The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Police

  • Ex-REC booed out of office

    •New INEC chief visits police, DSS

    The newly-posted Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Anambra State, Mr. Edwin Nwatalari, has assumed duty, with a visit to the police command and the Department of State Security (DSS).

    But his predecessor, Prof. Chukwuemeka Onukaogu, who has been posted to Enugu State, was yesterday booed out of office by workers of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Awka.

    They alleged that he committed a lot of atrocities when in office.

    A senior worker, who preferred anonymity, told The Nation that their action followed Onukaogu’s attitude to workers.

    She said: “This is a man, who pretends to be a cleric, yet he does not like the freedom of any person and you cannot benefit anything from him.

    “The people of Enugu State, including politicians, have rejected his posting. They said they did not want such a person, considering his record in Anambra.”

    Nwatalari assured the people that INEC would conduct free, fair and credible elections.

    He spoke with Police Commissioner Hassan Hosea Karma and the Director of DSS, Mr. Alex Okeiyi, when he visited them yesterday.

    The REC solicited cooperation among security chiefs to ensure the success of the elections.

    They assured him that there would not be ballot box snatching and disturbances during the poll.

     

  • Police rearrest ex-convict

    Police rearrest ex-convict

    An ex-convict, Kazeem Kosemani (37), has been arrested by operatives of the Lagos State Special Anti-Robbery Squard (SARS).

    Sources said the suspect was arrested around Oshodi, Lagos while trying to buy an AK47 rifle in preparation for a robbery.

    The suspect, who described himself as an ex-convict, said: “I went to Kirikiri Prison in Lagos in 2014 because of motor-snatching crime. It was one boy called Ayeke that deceived me by telling me to go and carry a car for him, saying that he wanted to sell it. When I went to collect the car, I discovered that it was a stolen Sienna car. Ayeke said it was his mother that gave him the car to use in school. He told me to go and bring the car and that one Alhaji would give me money for my sweat.

    “I was arrested and eventually sent to Kirikiri prison. I have also stolen Mazda car. I stayed eight months in prison before my brother perfected my bail. I was arrested on January 14, 2014. It was one boy called Ebuka that taught me how to snatch cars with a filed key. He sells motor parts in Lagos. He did the key for me and I used it to be carrying cars from parks. During the day, I patrol the streets and when I see a car, I test it with my key. If it works, I come back in the morning to carry it.”

    Kosemani, said he intended to use the AK47 rifle to defend himself during an operation.

  • ‘Army, police should not be willing tools in elections’

    ‘Army, police should not be willing tools in elections’

    In the speech of Mr. Ayo Fayose, he said propaganda would only waste time and that attack is the best form of defence. He maintained that the party in general and the Southwest PDP needed to be valiant to face the Tinubus anywhere they are. He further said we have control of the police and the army and I cannot afford to lose my control on police and the army and, without Jonathan being the President, we will lose the control. Further, he said the presidential election is a do or die affair, but Governor Mimiko quickly countered that it should not be a do or die affair but rather a do-and-win affair” – Sahara Reporters

    The above statement was culled from the report of the inaugural meeting of the Southwest PDP held on Saturday December 27, 2014 at Government House, Akure, Ondo State capital. It was lifted from Sahara Reporters (SR). I was moved to write this open letter to the military and the police because of the weight of the statement above and the danger it poses to our renascent democracy. I write as a concerned Nigerian who wants the best for my country at this critical point in the nation’s history. I write to appeal to the conscience of the Army and the police to take a deep and honest look at the above statements and rise up to defend democracy and Nigeria. I write to ask the Army and the police to issue a warning to Governor Fayose and his forty thieves before they destroy further the already battered image of these vital institutions.

    The Nigerian police have been battling with credibility crisis for years now and today most Nigerians see that very important and strategic institution as a government parastatal at the centre. For almost 16years since 1999, a vast preponderance of both the senior and junior officers have abused, rubbished and disgraced that very important institution to the extent that there is no trust again that they can get it right. The Nigeria’s police duty is to protect the 150 million Nigerian irrespective of tribe, tongue, religion, and culture but they have abandoned their primary duty in order to serve whoever is in power in Abuja. They help to rig elections, they help to oppress, repress and suppress the opposition, they intimidate, abuse, hound and physically assault the populace. Police are used to settle scores, they are used to retrieve debts, they sometimes encourage armed robbers, they beat up Nigerians at the drop of a hat. I can go on and on but time has come for the Nigerian police to take stock and try to redeem its battered image to face the challenges of the days ahead.

    The Nigerian Army I knew then was one of the best in Africa. They have given good accounts of themselves in peace keeping missions abroad and they are rated very high even outside Africa. But the emergence of Boko Haram few years back and the news from the Army formations across the country have become worrisome. Today we hear of mutiny in the Army, we hear of junior officers refusing orders from superiors, we hear of our once strong soldiers running away from Boko Haram rag-tagged shooters, we hear of Boko Haram seizing Army Barracks and carting weapons away, we hear about funds meant for junior soldiers being diverted, we hear about our soldiers being arrested by Cameroon Army and today we hear that there are Boko Haram sympathizers in the nations security agencies and even in Ministries, Parastatals and agencies of government. This is unbelievable and unpleasant story to believe in the 21st century and even at peace times in Nigeria. We can ignore the antics and rude shock from the Nigeria police but allowing the famous Nigeria Army to degenerate further is like committing suicide. The country will be dangerously exposed to external aggressors if nothing is done to rebuild, reconstruct and rehabilitate the Army of Nigeria. Nigerians will go the polls on February 14 2015 to make an important statement that will determine the road to travel in the years ahead. Nigerians are expected to rebuke those that have stunted our growth and made Nigeria to move at 5metre per hour instead of moving at 50 kilometers per hour. Nigerians will take a very important decision that will bring respect and honor to our country.

    This decision will change the way we do things, the way we think, the way we reason, the way we work and the way we relate with others. Nigerians will by that very important decision stop impunity, corruption, insecurity, indiscipline, brigandage, mediocrity, thuggery and abuse of democratic institutions like the Security Agencies, INEC, NYSC, Civil Defense, the Judiciary and others. These institutions must work effectively for us to get what we want. Like my friend Sonala Olumhense says, nobody is expected to sit on the fence this time around. It is either you are for change or for the maintenance of status quo. The choice is yours. Nobody is interested in mantra that PDP and APC are the same. It is either you are in APC or PDP. If out of omission or commission, the agents of change lose again next months, Nigeria may go down in history. We must all join hands in one accord, in amity, in agreement, in unity, and in tandem chase away PDP for Nigeria to breathe fresh air.

    I am therefore appealing to the Army, Navy, Air force, Police, INEC, NYSC, Civil Defense, Judiciary, Road Safety, DSS, SSS, etc to gear up for democracy. These vital institutions of democracy must do their work this time around. We expect impartiality, we expect cooperation, we expect full protection of all and sundry, we expect team work, organisation, networking and understanding. We must all prove that Nigeria is not a basket case.

    Now I want the Nigeria Army and the police to call Governor Ayo Fayose and his gang to order. This impunity and abuse of power and office must stop. A lot was revealed in that Akure Meeting and APC leaders should open their eyes wide now.

  • Police ‘shooting’ of man: Coroner accuses officers of contempt

    The Ikeja District Coroner, Chief Magistrate Tajudeen Elias, has ordered that contempt forms be served on four senior police officers for allegedly refusing his invitation to an inquest.

    It followed their failure to appear as witnesses before him despite the summons to testify in respect of the killing of Azeez Omotosho.

    Omotosho was allegedly shot and killed by a police officer identified as Corporal Godwin Emejo on November 2, 2013.

    The diseased was killed while he was returning in the company of his wife and children to his 5, Jimmy Thomas residence in Shogunle Lagos.

    Among the officers who may be cited for contempt are a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Oyegbade Joseph of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) (Homicide Section), Area 10, Garki Abuja.

    The officer in Charge of the Legal Department, State CID, Panti, Yaba, Lagos, Mr Chukwu Agwu and Inspector Fatai Sadiku of D4 Team B, Homicide Department, State CID Panti, Yaba were also invited but allegedly failed to attend the inquest.

    Also invited was the Divisional Police Officer, Shogunle Police Station, Oshodi Lagos.

    A human rights group, the Access to Justice (AJ), had applied to the Coroner to investigate the circumstances of Omotosho’s death.

    But since the commencement of the inquest, none of police officers honoured the coroner’s invitation.

    In view of their absence, the Coroner directed that they appear before the Court to answer why they must not be cited for contempt.

  • Court orders police to charge officer over ‘fraud’

    Court orders police to charge officer over ‘fraud’

    The Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the police to charge a dismissed police officer, Victor Banor, who allegedly stole his colleagues’ N20million salary.

    Banor allegedly earned salaries from 15 different police commands through fraudulent means.

    He had been in police detention since his arrest, but Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke said he must be charged without fail.

    The judge made the order while delivering ruling on an application by the applicant seeking to enforce his fundamental rights.

    He said he was unlawfully detained by the police.

    The judge refused the applicant bail considering the gravity of the alleged offence.

    Justice Aneke held that the continued detention of the applicant was in breach of constitutional provisions which required a person to be charged to court within 48 hours.

    He, therefore, ordered that the applicant be charged to court within the time stipulated, or the applicant would be released on bail unconditionally.

    Banor allegedly stole N20million meant for salaries of officers of the Enugu State Police Command, the Inspector-General of Police, Suleiman Abba, told the court.

    Banor was dismissed while serving at the Umunede Police Division in Delta State for allegedly stealing an exhibit vehicle in a criminal case under investigation.

    He escaped from detention and resurfaced at the Enugu Command with a falsified signature, claiming to be a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP).

    When the officer-in-charge (O/C) of the command’s Mechanised Salary Section (MSS) retired, Banor assumed office as the “O/C MSS”. It was while holding this position that in March 2011, he allegedly absconded with the money.

    “While absconding from office, the applicant (Banor) dropped a note stating that nobody should look for him because he has resigned to join his militant groups at the creeks of the Niger Delta region,” Abba said.

    These were contained in an affidavit filed in opposition to an application by Banor praying the court to release him from police detention.

    The applicant said he had been held for over eight months without charge, and prayed the court to either order his release or direct the police to charge him in a court.

    Banor, who said his continued detention violated his fundamental rights as guaranteed in the 1999 Constitution, joined Abba, the Commissioner of Police, Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad, Adeniji Adele Road, Lagos, and the Investigating Police Officer (IPO), DSP Solomon Igwe as respondents.

    In the counter-affidavit filed by the Officer-in-Charge of the Legal Department (O/C Legal), Zone 2, Mr Justin Enang, the police are urging the court not to release Banor because investigation into his alleged crime is still ongoing.

    The police said several officers under Banor complained that their salaries were diverted, and that he did not turn up until he was arrested in Onitsha, Anambra State on April 15 last year.

    When he was arrested, he claimed to be a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), flashing a police warrant card and demanding to be shown respect as a “senior officer”.

    Photocopies of forged police Identity Cards were found on him, with “CSP” Afamefuna Banor V. and “W/SGT” Hannah Markson Banor, among other names.

    The police further found badges and insignia of a Deputy Commissioner of Police at his home, adding that he absconded from the Enugu Command with a Police Barretta Pistol loaded eight rounds of ammunition.

    “Ongoing investigation has revealed a barrage of forgeries leading to monumental fraud by the applicant who opened more than 25 bank accounts using fictitious names with which he has been collecting and still collects monthly salaries from over 15 command payrolls across the country,” the respondents said.

    Banor allegedly opened different accounts in various banks and one in Onitsha, using police letter-headed paper with a Deputy Inspector-General of Police Logo, claiming to be residing in the police barracks as a Superintendent of Police.

    Igwe, who deposed to the counter-affidavit, said: “The applicant forged office stamps of various commissioners of police, including CP Awka, Enugu, Lagos and Kogi states with which he forged and signed fake documents which he altered and presented to the various banks to open salary accounts for himself.

    “If the applicant is released on bail, the prosecution of the charges will be at risk and he will not make himself available for trial as he will run away as usual.

    “Counsel for the respondents, Justine Enang informed me that under Section 35 (1) (C) of the Constitution, a person’s liberty can be curtailed in order to prevent him from committing further offences.

    “Releasing the applicant will jeopardise our investigation as he is still dribbling us over the service pistol in his possession, thus taking us on a wild goose chase. It will be in the interest of justice to refuse this application as many lives are still at risk since the applicant has refused to produce the police automatic weapon he absconded with,” said Igwe.

    Justice Aneke adjourned till February 3 for report of compliance by the police.

  • Kano police arrests 214 suspected rapists

    Kano police arrests 214 suspected rapists

    The Kano State Police Command has said that during the outgoing year the command arrested a total number of 214 suspects charged for rape,j ust as the command nabbed a total number of 482 armed robbery suspects.

    The Command in a statement signed by the image maker of the Command, ASP Magaji Musa Majia, made available to press men in Kano, also added that 24 high calibre of improvised Explosive Devices were uncovered.

    According to him, the Command led by the Commissioner of Police, Mr Aderenle Shinaba, recorded tremendous achievements in crime prevention and detection thereby providing a good security coverage of lives and properties across the state.

     “This achievement cannot be ruled out of the cordial synergy enjoyed with all sister security organizations, the state Government, Traditional Institutions, members of the Press and good people of Kano state. Efforts of the general public have greatly assisted the Command in tackling insurgent activities in the state thereby relegating their activities to barest minimal level,” he noted.

     He added that the command witnessed a total of 578 Capital crimes committed during the outgoing year, which in comparison indicates a slash against the year 2013.

     “The Command expresses gratitude to the general public in the state for the maximum cooperation and motivation they were given. This support had boosted our general performance and zeal towards providing effective prevention of life and properties.

    It’s also sincerely grateful to the Kano State Government for the support and timely assistance, Traditional institutions, journalists, NGOs, philanthropists and all good citizens of Kano State for their support,” the statement said.

  • Shops, school destroyed by fire in Ondo

    Shops, school destroyed by fire in Ondo

    •Property, documents razed

    A school and some shops were razed yesterday in Odosida area of Ondo town.

    The inferno which was said to have started at 6 am destroyed personal property and vital documents owned by the school.

    Although no one died, the cause of the inferno was sketchy at press time.

    There were speculations  that the fire occurred shortly after some hoodlums, who drove in an unmarked Toyota Camry, allegedly stormed the area at 5am with guns and other weapons.

    It was gathered that the hoodlums blocked the major road leading into the street, before shooting sporadically and setting the shops ablaze.

    Sources said the hoodlums were led by a boy, whose identity was yet to be ascertained.

    The boy reportedly engaged in a brawl with his brother, whose name was given as Rotimi, over the property of their late father.

    Firefighters from the State Fire Service tried to put out the fire.

    Some of the victims, including the school’s headteacher, lamented the loss of the property.

    The headteacher, Nelson Akinkuade, said he lost several documents.

    Another victim, Mrs. Kikelomo Akinbobola, whose shop was destroyed, described the incident as sad.

    She explained that some boys threatened, two days ago, to set one of the shops ablaze.

    The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in Enuowa, Emmanuel Adesina, , confirmed the report.

    He said two suspects arrested by the police were still in their custody .

  • Two suspected robbers killed in Warri

    Two suspected robbers killed in Warri

    •Two others arrested

    Two suspected robbers were killed on Monday night by men of the Delta State Police Command at Ogunu, Warri.

    A statement yesterday in Asaba, the state capital, by the command’s spokesman, Celestina Kalu, a deputy superintendent of Police (DSP), said two other members of the gang were arrested.

    According to Kalu, a patrol team from the Quick Response Squad (QRS) encountered the gang at 9.50pm on Monday when they were “operating” with a tricycle, popularly called Keke.

    The statement said the police engaged the suspects in a gun duel, which resulted in the death of two of the suspects.

    The statement added: “On December 29, at 21.50hours (9.50pm), a patrol team from the QRS in Warri on a stop-and-search duty on the Ogunu Road, by Zenith Bank branch in Warri, encountered four robbers operating in a tricycle, with registration number: AKU 027 QB.

    “…Two of the robbers were fatally wounded while two others, Oghenero Eghagbere ‘Male’ of 5 Okoloba Street, Effurun and Michael Aguwaneshe ‘M’ of 13 Kpokpogri Street, Off Adeje Road, Okpe, were arrested.

    “Items recovered from them include one cut-to-size locally made barrel gun, one live cartridge, one battle axe and one tricycle, with registration number: AKU 027 QB.

    “Also, the suspects are undergoing investigation at Area Commander’s Office in Warri while the bodies of the deceased robbers have been deposited at the morgue for autopsy.”

     

  • Man, 85, held for defiling seven-year-old

    Man, 85, held for defiling seven-year-old

     •Victim’s mother reject N1m offer

    The Edo State CCommand has arrested an 85-year old man for allegedly defiling a seven-year old girl at Use, Ogida Quarters in Egor Local Government Area.

    It was learnt that the incident, which was reported at the Ogida Police Division, had been transferred to the police headquarters for further investigation.

    The mother of the victim, Endurance Ogieva, a rice hawker, alleged that she was offered N1 million by relatives of the suspect for the case to be withdrawn.

    In a chat with reporters at the police station, Mrs. Ogieva said the act was committed at the home of the suspect, where she left her children with her sister.

    She said blood and semen were found around her daughter’s private part when she caught the suspect standing naked over the girl.

    Mrs Ogieva said: “I normally left my children with my sister when I went to hawk rice. After 30 minutes, I decided to check on my sick son. I met my son sleeping and my sister’s husband was also sleeping. His wife was inside the room. I did not see my daughter. I later heard her shouting. I traced the shout to the landlord’s room. The man is about 85 years old.

    “I rushed there and saw the man naked. I gripped the man and both of us fell on the chair. The man was begging me to settle. But my shout attracted the neighbours. Other men who came said I wanted to collect money from the man. When they checked my daughter’s private part, they saw blood stains and semen. I went to the police station and the man was arrested.

    “The police took my daughter to their clinic and said she had a tear in her private part. They gave me a paper to do four medical tests.

    “My daughter said the landlord called the girl to buy local gin (ogogoro). My daughter said he held a knife and threatened her not to shout or he would kill her. It was the forceful penetration that made her to cry.

    “The family of the man has been begging me to close the case. But I refused because the doctor said my child had to be checked to ascertain whether or not the man has a disease. We have not done any test yet. I don’t want any money. I want the government to help me because I don’t know if he has damaged my daughter. The child is too small for a man of 85. I don’t want his money. They are promising to give me N1 million, but I want justice from the government. My husband travelled yesterday and he said he would return today.”

    The Coordinator of a non-governmental organisation (NGO), Child Protection Network, Mrs Jennifer Ero, noted that the non-establishment of a family court in the state was responsible for the slow dispensation of justice in rape cases.

    Mrs. Ero said the NGO would ensure that the case was charged to court.

    Police spokesman Joseph Edogiawerie, a deputy superintendent of Police (DSP), said he had not received the details of the case.

  • Onijoko stool: Police arrest nine

    •Recover arms in monarchs’ palaces

    Nine persons have been arrested by the police in Ogun State, following their alleged involvement in the chieftaincy crisis that led to the burning of a palace and two buildings in Ijoko-Otta town. Over a dozen residents were injured in the crisis.

    There has been a leadership tussle in the area between Oba Fatai Matanmi and Oba Lasisi Ogunseye. Violence erupted in Ijoko-Otta when  hoodlums suspected to be acting on behalf of the feuding monarchs went on the rampage.

    The suspects were picked up when the police stormed Matanmi’s and Ogunseye’s palaces in a raid coordinated by the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations), Egberebi Egbuson.

    A dozen single barreled guns, two pump action rifles, 191 cartridges, two cutlasses, axes, charms and masquerade’s regalia were recovered from  Matanmi’s palace;  the butt of a single barrelled gun was found in Ogunseye’s palace.

    Police spokesman Olumuyiwa Adejobi said Ogunseye had been “indicted by some suspects, who were arrested in a case of shooting and injuring” at a filing station in Agbado on Boxing Day.

    The monarchs have been invited to appear to the Police Command Headquarters, Eleweran, for “interrogation and investigation” in connection with the violence in their domains.

    He said the suspects would be charged to court after investigation.