The Nation Newspaper

Tag: CRIME

  • Police hunt for couples who bought sisters stolen from Edo

    Men of the Edo State Police Command have launched manhunt for the couples who bought two sisters stolen from Utese village in Ovia North East local government area.

    The police have deployed its men to Enugu State and Portharcourt in search of the couples.

    Both sisters aged four and six and identified as Christabel and Amanda were reportedly sold to the different couples for N500,000 each.

    They were stolen by two girls, Rose and Mary, who rented an apartment in their resident at Utese village.

    Their mother left them in the care of the two girls while she went to the stream to get water.

    Police sources said Mary has since been arrested but the whereabout of Rose is unknown.

    It was learnt that the sisters were first sold to a woman identified as Joy in Agbor.

    Joy was arrested in Onitsha and she confessed to have sold the children to one Ruth Eze, a 58-year old woman based in Onitsha.

    The police source said Ruth sold one of the children to somebody living at Ogwashi-Uku while the other was sold to a couple at a Catholic Church in Enugu State through one Mrs. Favour Uju.

    A police team that visited Ogwashi-Uku discovered that the women that bought one of the sisters has died but had already sold the girl to a couple in Portharcourt.

    It was also learnt that police investigators have taken the suspects to some Catholic churches in Enugu but the suspects could not identify who they sold the girl to.

    Parents of the stolen siblings have parted ways since the incident happened last year.

    A family source said they were confused as to how the police would recover the sisters.

    Father of the children, Spark Omokpia, said he would do anything to ensure his children returned to him.

  • I don’t know why I killed my lovely sons, says father

    Mr. Uwaila Idehen, who killed his 28- year- old wife, Maureen and two sons, has expressed regrets over his action.

    His sons were Dereck ,3, and Desmond 2.

    The 35-year-old Idehen, said the minor misunderstanding he had with his late wife had been resolved but he didn’t understand why he still killed them.

    He spoke to newsmen when he was paraded at the headquarters of the Edo Police Command.

    Uwaila, a tipper driver, said he has been married to his wife for ten years but he was still accused of infidelity.

    His six- year- old daughter narrowly escaped death even though she was in the same room with her siblings and mother.

    The victims were lying on the bed while the lucky daughter was sleeping on the ground when the father fired the fatal shot through a locked door.

    A quarrel was said to have ensued on Sunday morning in which the woman reportedly told the suspect she would also date other men since her husband was unrepentant.

    Uwaila drove out of the house and came back to kill his wife and sons.

    According to him: “I don’t know what happened. I didn’t intend to do it. They are my lovely children. How can I lose two children at the same time?

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    “We have been married for ten years. We have a minor issue. I do not know how the gun exploded. I bought the gun six years ago.

    “Some boys that came to ransack my house took the bag containing the license for the gun.”

    Police Commissioner, Hakeem Odumosun, said Idehen shot his victims with English- made doubled- barrelled gun over a mere misunderstanding.

    He said the gun has been recovered and the suspect would soon be charged to court.

  • Man in court over theft of N4m property

    A 46-year-old man, Allen Macaulay, was on Monday arraigned before a Chief Magistrates Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State for alleged theft.

    Macaulay, a businessman allegedly stole marine equipment valued at over N4m, property of Fymark marine and oil services company Nigeria Limited.

    A document obtained from the court alleged that the suspect committed the offence at the company premises at the Government Reservation Area(GRA) of Port Harcourt, in March, 17.

    He pleaded not guilty to the two-count charge of theft and unlawful conversion of properties slammed on him and was granted bail with a surety.

     

    Granting the suspect bail, the presiding magistrate Sokari Andrew-Jaja said the surety must be a renown businessman or a worker in the rank of manager in a reputable company who must be resident in Port Harcourt and must present evidence of tax payment of the last three years and must deposit a cash sum of N300,000 with the registrar of the court.

    Macaulay was represented by in the court by a lawyer.

    The case was adjourned till February 6, for hearing.

  • FRSC decries activities of smugglers in Ogun

    Idi-roko Command of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Ogun, has decried the activities of smugglers, which it described as a major challenge confronting its operations in 2018.

    Mr Olugbenga Farinloye, the Idi-roko Unit Commander of FRSC, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Ota, Ogun, on Monday.

    Farinloye said that most of the smugglers used motorcycles as means of transporting rice and sometimes rammed into other articulated vehicles from the opposite side in the process of avoiding FRSC officials.

    ”In any attempt for any enforcement agencies to try to arrest the smugglers along the Idi-roko axis had resulted to fatal accident that led to loss of lives and property,” he said.

    The unit commander said that the smugglers cultivated the habit of using unregistered plate number on their vehicles which made it difficult to identify when crime was committed.

    He said that the FRSC found it difficult to address the problem alone without the other relevant agencies because the corps was not armed.

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    Farinloye alleged that some of the enforcement agencies along the Idi-roko axis could not arrest the hoodlums due to reason best known to them.

    He further said that he had visited all the relevant enforcement agencies like the police, Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Department of State Services (DSS) but all proved abortive.

    Farinloye called on all relevant agencies to come together as a special patrol to form a task force to stem the menace of smugglers.

    ”There is a way we can collaborate to work as a team with all relevant agencies in tackling the activities of smugglers,” he said.

    He also said that FRSC had visited many places like Churches, Mosques, market places and paramount rulers, to sensitise them on why safety consciousness on the roads was a collective responsibility of everyone.

  • Ex-Army Sergeant charged with impersonation

    A former Army Sergeant, Mr Monday George, who allegedly carried on as a serving soldier, was on Wednesday brought before a Yaba Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos.

    George, 43, of Apollo Road in Makoko, Yaba, Lagos, is standing trial on a two-count charge of impersonation and forgery of an army identity card.

    According to the Police, the defendant committed the offences on January 2 at Makoko Primary School, Yaba.

    Prosecuting Sergeant Modupe Olaluwoye said George was dismissed from the Nigerian Army over three years ago but carried on as a Sergeant.

    The court heard that George kept parading himself in full army camouflage and worked as a security personnel for different individuals since 2015.

    Olaluwoye said: “When Makoko was celebrating its day, the defendant was dressed in an army camouflage at the venue.

    “It was another army personnel at the location, Mr Lucky Macaulay, who discovered that the defendant was no longer in the army.

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    “A forged army identity card with No. 03NA/53/1965-81 was also recovered from him.”

    According to her, the offences contravened Sections 77 and 365 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

    Chief Magistrate Oluwatoyin Oghere granted George N50, 000 bail with two sureties in the like sum.

    Both sureties must be gainfully employed, show evidence of three years’ tax payment to the Lagos State Government, while one of them must be George’s blood relation.

    The case continues on March 6.

  • Police arrest six for alleged robbery

    The Lagos State Police Command says it has arrested six suspects for allegedly dispossessing motorists of valuables at gunpoint.

    The Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Mr Imohimi Edgal, confirmed the arrest to newsmen at the State’s Police Command Headquarters, stressing that the suspects were arrested on Jan. 2.

    ‘‘On Jan. 2, information was received from a reliable source that some hoodlums, armed with guns and other dangerous weapons, were dispossessing motorists of their valuables around Ajegunle area of Alakuko, Lagos.

    ‘‘On receipt of the information, operatives from Alakuko Police Station mobilised to the scene.

    ‘‘However, on sighting the policemen, the armed robbers ran in different directions to avoid being arrested but were chased, leading to the arrest of one, who led to the arrest of others.

    ‘‘Exhibits recovered from them include cutlasses and daggers.

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    ‘‘Suspects have confessed committing the crime and will be charged to court at the conclusion of investigation,” he said.

    In a similar situation, a 38-year-old man was caught in Ejigbo area of the state robbing motorists.

    The suspect was immediately searched and a cut-to-size locally made gun with two cartridges was recovered from him.

    The CP said suspects would be charged to court on completion of investigation.

  • ‘Drug abuse, cultism can lure youths into crime’

    YOUTHS have been urged to shun drugs, and cultism to avoid being lured into crime.

    The Divisional Crime Officer (DCO), Iju Police Division, Gbadebo Faseki, a Superintendent of Police (SP), gave the advice at a lecture held by three groups at Ijaiye-Ifako Local Government Area Office, Lagos on how to tackle drug abuse and cultism in Ifako-Ijaiye area of Lagos.

    The groups are Nigeria Policing Programme (NPP), Community Safety Partnership (CSP), Iju and Police Community Relation Committee (PCRC).

    Faseki said those who take drugs were prone to being lured into crime. Specifically, he warned youths against making friends with drug addicts and cultists, saying: ‘’Those who commit crimes are liable to punishment. Don’t indulge yourself in drug abuse because through it you could be lured into crime. Run away from drug takers.’’

     Earlier, as part of the two-day event, the groups, led by the NPP Lagos Intervention Officer Mrs Ivy Basil-Ofili; a PCRC member, Jude Ndoh and CSP Chairman Sir Felix Usalo, kicked off a campaign from the Police Station near Iju Waterworks, marched through the Agege-Ishaga-Iju road and terminated it at the council Area office on Bola Ahmed Tinubu road.

    They explained that the event was aimed at reducing the menace of drug abuse cultism in the area, adding that the sensitisation has a key role to play on the issue in view of the forthcoming general elections.

    They were accompanied by pupils of Adeola Memorial College and Olu Abiodun High School, among other associations.

    The council Chairman Apostle Olorutoba Oke, whose local government partnered the groups, expressed satisfaction with the team for a good job. He emphasised the danger posed by drug abuse to the society.

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    He cited the late President Nnamdi Azikiwe and the late Premier of Western Region Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who, as youths, travelled abroad to study and returned home with their degrees, without any problem.

    He told the youth that any one destined to great could have his life destroyed by drugs and that they should take Azikiwe and Awolowo as their role models.

    He said a drug addict would suffer from mental imbalance and would never be able to hold on to its own. ‘’I never went into drugs. That is why I can stand before you today,’’ he added.

    Oke urged the youth to run away from drugs. ‘’When you see drugs, run, run, run,’’ council chief counselled.

  • Man docked over theft of cell phone worth N20,000

    A 24-year-old man, Saidu Amodu, has appeared before a Karmo Grade 1 Area Court, Abuja, charged with stealing an Itel cell phone and N20,000 cash.

    Amodu, who resides at Gwagwa in Bwari Area Council, Abuja, denied committing the alleged office.

    The prosecutor, Ijeoma Ukagha, told the court that one Blessing ThankGod, who lives behind the palace of the traditional ruler of Karmo, reported the matter at the Karmo Police Station, on Oct. 18.

    According to Ukagha, the complainant reported that on Oct. 18, the defendant entered her room and stole N20,000 cash and one Itel cell phone.

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    The prosecutor said that the police later arrested the defendant and the stolen items were recovered from him.

    She said that the offence contravened the provisions of Section 287 of the Penal Code.

    The judge, Inuwa Maiwada, granted N30,000 bail to the defendant with one surety in like sum and adjourned the case until Nov. 28, for hearing.

  • 28-yr-old in court over alleged N2.5m theft

    A woman, Elizabeth Inko-Dokubo has been arraigned before a Rivers State Magistrate Court Sitting in Port Harcourt, the State Capital for allegedly stealing the sum of N2.5 million, from a telecommunication company “Qtel Multi Communication Limited”.

    The 28-year-old who was a former staff of the company, who is the complainant in the matter had allegedly converted the sum into her personal use while working with the firm.

    The Prosecutor, Inspector Wilson Isaiah told the court that the suspect committed the crime at No. 110 Ogbunabali Road Port Harcourt between March 2015 and July 2015.

    Isaiah said the offence breached section 390 (9) of the criminal Code Cap 37 Vol. II Laws of Rivers State Nigeria.

    The suspect pleaded not-guilty to the single count charge of stealing levelled against her and was granted bail in the sum of N200,000 only, with one surety in like sum.

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    Her legal representation had earlier urged the court to grant her bail, submitting that the charged against her was bailable even as the crime is what the court could hear.

    He pledged to ensure the accuse was present in court in each adjourned date until the charge is disposed of.

    The presiding magistrate, Solaris Andrew-Jaja later adjourned the case till October 30, for hearing.

  • Robbers stab two to death in Edo

    Two persons have been stabbed to death by armed robbers who raided Amenze street and environs Off Costain Road, Benin City, Edo state.

    The robbers robbed over eight houses in the area and inflicted injuries on anybody that does not have money to give to them.

    Wife of one of their victims, Mrs. Erhun Ogiorio, said she begged the robbers not to kill her husband but the robbers refused.

    According to her, “When they came in, one of them held a gun and the other one a knife. I told them we don’t have money that my husband is a civil servant. I wanted to give them phones but they stabbed my husband in the stomach and the chest.

    Another victim who is currently receiving treatment said he was stabbed twice by the robbers.

    “When they came into my room, they asked me to lie down. The next thing I know was that I was stabbed. They stabbed me twice.”

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    A victim who pleaded anonymity said they collected N70,000 from him after beating him before they moved to other house.

    He said robbers used to terrorize them in the area.

    Edo Police spokesman, DSP Chidi Nwabuzor, said it was a case of cult clash that was reported.

    He said the police was yet to arrest any suspect.

    “What we were told was that rival cult were fighting. Two persons stabbed. No arrest has been made.“