and deserted the streets in the wake of the pandemonium that trailed the incident.

    The Nation gathered that the deceased was in the town to celebrate Sallah with one of his friends called Tunji, when he met his gruesome death. It was revealed that hoodlums led by Nafiu had threatened to deal with Tunji and his friends, following a tussle over a lady called Barakat.

    The residents claimed that the hoodlums had accosted Segun when he was accompanying an unidentified man to purchase some drinks from a shop in the town. An eyewitness, who identified herself as Olayinka, said Nafiu and his gang had laid an ambush for Segun and stabbed him on several parts of his body with knives.

    “The late Segun slumped in a pool of his blood after he was seized and stabbed with knives by Nafiu and members of his group. I believe that Segun would have survived if he got help immediately but residents ran into their homes for safety and did not come out to rescue or take him to hospital.’’ Olayinka said a sympathiser was prevented from rescuing the deceased by some members of the local vigilance group in the town.

    “A man called Lukman Olopade tried to rescue Segun but was prevented by two members of Muwon Vigilance Group in Eredo Local Council Development Area. Segun died while two men were beating Olopade for daring to save Segun’s life. A source, who spoke in confidence with our reporter, explained that Nafiu had accused Tunji of habouring his estranged wife, Baraka, who allegedly left his home following a disagreement.

    “Nafiu had accused Tunji of habouring his wife who allegedly eloped from their home with their two-month-old baby following a domestic disagreement. He was said to have become suspicious that Tunji was having an affair with his wife. Tunji’s mother had even reported the matter to the police at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba, Lagos, when some people started threatening to deal with his son over the matter,” Olayinka said. Meanwhile, the body of the 27-year-old deceased, who hailed from Ikosi-Ejinrin Local Council Development Area of Lagos State, has since been deposited in the morgue of Ijebu Ode General Hospital.

    The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Kenneth Nwosu, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), confirmed the incident, saying: “The incident is true. One Nafiu, 30, who is now at large, actually slit the throat of Segun Alatishe Boccos, 27, with a kitchen knife on Sallah day in Odoshiwola, Epe, in retaliation for habouring one Tunji, whom he accused of eloping with his estranged wife.

    The scene of the incident had been visited by police and photographs have been taken by our men from Epe Divisional Police headquarters. “We have so far arrested two members of a local vigilance group, who allegedly prevented people from rescuing Segun during the attack, while two other suspects are currently being trailed by our men. Although, the main suspect is currently at large but serious efforts are being made by our men to apprehend him. The body of Segun has been deposited in Ijebu Ode General Hospital and the case is still under investigation,” he added.

  • Curfew: Ekiti residents grumble over security agents’ alleged harassment

    Curfew: Ekiti residents grumble over security agents’ alleged harassment

    THE imposition of the dusk-to-dawn curfew in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, by the state government two weeks ago was primarily meant to curtail the excesses of hoodlums who had gone on the rampage, brutalising perceived opponents of a prominent political figure in the state.

    That was shortly after thugs had beaten up judges and other judicial officers within the court premises. Before the announcement of the curfew, the matter had nearly gone out of hand when Chief Omalafe Aderiye, a former chairman of the National Union of Road Tranport Workers (NURTW), was killed by alleged assassins.

    Hoodlums seized the occasion to unleash arson on the belongings of perceived opponents. Scores of houses and vehicles were torched in the uprising, which halted the peace, espencially in Ado-Ekiti for almost three days. The imposition of the curfew was, therefore, generally seen as a welcome development.

    The curfew itself had been very effective. Since the imposition, no major outbreak of unrest and destruction of property had been recorded, while motor parks and the major streets become deserted daily from 7:00pm when the curfew takes effect.

    All would have been home around 7:00 pm, while those who are still outside by then would find their way home by stealth. As admitted by a large section of the people and from investigations by this reporter, compliance with the curfew has been effective. It has, however, been lamentation galore

  • 35-yr-old arrested for sexually assaulting boy, 13

    A 35-year-old man, one Ilesanmi, has been taken into custody after he was alleged to have sexually assaulted a 13-year-old boy, last Monday at 12 Kajola Street, Iju/Taogbolu area of Akure North Local Government of Ondo State.

    Eyewitnesses said Ilesanmi about 4 pm allegedly lured the boy, who was hawking fish, into his room and forced him to fondle and suck his male organ.

    The boy was said to have raised the alarm which attracted bystanders leading to the arrest of the suspect. A resident, who spoke in confidence, said:” The boy was hawking fish in the neighbourhood when Ilesanmi motioned to him that he wanted to buy fish. That was the bait he used to lure the boy into his apartment before forcibly subjecting him to sexual assault.

    “He was forcing the boy to play with his sexual organ when the boy raised the alarm that attracted those around. We succeeded in apprehending him and handed him to men of Iju/Taogbolu Police Division, where he is currently being held.” In a text message forwarded to our correspondent, the spokesman of Ondo Police Command, Mr. Wole Ogodo, said:

    “About 1045 hours on Monday October 6, one Babatunde Adebayo, 13, of No 24, College Road, Iju, Akure, reported to the Iju/Taogbolu Police Division that he was sexually assaulted by one Ilesanmi, when the later lured him into his room under the pretext that he wanted to buy frozen fish from him.

    “The suspect has confessed to the commission of the offence and the case was to be charged to court on October 8, but did not hold. However, unfailingly, he will be in court next tomorrow (yesterday). This is the level of moral decadence in our society but the law is going to take its course,” he added.

  • How I was brutalised by NDDC’s security men –Contractor

    How I was brutalised by NDDC’s security men –Contractor

    A contractor with the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Henry Wilcox Yobana, has alleged that he was brutalised following his alleged refusal to part with a ‘tip’ for some security men attached to the commission’s office in Port Harcourt. The incident, which happened about three months ago, has left Wilcox with a broken hand and paralysis after he was allegedly abandoned in hospital. He recalled: “It was on Tuesday July 18, 2014, a normal visiting day.

    I was to visit the 5th floor to process my documents. But the some security men attached to the commission were dissatisfied with my inability to give a ‘tip’. I have been a contractor with NDDC since 2010 but that day, I was beaten like a common criminal because I said I had no money to give to some of the security chaps at the NDDC gate.

    The security men hit me and beat me till I fell down and passed out. “Even after I became unconscious, the men were still seriously hitting me with the butts of their rifles until they broke my left hand, following which I was rushed to Rehoboth hospital by some sympathisers. ‘’The Chief Security Officer of NDDC, Mr. Obuzor Messiah, visited me at the hospital and promised to call the attention of the management of the commission to my plight, but nothing has been done to my case since. NDDC did not show any concern to my plight or contribute to my treatment at the hospital.

    I was abandoned at the hospital and I have been calling their lines but no one is picking my calls.” Expatiating further, he said: “All I want now is an apology and compensation from them. They have turned my world upside down. I was pursuing some contracts in NDDC and other companies but I lost them because of my health condition. I have written to the board of NDDC and other top officials of the commission, yet, I have not heard from them till now.

    “As I am taking you now, my landlord is threatening to send me packing after the expiration of a quit notice he issued to me last month. I don’t know what to do. I am helpless and the pains inflicted on me have become unbearable. The degree of injury sustained from the beating they gave me and the psychological trauma should be considered. I have lost a lot of engagements that could have fetched me money.”

    When contacted, the Head of Corporate Affairs of NDDC, Mr. Ibitoye Abosede, said: “I am aware of the matter but regrettably, the victim has an ulterior motive because the Chief Security Officer (CSO) of the commission had provided the necessary things that could assist him. “It is not true that he was abandoned in the hospital. The hospital we have referred him to has the best surgeons and he is still taking his treatment there. The CSO has been giving him money on a personal basis yet he is complaining of being abandoned.

    ‘’We are doing our best to assist him but he has proven to be very stubborn. He once told the CSO that he will make fortune through his broken hand but all we are telling him is to calm down and not to use force. He should change the negative mindset he has but we know we will assist him,” he added.

  • Rivers immigration boss, stakeholders parley on crime fighting

    To maintain a proactive strategy in curbing trans-border crime, the Comptroller of Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Rivers State, Barr Mike Longe, has held a stakeholders’ meeting in Port Harcourt.

    At the meeting held at Presidential Hotel in Port Harcourt, Longe said: “The border crime and other security challenges made the command to establish a new border patrol in 2013.”

    Appraising the new policy of the command, the immigration boss said:” Over 1000 officers have been trained in modern techniques and trends of curbing insurgency and terrorist acts with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) as coparticipants in providing the much needed capacity during the training session.’’ He noted that the trained personnel have since been kitted with new camouflage dresses and deployed in 19 land border posts.

    “The immigration service is witnessing a dynamic and purposeful leadership under Mr. David Parradang. Like the last stakeholders meeting, it is to be noted that in order to effectively check influx of irregular migrants who are mostly taking the advantage of about 1,500 illegal routes, 27 new patrol bases and 30 additional border control posts were established to support the existing functional 84 posts through the approval of the Honourable Minister of interior, Comrade Abba Moro,” he added.

    “Those who attended the stakeholders meeting included the representatives of some companies, the Representative of Comptroller General of NIS, Mr. Obua Chukwuemeka Patrick Pius, and Amanayabo of Abonema, King Gbobo Bob Manuel.

  • Hunger pushed us into oil theft

    Hunger pushed us into oil theft

    PERHAPS, Julius Fredie, a 24-year-old man from Ahoada West, Rivers State, had thought that the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Bayelsa State chapter, would listen to his pathetic story of abject poverty and set him free on compassionate grounds. But to the security outfit, his story is the usual singsong of any arrested criminal.

    His tales are not “born again”. Therefore, it seems to be the end of the road for Julius whose fate is to be decided by the court if eventually prosecuted as vowed by the NSCDC. His case looks unpardonable. He was caught red-handed while allegedly engaging in the illegal act of cutting pipelines belonging to the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) at Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state.

    Some community folks led a team of the NSCDC to the scene where Julius was about carrying part of the severed pipe. But Julius, who was among the suspects paraded recently by the state Commandant of NSCDC, Mr. Desmond Agu, said poverty forced him to commit the crime. Looking unkempt, the youngster, who had many scars on his body, however, disclosed that a chief recruited him into the illegal business.

    He explains that the chief is in the criminal deal of cutting pipelines belonging to oil companies and later negotiating with such firms to repair the pipes and become their surveillance contractor. “I was just on my own in the house thinking about my lonely world when the chief from my community came and asked me to come and help him cut a pipe. He also called one Mr. Precious to join in the pipeline cutting.

    “He promised that after cutting the pipe, Shell would give him the pipeline repairs and surveillance contract and that he would give us part of the contract to help us make money and feed ourselves.’’ But Julius lamented that after cutting the pipeline, the chief got the contract but refused to sublet part of it to them as he promised. He said the chief abandoned and neglected them, a situation that infuriated Precious, his alleged partner in crime. “Precious was angry and decided to go and cut the pipeline again.

    After he found it difficult to carry the pipe, he came to wake me up where I was sleeping and asked me to come and help him remove the sand. Just as I was removing the sand, security operatives, led by some members of our community came and caught me”, he said. On why he joined the illegal business, he said it was easy for the chief to convince him because of his poverty.

    “I am hungry and I have no helper. So, when the chief sent for me, I went there. He promised me surveillance job. I am just on my own in this world and since I was arrested, nobody has come for me”, he said. Like Julius, 60-year-old Victoria is allegedly notorious for illegal refining of petroleum products.

    The fat, dark-complexioned woman, who hails from Futorogbene in Ekeremor Local Government Area of the state, is popularly known in the creeks as Mama Militant. She was so entrenched in the crude cooking of crude oil that she was said to have recruited men who worked for her. In one of their missions, three of the men were arrested by the operatives of the NSCDC.

    Victoria admitted doing the business for more than one year. She said she once owned an illegal refinery site at Etikpama, claiming that the site was allocated to her by an unnamed security operative. She, however, claimed to have repented before his arrest.

    Victoria owned boats, many boat engines and fire hoses with which she used to operate her unlawful activities. “When I was arranging the place and finishing it in January, the boy who gave me the site said the government asked us to stop, then I stopped. I did this business for about one year and then stopped.

    I didn’t achieve anything with it. “After l stopped, I couldn’t remove everything I used in doing the business. We dumped everything there because we were no longer cooking. We bought all these things before to go and do the business. But when all these things stopped, I kept them.

    “I was not hiring them out. It is only the big engine I installed in the big boat to transfer it. It was an empty boat”, she said. On why she started the business, she said: “I started the business because I was hungry and have many children. I have 15 children.

    I gave birth to eight but my husband brought the other ones. I am only trying to feed them.” Explaining the circumstances that led to the arrest of Victoria, the leader of the operation and Head of Unit, Anti-Vandal, NSCDC, Mr. John Oluvua, said the arrested workers of Mama Militant gave her away. He said they were arrested in a big boat carrying illegally refined kerosene, adding that on interrogation, they named the woman as their alleged sponsor. He said the boat was burnt after its contents were evacuated. He said: “Moving that boat to this place

  • I was lured into robbery to raise N25,000 school fees, says undergraduate arrested with girlfriend

    I was lured into robbery to raise N25,000 school fees, says undergraduate arrested with girlfriend

    THE Delta Police have arrested an undergraduate of the state-owned university and his lover for their alleged role in armed robbery. Raphael Ekarebe, 22, is a 300 level student of the Department of Political Science at Delta State University, Abraka, while his girlfriend, identified as Endurance Akpore, is a student of Shaka Polytechnic in Edo State.

    The duo were paraded along with 14 other suspects in Asaba for alleged crimes ranging from armed robbery, kidnapping, trafficking in fake currency notes and rape. Ekarebe, who confessed to participating in the crime, said he was forced into crime due to his inability to raise N25,000 for school fees, adding that his indigent mother could not afford to pay his fees.

    His words: ‘’We went to rob a man of his car at Agbarho. I am a member of the gang; it was my first time. I am a student in Delta State University, Abraka, and we are starting our exams soon. I came from the school because we will be starting exams this week and I have a problem with my school fees.

    So, I went to meet my girlfriend she promised to give me N5,000, but the money was not enough. So, I went to meet my friend called Makolomi who promised to give me some more money.’’ He said his friend, who promised to give him money, however, lured him into crime, taking advantage of his financial situation. He added that he was not aware that they were going on a robbery operation.

    According to him, he participated in the robbery because he was desperate to raise the money to pay his school fees. His words: ‘’I did not know we were going for a robbery operation. When we reached the place, we intercepted a man and showed him a gun; the man ran away leaving his car.

    I participated in the robbery because I was in need of money to pay my school fees which is N25, 000. My mother cannot pay my school fees because she has no money.

    We are five children.’’ He said he would not return to a life of crime if he is set free, adding that this robbery operation was his first attempt. His lover, 23-year-old Endurance Akpore, who also claimed to be a student, said she met the suspect three months ago and they became friends.

    She said she went to the residence of Raphael Ekarebe to remove his belongings, adding that someone else had, however, gone ahead of her to remove them. The Delta Police image-maker, DSP Tina Kalu, said the gang had allegedly terrorised Ughelli and environs in recent times, adding that the Police made a break by acting on a tip-off.

  • Plastic firm’s workers cry out over lack of safety kits

    Plastic firm’s workers cry out over lack of safety kits

    Workers of Celplas Industries Nig Ltd, Isanyindo, Sagamu, Ogun State, a manufacturer of plastic products, have lamented the non-provision of safety kits for them by the management.

    The workers noted that there are no safety measures put in place in the factory to protect them against bodily injury that has become their lot in recent times.

    One of the affected workers, who spoke on the ground of anonymity, said the management had turned a blind eye to their plight despite sustained agitation for better working conditions in terms of adequate provision of safety items.

    “The management is not doing anything to address the lack of safety items that could protect us from dangerous particles coming out of production centre. For example, those of us who work in the stainless plate moulding section are the worst hit; we are usually blackened or darkened by black particles coming out of plates during production.

    “Instead of providing us with safety gear and overall jacket, they continue to be indifferent. No matter how fair-complexioned you may be, you will become black the moment you are posted to my section to work. When many of us who could no longer continue to wait endlessly for the management, we resorted to covering our body with  disused sacks.”

    Another worker, who spoke in confidence with The Nation explained: “I resorted to the use of cellophane or nylon to cover my body and hand. Besides, some of our colleagues have either lost their fingers or vital parts of their bodies as a result of the development; Even though I know that using cellophane is dangerous as it can be suffocating, we have no choice.”

    “A few months ago, a worker in the moldings section lost some of his fingers and he has not been compensated for the permanent injury he suffered. Please, beg our bosses to secure our lives against industrial accidents and health hazards by giving us necessary safety kits,” he added.

    A security man at the entrance of the company turned back our correspondent when he went there to seek the response of the company on the allegations a few days ago.

    “Please go back. The company has been temporarily closed because of workers’ strike,” said a security man who refused to disclose his names.

    However, a top official at the Lagos head office of the company, simply identified as Sikiru, said:” To the best of my knowledge, the company has always held the issue of safety and welfare of its workers paramount. They are insured and some of them who are victims of industrial accidents have been adequately compensated. There are, however, some whose cases are still being treated by our insurers. But I’ll advise you to come see our general manager when he returns from his trip outside the country. He is in a better position to offer a detailed explanation on some of the issues you have raised.”

  • ‘How we hijacked fuel tankers with fake army uniforms’

    ‘How we hijacked fuel tankers with fake army uniforms’

    Two impostors, Okoh Patrick (48) and Aniekan Emmanuel (32) have been arrested by operatives of the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Lagos State Police Command for allegedly leading a six-man robbery gang whose members paraded themselves as highway traffic task officials in order to hijack and divert trucks conveying petroleum products. Patrick, a 48-year-old native of Iselukwu, Delta State, was said to have paraded himself as a combatant soldier while Emmanuel, an indigene of Rivers State, claimed he was a merchant naval officer.

    Four other suspected mebers of the gang arrested by SARS include Alex Ogbu Ugbuagu, a 35-year old native of Abakaliki, Ebonyi State; Izuchukwu Udeagwu, a 36-year-old native of Umudioka town in Dunukofia Local Government Area, Anambra State; Thirty-nine-year-old Evans Boniface from Mbano, Imo State and forty-eight-year-old Taiwo Oyadara from Ikirun, Osun State. The syndicate was said to have been smashed by SARS during its fifth operation.

    The first operation, according to a police source, occurred in August 2013 when one Alex Ugbuagu and Boniface connived with one Alloy and one Kazeem to hijack a truck at gunpoint. They allegedly diverted the truck to a filling station in Ikorodu between 3 am and 4 am while the victim driver of the truck has remained in the hospital since then.

    In the second operation, the gang allegedly snatched a PMS truck between Ijora and Apapa, Lagos in March 2014 and sold the content worth about N3 million to a filling station in Ajah, Lagos for N1.3 million.

    The third operation occurred at Iyana Oworo, Lagos where they hijacked a truck conveying diesel and sold it to a filling station in Ikorodu while the fourth operation involved a truck containing diesel, which was snatched at gunpoint around Toyota bus-stop along the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway on July 18, 2014.

    The fifth operation was said to have occurred also in Lagos on July 21 when they snatched a truck containing petrol on its way to Sango-Ota, Ogun State. The police source said that luck ran out on the gang after their fifth operation.

  • ‘My brother was under pressure to get married but he died on wedding day’

    ‘My brother was under pressure to get married but he died on wedding day’

    One of the siblings of a man, Chukwuemeka Batholomew Nzekwe, who died on his wedding day, has revealed how his brother was put under pressure to get married by family members.

    The wedding ceremony turned tragic in Ekwulobia community, Anambra State on Saturday August 9, 2014, when the groom Chukwuemeka, died on his way to church.

    The 38-year-old man, according to a family source who spoke in confidence, rode on a power bike with his best man to beat the traffic when a man who wanted to alight from a car parked beside the road hit them with the door.

    “My brother had for long been disturbed by our family members to get married and we all were very happy when he announced that he had found a lady he would marry. He had concluded all necessary arrangements that could make the wedding ceremony grand.

    “He chose to ride with his best man on a power bike in order to beat the heavy traffic on the road, not knowing that it would lead to his death.

    “The incident happened at about 9.30 am when an occupant of a vehicle parked along the road hit them with the door of the car when he wanted to alight.

    “My brother fell on his head to the ground and died instantly while his best man is in critical condition in a private hospital.”

    The news of the incident shattered the joy of family members and guests who were seated in the church and brought the service to an abrupt end.

    “Although, the bride (name withheld) was taken away from the church, she was so traumatised that she now talks like someone who has gone nuts,” the family source added.