The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Assassins

  • Suspected assassins shoot Anambra pastor

    A middle aged pastor of a popular ministry in Awka, Anambra State was on Thursday shot by unidentified gunmen close to his church in the State capital.

    The Nation gathered that the gunmen, suspected to be hired assassins, had trailed the pastor with their vehicle all the way from Enugu to Awka where he was attacked.

    A source who pleaded anonymity said the suspects had demanded the sum of N5million from the victim, but he offered them N1million which they declined to collect.

    “As soon as they got to his church area. they opened fire on him severally, carted away some undisclosed amount of money, leaving him unconscious with his vehicle glasses shattered,” the source said.

    When our correspondent visited the church premises, the service which holds every Thursday was going on with people clustering within the area discussing the incident.

    A resident, who gave his name as Johnson, said he was passing through that road when he saw some persons pulling out a man from the shattered vehicle.

    “When I enquired, I was told that he was the pastor of the church. Who knows what he must have done to attract this kind of treatment?” he wondered.

    When contacted, the Police said “Today Thursday 6/9/2018 between 09-1000hrs, Prophet David Elijah was allegedly attacked by unknown gunmen along Enugu -Udi road in Enugu State and his Vehicle was ridled with bullets but the pastor escaped unhurt.

    “For the avoidance of doubt, the DPO B’ Division Awka CSP Odion Ekeinde has visited the pastor at his Church Grace and Power Prophetic Ministry,State Secretariat road, Aroma,Awka and even snapped with him.”

  • Bayelsa workers mourn as assassins kill NULGE chairman

    •Find his killers, union tells police

    local government workers under the auspices of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) in Bayelsa State were at the weekend, thrown into mourning following the brutal killing of their Southern Ijaw chairman Okaye Igali.

    It was gathered that Igali was shot at close range in broad daylight at Anyama-Ijaw Junction by suspected hired assassins.

    The victim reportedly boarded a commercial tricycle to Oporoma in Southern Ijaw when gunmen in a Toyota Camry car accosted and shot him in his abdomen.

    “His attackers were assassins. They blocked their tricycle and said they were looking for the NULGE chairman. When they found him, they shot him in the abdomen.

    “They left with his intestines coming out of his stomach. He was later rushed to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Yenagoa, where he was confirmed dead,” a source who identified himself as Yagila said.

    NULGE’s state chairman Akpos Ekiegha condemned the killing and said they incident had left a huge leadership vacuum in the affected local government areas.

    He appealed to the police to go after the killers and bring them to book, adding the union would miss the sterling leadership qualities of the deceased.

    He said: “We are calling on the police to carry out extensive investigations to unmask identities of persons behind this dastardly act.

    “The victim has contributed a lot in the development of the union. He has worked for the union and we are going to miss him.

    “He was able to maintain peace in Southern Ijaw despite huge size of the local government area.

    “We don’t know what to do now. We are totally confused. When we saw the corpse in FMC, we could not control our tears.”

    Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Asinim Butswat confirmed the incident and described the attack as premeditated.

    “Preliminary investigation revealed the attack was a premeditated murder.

    “The incident was reported about three hours later however the tactical teams have swung into action to arrest the culprits. Investigation is ongoing”.

     

  • 75-yr-old flees home after invasion by suspected assassins on the trail of her son

    75-yr-old flees home after invasion by suspected assassins on the trail of her son

    A 75-yr-old grandmother, Mrs. Beatrice Arogbo, has fled her home in Akure, the Ondo State capital to seek refuge in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State  capital, following an attack on her residence by unidentified hoodlums.

    Narrating her ordeal to reporters in Ado-Ekiti, the old woman, who described the invaders as “hired killers” said the four hefty men stormed the compound of the house located at No 14 Alagbaka Extension, Akure at about 7.00 pm on Saturday September 16.

    The house, according to her, belongs to her son, Mr. Obafemi Arogbo, the Chief Executive Officer of Raceforth International Concept, Abuja.

    The woman said she was living with her househelp named Funmilayo.

    She explained that her son and his wife, Christy, a senior staff of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) who both reside in Abuja are presently on holiday in the United States of America with their three children.

    Madam Arogbodo disclosed that  on arrival, the hoodlums asked for the whereabouts of her son and his wife at gunpoint, to which she replied that they were currently on holiday in the United States of America for the past three weeks.

    Unable to find their target, the embattled woman said the trauma of the visit of the hoodlums  could not allow her to stay back in the Akure house again as her family members came to take her to her present abode in Ado-Ekiti where she is presently taking refuge.

    She explained the invaders are hired assassins saying that a similar incident had happened  a week earlier at the Abuja home of her son located at Breden Estate in Sabo, Lugbe District. She said the suspected assassins only met the security man at the Abuja house which they vandalised apparently in frustration of missing their “target.”

  • Chinese arrested for allegedly sending assassins after business partner

    The police in Lagos have arrested a Chinese, Sun Hun, who allegedly recruited mercenaries to assassinate his Nigerian business partner.

    Hun was arrested yesterday on Lagos Island after police operatives nabbed one Chika Eze, whom he paid N1.4 million to hire killers.

    It was gathered that Chika got two men whom he paid N400,000 to carry out the task, but the police got information and swooped on them Thursday afternoon, while they were taking oath of secrecy.

    Confessing to the crime, Eze said the Chinese discussed the cost of the assassination with the other two guys, adding that his role was to hire them.

    “He is my boss. He told me to arrange boys to kill his business partner who owes him money. He discussed the amount with them and then gave me N1.4 million. I had already given them N400,000. That was why the police found one million Naira on me,” said Eze.

    The Chinese, who claimed to be an importer of footwear, said he only told Eze to recruit boys who would do “juju” against the man.

    He said the unnamed business partner owed him over N4million for many years.

    “He refused to pay my money. He went to court when I was not around and claimed that I owed him N10 million. He got a judgment against me and the court said I should pay.

    “He is an Igbo man and I did not ask them to kill him. I told them to do ‘juju’ against the man,” said Hun.

    Confirming the arrest, the Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni, urged residents to adopt peaceful approaches to resolving conflicts.

    He said: “The Chinese national had a misunderstanding with his Nigerian business partner and he thought the best way to resolve it was to assassinate the Nigerian. He recruited a fellow and paid him N1.4million to get boys to kill the other man.

    “In the course of his co-accused trying to recruit the others and getting them to take an oath, the police got information and arrested them. We also recovered one million of the total N1.4million which will be used as exhibit. Further investigation will be carried out on the matter,” said Owoseni.

  • Assassins after me, says pastor who accused CAN of N7b bribe

    Assassins after me, says pastor who accused CAN of N7b bribe

    Pastor Kallamu Musa-Dikwa, who alleged President Goodluck Jonathan bribed leaders of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) with N7billion to influence voters for him before the just-concluded presidential poll, yesterday said his life was in danger.

    Musa-Dikwa claimed he became a marked man because some undisclosed church leaders accused him of being responsible for the defeat of President Jonathan.

    “I have not known peace at all since the March 28 elections. As soon as the results were released, I started receiving threat text messages and calls,” he told our correspondent on phone.

    He said some prominent Christian leaders have labelled him an enemy of the church, a development which he said made them blame him for the defeat of Jonathan at the poll.

    “They said I hate the church and worked against our interest. They accused me of being one of those that worked for the victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC),” the Borno-based pastor stressed.

    The cleric said he received a call yesterday from an unidentified person, who claimed that “Buhari gave him my number.”

    According to him: “When I asked which Buhari, he cut off the line. I have made efforts to reach him on the line since to no avail.”

    Musa-Dikwa alleged some forces in the Department of State Security (DSS) and prominent church leaders have hatched plans to assassinate him before May 29.

    “They want me dead because to them I caused the defeat of Jonathan,” he stressed.

    The cleric, who said he has since gone underground, called on security operatives to offer him protection.

     

  • Police arrest six suspected assassins in Nasarawa

    The police in Nasarawa State said on Thursday that they had arrested six suspected assassins in the state.

    The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Michael Adah, said the suspects were arrested while they were attempting to kill a businessman in Keana, headquarters of Keana Local Government Area.

    Parading the suspects, Adah said the suspects were alleged to have been paid to kill one Mr. Anthony Eze, a Keana-based businessman over a dispute.

    He said luck ran out of the suspects when the attention of the residents was drawn to their suspicious movement after missing their target.

    According to him, the residents immediately reported the matter to the police.

    Adah said the suspects had boarded a vehicle hired by the principal suspect on their way to execute the assignment when detectives attached to the Special Investigative Unit arrested them.

    Some of the items recovered from the suspects were one locally made pistol, two cartridges and N25, 890 cash.

    One of the suspects told journalists that he took the decision to kill the businessman because of threats to his life

    Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Abayomi Akeremale, called on members of the public to be law-abiding and report any suspicious character.

    The News Agency of Nigeria reports that he has ordered a full investigation into the case.