The Nation Newspaper

Tag: rescued

  • Abducted teenager rescued in Anambra

    A 13-year-old boy, Emmanuel Okafor Chinecherem, kidnapped at Aguluzoigbo village in Aniocha Local Government Area of Anambra State, has been rescued by the police.

    The victim was reportedly abducted last Friday by six men operating in a red car.

    The Nation learnt that the victim was sent on errand by his parents when he was kidnapped.

    A source said the abductors were heading for Onitsha with their victim when they were pursued by the police.

    “On sighting the police, they abandoned the boy and the car and took to their heels,” the source added.

    Confirming the incident, police spokesman Haruna Mohammed said the victim was rescued in stable condition and had since been reunited with his family.

    He said: “At about 10pm last Friday, Emmanuel Okafor Chinecherem, male, 13, was reportedly abducted by six men in a red car (registration number unknown), at Aguruzoigbo village in Aniocha Local Government Area of Anambra State.

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    “Following the report, police patrol team attached to Awada Division pursued the suspects, which forced them to abandon the boy and run away at Oraifite Street, Awada.”

    Mohammed said efforts were on to arrest the fleeing suspects, adding that the case was being investigated.

    “The command implores the public to avail it with information about suspicious persons or movements by reporting to the nearest police station or through the police emergency number 07039194332 for prompt response,” he said.

     

  • Man, 52, rescued from collapsed building

    The Kano State Fire Service yesterday morning rescued a 52-year-old, Mohammed Zakiru, from a collapsed duplex at Kofar Na’isa Quarters in Kano.

    He sustained serious injuries.

    The spokesman, Saidu Mohammed, said Zakiru got trapped in the building in the early hours of the day.

    He said: “We received a distress call today (yesterday) from Musa Muhammed, who lives in the neighbourhood, about 6.45 am, that a building had collapsed and we sent our rescue team and a vehicle to the scene about 7.20 am.”

    According to him, Zakiru was rushed to Murtala Mohammed Teaching Hospital.

  • How troops were rescued from starvation, by Air Chief

    The Nigeria Air Force (NAF) has explained how ground forces in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency were last year rescued from water starvation at Alagarno, Borno State.

    The Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, said NAS deployed the fastest means of tactical mobility, which involved deploying helicopters to supply drinking water to the trapped troops.

    Abubakar spoke at the Logistics Command’s simulation of air lifting, supply of relief materials held at the 631 Aircraft Maintenance Depot (ACMD), Ikeja, Lagos.

    The simulation was codenamed Exercise Omo Oloja. It was opened by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Gabriel Olonisakin.

    Abubakar said: “The critical importance of air logistics support was amply demonstrated in 2017 when the Air Force contained the development of an ugly situation in Alagarno, through supply of drinking water by helicopters to ground troops who had been cut off behind enemy lines.

    “From the foregoing, it’s clear that the best planned operations could fail without logistics support and hence, the need to exercise logistics command regularly to determine the effectiveness of our logistics support arrangements in support of NAF operations.”

    As an instrument of national power, he said, the NAF had been contributing its quota to the counter insurgency campaign through the projection of air power as well as the deployment of Special Forces in theatre of operations.

    He added: “The service is also not unmindful of the occasional need for services to participate in humanitarian and relief operations as military aid to civil authority. It is for this reason that NAF embarks on capacity building initiatives, not only for air logistics support operations, but also to support Nigeria’s national, sub-regional and regional obligations.

    “With recent experiences, it has become clear that without air logistics support, it is virtually impossible to execute any military operations.

    “Considering the security challenges we are facing in the country and the West African Sub Region, air power is required, not only in offensive and defensive roles, but also in collection of credible and timely intelligence. It is also required to move forces within the shortest possible time.

    “Indeed, air power is very critical if Nigeria is to discharge its sub-regional obligations in ensuring stability in the sub-region as demonstrated during The Gambian crises…”

    Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Air Vice Marshal (AVM) Nnamdi Ekeh said the exercise would enable participants have practical experiences on steps to be taken in carrying out medium scale operations viz-a-viz protection of essential facilities during the airlift.

    He said: “At the end of the exercise, the personnel are expected to have a better understanding of flight preparation process, appreciating the strength and weaknesses of air transport as well as the need for close coordination between Operations, Logistics and Air Engineering staff.”

    Present at the event were General Officer Commanding (GOC) 81 Division Maj.-Gen Musa Yusuf; Commandant, Nigeria Armed Forces Resettlement Centre (NAFRC) AVM Sanni Liman, among others.

  • Dumped six-month-old baby rescued in Anambra

    A six-month-old baby has reportedly been found at Umukabia village, Neni, in Anaocha Local Government Area of Anambra State.

    The baby, suspected to have been abandoned by its mother, was said to have been found on Monday at 10.50 p.m.

    It was gathered that the dark-skinned baby was taken to Neni Police Division by the chairman of the area’s vigilance group, Mr Titus Ogudogwo.

    Police spokesman Haruna Mohammed, a Superintendent of Police (SP), said the command was tracing the baby’s biological parents to reunite it with the family.

    He said: “On July 9, at 2250 hours (10.50 p.m), The chairman of the vigilance group in Neni, Mr Titus Ogudogwo, brought to the Neni Police Division a baby girl of about six months, reasonably suspected to have been abandoned at Umukabia village, Neni.”

    Mohammed urged residents with useful information that can enable the command to trace the parents of the child to report at the Neni Division.

     

  • Video: Over 50 Nigerian migrants rescued on way to Italy

    Video: Over 50 Nigerian migrants rescued on way to Italy

    No fewer than 50 Nigerian migrants were among the hundreds of migrants rescued yesterday in the Mediterranean by Libya’s coastguard and an international charity, Doctors Without Borders (MSF).

    The Nigerians were aboard a boat with 110 migrants.

    They were rescued by Aquarius, a ship being operated by MSF, 21 miles from the coast west of Tripoli.

    The ship will deliver the migrants, who included 18 women and one child, to Italy.

    More than half the migrants on that boat were Nigerians, with the rest from other sub-Saharan African countries as well as two Palestinians.

    The Libyan coastguard vessels also intercepted two of the migrant boats, the first an inflatable dinghy that had broken down with 125 people on board off Zawiya, just west of the capital, Tripoli, said Ayoub Qassem, a coastguard spokesman.

    https://twitter.com/nicolacois/status/972492129594499073

    The second boat was turned back off Garabulli, east of Tripoli, and had 112 people on board. The migrants and their smugglers were trying to take advantage of calm seas as they launched a flurry of boats towards Italy.

    Meanwhile the coastguard in Zuwara, a former Libyan smuggling hub west of Zawiya, said they had foiled a departure during the night and arrested some migrants whilst others had escaped with smugglers.

    Libya is the main departure point for migrants attempting to reach Europe by sea. More than 600,000 migrants have crossed the central Mediterranean to Italy over the past four years as people smugglers took advantage of a security vacuum in Libya.

    Since last summer the rate of departures dropped significantly after smugglers in the Libyan town of Sabratha struck a deal with the Tripoli government to halt their activities and were then pushed out of the town by rival armed groups.

    Libya’s EU-backed coastguard has also stepped up interceptions, often cutting migrant boats off before they can reach international vessels that would bring them to Europe.

     

  • Abduction: Rescued woman dies after giving birth

    Abduction: Rescued woman dies after giving birth

    •FRSC boss hails ‘gallant’ men

    An expectant mother, who was rescued from suspected kidnappers by some road safety officials,  died yesterday after giving birth to a baby boy.

    The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) officials rushed her  to hospital after rescuing her around a  filling station in Badagry.

    She was being driven away by two men in a car marked KTU 356 CE, which was coming from Cotonou, when the FRSC officials came to her rescue.

    It was gathered that the deceased might have thought that the car was being used as a cab.

    But on realising her mistake,   she raised the alarm. Her shouts of Ole! Ole!! Ole!!! were said to have attracted other road users.

    The Nation gathered that other motorists pursued the car, which was forced to stop around the filling station.

    The  FRSC team led by  P. Danboyi pounced on the car and its occupants and became suspicious on sighting the injured  woman.

    While they were interrogating the men, those chasing the car arrived and reported  that the woman was screaming for help.

    She was rushed to the hospital where she was delivered of the baby through caesarean section (CS) after going into emergency labour.  But she died a few hours later around 3pm. Her body has been deposited at the Badagry General Hospital mortuary.

    A mob descended on the suspects and set them ablaze. But soldiers put out the fire, dispersed the mob and handed over the suspects to the police.

    FRSC’s Unit Commander in Badagry, Fatai Bakare, said the baby was in good health.

    Bakare said: “There were three persons in the vehicle, two suspected kidnappers (men) and an expectant woman who was their victim. The woman has sustained body injuries and was rushed to Ola-Oki Hospital, Ibereko for medical attention, where she immediately gave birth to a baby boy’’.

    FRSC Corps Marshal Dr Boboye Oyeyemi, in a statement by the Corps Public Education Officer,  Bisi Kazeem, hailed the “gallant officers and commended them for their bravery’’.

    Boboye said his men were on the road to control    traffic and guarantee public safety by collaborating with   other law enforcement agencies.

    Police spokesman, Chike Oti, a Superintendent (SP), said it was not a case of kidnapping but that of ‘one-chance’ robbers, adding : ‘’She had some goods, boarded a vehicle to convey her to her location but along the line, they wanted to rob her.

    “She raised the alarm and the robbers afraid that they might run into trouble with security operatives, pushed her off the vehicle.

    “Unknown to them, people heard the woman’s screams and saw when she fell from the vehicle. They pursued the vehicle, caught up with the robbers and attacked them.

    “The woman was picked up and rushed to hospital by FRSC officials and she was delivered of her baby through surgery.

    “Soldiers intervened and stopped the mob from killing the suspects. The soldiers contacted the police and handed over the suspects to the police. They are currently at an undisclosed hospital.”

  • Woman trapped in mud rescued

    Officials of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) at the weekend rescued a woman who got trapped in the mud by the lagoon near the Third Mainland Bridge.

    The latest rescue brought to three, the number of women rescued from the muddy parts of the lagoon this month.

    According to a source, the woman, who was seen around 8pm, had three white papers on her hands.

    She said the woman appeared to be mentally unstable and was muttering strange words like someone who was doing incantations.

    The source said: “I think something strange is happening at that portion of the water. This woman was the third person that LASEMA had rescued from the muddy waters this month. It’s either they are mentally deranged or witches. Her hands were up and she had white papers on it. But her body was submerged in the swamp. When rescue team went for her, the woman suddenly jumped off and started running.

    “She hides behind the vehicles the dredgers but the rescuers split into groups and surrounded her. The woman was then taken to Alausa. Then, she was searched and a hospital card was found on her but when the hospital was contacted, it turned out the card belonged to someone else. The card owner said she did not know her. She was surprised to know that her hospital card was found with a total stranger.

    “Since the woman did not say anything about her and had no means of identification, she was taken to Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) for examination.

    “But something interesting happened when we got to LASUTH with her. The woman started shouting that the twins must die. She was calling someone’s name and saying the twins have to die. They had to inject her to sleep and I think a psychiatrist will examine her.”

     

  • 52 kidnap victims rescued in Kano

    52 kidnap victims rescued in Kano

    •Police recover 273 ammunition 

    The Kano State Police Command rescued 52 kidnap victims, arrested 347 rape suspects and sued 331 of them to court in 2017, it was learnt yesterday.

    The police spokesman, Magaji Musa Majiya, in an end-of-year report, said the victims were rescued and reunited with their relatives.

    According to Majiya, 35 vehicles were recovered, 73 arms and 273 live ammunition were mopped out of circulation in 2017.

    The recovered items are worth N744, 699,046, he added.

    His words: “”Comparatively, 2016 witnessed 72 robbery cases and 117 arrests, while for the current year, only 35 cases were reported and 76 suspects arrested. Also, 547 rape and sexual assault offences were reported in 2016, while 334 cases were received in 2017, indicating a major decline in this crime.

    “The Kano State Police Command under the leadership of CP Rabiu Yusuf, is pleased to inform the public that 2017 is yet another successive year of progress as far as security of life and property is concerned.

    “Crime has drastically gone down, especially when focused on the adequate security arrangements strategically deployed in the state; the number of crime and criminals detected/arrested, and the collaboration with the public, especially traditional institutions, community leaders, NGO’S, and other strategic partners.

    “It is a year in which the public have made a robust input into the security-enhancing preventive measures.”

  • Kidnapped police officer, others rescued in Kaduna

    Kidnapped police officer, others rescued in Kaduna

    An Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Emmanuel Agene, serving in Gusau, Zamfara State, who was abducted while travelling with members of his family on Birnin-Gwari–Funtua Road last Wednesday, has been rescued in Kaduna State.

    Police Commissioner Mr. Agyole Abeh, who briefed reporters yesterday in his office, said:

    “Immediately we received the news of the kidnap of the ACP and his family, we began a manhunt for the kidnappers, led by the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) intelligence team and anti-kidnappers squad of the Kaduna command.

    “I’m happy to inform you that the police officer and others have been rescued. He is in a stable condition at a police facility, undergoing checkup.”

    He said the abductors gave the officer an opportunity to speak with them, perhaps not knowing who he was, adding that being a senior police officer; he used a coded language that aided his rescue.

    Abeh said: “Immediately, we mounted air surveillance at a low level, following the coded information he gave as to the location and we secured their release.”

    He said the kidnappers had not been arrested, but assured people that they would be nabbed.

    The police boss said effort was on to track the officer’s phone in possession of the kidnappers.

    Agene and three members of his family were reportedly travelling in a Hi-lux van when they ran into hoodlums, who forced their vehicle to stop and whisked them away in another vehicle.

    He is of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Zamfara State, travelling to Niger State on permission for an assignment.

  • 20 rescued as distressed building collapses

    20 rescued as distressed building collapses

    No fewer than 20 persons were evacuated from a three-storey building in Ojo-Alaba area of Lagos State after it recorded a partial collapse.

    A portion of the building caved in around 7am yesterday.

    The structure, comprising eight blocks of flats at No. 21, Saka Okoro Street, Ilufe Road, Alaba International Market, was already marked for demolition by the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LABSCA).

    There were no casualties as most of the residents had already deserted the building on Monday when it began to show signs of structural weakness.

    The Nation learnt that the trapped residents were assisted out of the building before the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) was contacted.

    It was gathered that the building had been distressed for over nine months and LSBCA, in the last three months, marked it for demolition. It also issued quit notices to the occupants.

    A resident, who pleaded anonymity, said the building gave signs of collapsing on Monday night.

    “The building began bending on Monday night and the door was hard to open, but we could not expect that it was about to collapse. We heard a very loud sound this (Tuesday) morning and we ran in different directions. It was later on that we realised the building had collapsed. But no one died, neither was any one injured, because many of the occupants of the building did not sleep there on Monday night since the building was already bending. It was only their properties that got trapped,” he said.

    At the time of filing this report, LASEMA, LSBCA, the police and other stakeholders had pulled down the remaining part of the structure, which collapsed on another building.

    LASEMA General Manager Adesina Tiamiyu confirmed that there was no casualty.

    He said the building was pulled down to prevent it from causing more damage.