The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Suspected

  • Woman loses N1.5m to suspected fraudsters

    Suspected fraudsters who disguised as passengers have allegedly duped a woman, Omolara Ogunmakin, of the sum of N1.5 million.

    The incident occurred at Jakande Estate, Ejigbo, a suburb of Lagos on June 19, 2015.

    The suspected fraudsters, Vivian Okoro (31), Glory Bassey (29) and Uche Amaechi (29) allegedly tricked and administered unlawful oath on Ogunmakin, to prevent her from revealing what transpired between them to anyone.

    Ogunmakin, it was learnt, had boarded a bus and was joined on the way by the trio who quickly tricked her into paying them the sum of N1.5 million.

    The suspects were however arrested and charged before an Ebute Meta Chief Magistrate’s Court on a six count charge of felony, fraudulent trick, administering unlawful oath and obtaining under false pretence.

    The accused persons, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

    The police prosecutor, Inspector Uademevbo Moses, told the court that the defendants have committed an act punishable under Sections 35, 36(1), 312, 316, 321 and 323 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

    The Chief Magistrate, Mrs I.O. Adelaja, admitted the accused persons bail in the sum of N100, 000 with two responsible sureties in like sum.

    The case was adjourned till August 3 for mention.

  • Chad seizes suspected Boko Haram weapons cache in N’Djamena

    ’Ndjamena – Security forces in Chad have seized a large weapons cache including guns, rockets and ammunition in a house in the capital N’Djamena occupied by suspected members of the terror sect, Boko Haram, officials said yesterday.

    The weapons, buried under the courtyard of the house in the eastern neighbourhood of Guinebor, were destined for Northeast Nigeria, where Boko Haram has launched a wave of attacks in recent weeks despite suffering heavy military defeats earlier in the year.

    On Wednesday alone, the terrorists rounded up and shot dead about 145 residents of Kukawa, Borno State.

    “These were weapons that Baana Fanaye, Boko Haram’s logistics chief for northern Cameroon and Chad, was preparing to send to Nigeria,” said one investigator, who asked not to be identified. Fanaye was arrested in a raid by Chadian police last month.

    Chad has played a leading role in a regional offensive against the armed group this year, in parallel with forces from Nigeria, Cameroon and Niger.

    Two suicide attacks in N’Djamena in mid-June by suspected Boko Haram members, which killed 34 people, were believed to be in retaliation for Chad’s part in the campaign.

    Chadian authorities arrested 60 suspected militants on June 27 and said they had dismantled a cell responsible for the suicide attacks. Two days later, five officers and six militants were killed during a raid on an arms cache.

    State prosecutor Alghassim Khamis said the latest arms cache, discovered on Thursday, was found hidden in one of the houses raided on June 27.

  • Suspected kidnappers free Kogi judge

    Suspected kidnappers yesterday freed a Kogi State High Court judge, Justice Samuel Obayomi.

    A source told our correspondent that the judge, who was kidnapped about a month ago on his way to Ebogogo High Court in Adavi Local Government, where he presides, was freed yesterday morning.

    Although his abductors demanded N150million ransom, it could not be confirmed if the money was paid.

    On the day of his kidnap, his police orderly, Cpl. Usman Musa, was shot dead.

    Police spokesman ‘Sola Collins Adebayo confirmed that the judge had been freed.

    Pressed for details, he pleaded for time, urging our correspondent to call back.

  • Police arrest 30 suspected cultists in Edo

    The police in Edo State  have arrested 30 suspected cultists in the last one month.

    Those arrested have joined the list of the 227 suspected cultists who were remanded in prison custody in May.

    The police said 20 suspected kidnappers were arrested for abducting prominent persons in the state.

    Police Commissioner Samuel Adegbuyi, who addressed reporters in Benin, the state capital, on the security situation, said the suspects were intercepted by the command’s highway patrol teams.

    Adegbuyi said 15 kidnap victims were rescued and 107 arms recovered from the suspects.

    The police chief said some of the suspects were not Edo residents but used the state as their escape route.

    He noted that local vigilantes used their knowledge of the terrain to aid the command in tracking down criminals, even at odd hours.

    Adegbuyi said: “Apart from the 227 high profile cultists arraigned in court between May 2 and 9, this year, we have 20 other suspects who have confessed to have kidnapped prominent individuals in the state and even outside the state.

    “Fifteen victims of kidnapping have been rescued. Nine AK-47 rifles were recovered. One Bareta pistol and about 60 locally made weapons as well as some paraphernalia of military outfits were recovered.”

    The police chief said highway patrol vehicles had been deployed in Benin-Lagos Road, Benin-Agbor Road, Benin-Akure Road, Auchi-Okpella Road, Ibilo, Ehor and Benin bypass.

  • Suspected robber held

    Suspected robber held

    The police have arrested a member of four-man gang which robs cars, dismantles and sells them as spares.

    A source said Donatus Okike, 29, and his gang snatched Toyota Camry on December 16, last year, at Igando, Lagos.

    The suspect gave the names of his colleagues as Nonso, Consider and Segun.

    An AK47 rifle and 73 rounds of live ammunition loaded with six magazines,  were recovered from him.

    “They specialise in snatching vehicles from owners at gun point. One Toyota Camry and a Sienna space bus were also recovered; both vehicles were unregistered. The Camry was sold to one Lucky Oboh, a danfo bus driver at Igando through a member of the gang called Nonso for N700,000. Lucky only paid N300,000. They usually remove the number-plates when they want to sell them to make people believe they were imported cars” the source said.

    Okike, who described himself as a truck driver on Mile II-Seme border and Ogba-Idiroko routes, said: “I live at 12, Ashorobi Street, Ogba.  I came to Lagos in 2005 and was staying with my uncle at Maryland. In 2009, I became a truck driver. I was driving for one Ogbonna Okorie that is working where they load rice in Seme.

    “It was my friend known as Consider that asked me to help him to drive his vehicle; that was how I became an armed car snatcher. The first Toyota Camry he asked me to drive to Benin was sold for N600,000; he gave me N50,000. The second car, Sienna which I took to Port Harcourt was sold for N700,000. The third one was Toyota Camry which I drove to Badagry. It was also sold, but we did not collect anything because of a misunderstanding they had with my gang leader, Segun. The fourth vehicle is a Sienna car. It caught fire on the road as we were going to Port Harcourt to deliver it to a buyer. My role is to drive any snatched car to the buyer. It is our gang leader that carried and operated our AK47 rifle.”

    Claiming that he became a Muslim in the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) cell, the suspect said: “I love the way Muslims pray five times a day. Our Chief Imam in the cell advised us to have faith in Allah, assuring that He would set us free one day to give testimony and stop snatching vehicles. I am expecting the miracle; I want Allah to rescue me. Staying in SARS’ cell also helped me to stop smoking Indian hemp.”

    On how he spent his loot, Okike said: “I used the money I got from robbery for my mother’s treatment. I don’t have a girlfriend. When I am stressed up, I go to New Generation Hotel, Ogba, to reduce tension by carrying prostitutes at N2,000 for short time, including rent for the room. I see the prostitute once in a month but I used to wear condom.”

  • Suspected oil bunkerers ‘kill’ three policemen, tanker driver

    Suspected oil bunkerers at Oguda in Okene Local Government Area of Kogi State yesterday allegedly killed three policemen and a tanker driver, whose identities are yet to be ascertained.

    The Nation learnt that Oguda, near the boundary between Kogi and Edo states, is a haven for bunkerers, who siphon petroleum products from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s (NNPC’s) pipelines.

    A source said although he could not narrate what happened, the police might have engaged the bunkerers in a shootout.

    The source said sporadic gunshots were heard from the direction where the illegal bunkering took place, adding that residents and passersby saw bodies hours after the shootings subsided.

    Police Commissioner Adeyemi Samuel Ogunjemilusi said it was not clear what happened, “but I suspect it was the handiwork of bunkerers.”

    He solicited information that would enable the police apprehend the suspects.

  • Navy parades suspected oil thieves

    Navy parades suspected oil thieves

    •Foreigners rescued in Warri

    The Navy has handed over two suspected oil thieves it arrested recently to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Warri, Delta State, for prosecution.

    The suspects were apprehended, following the Navy’s increased surveillance to combat crude oil theft in the Niger Delta creeks.

    The Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Delta, under its new Commander, Commodore Aliyu Sule, arrested two suspected oil thieves – Braye Ogoba and Ikiere Benjamin – near Odimodi community, in the Forcados, Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State.

    The Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) the Central Naval Command of the Navy, Rear Admiral Stanley Ogoigbe, broke the news at the parade of the suspects and their handover.

    The Navy also handed over two Sao Tome and Principe nationals to the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS).

    They were said to have been stranded at the Agbami deep offshore oil field.

    Rear Admiral Ogoigbe, who was accompanied by Commodore Sule, also said the authorities at the Warri Naval Base arrested a self-propelled barge, MV Chopin.

    The FOC said the barge, believed to be laden with stolen crude oil, was seized near the Forcados River.

    He said the two suspects, who he said were originally arrested by a community’s vigilance group with the aid of the navy, had given useful information on their activities.

    According to him, the highly specialised tools found on the suspects showed their plots.

    Rear Admiral Ogoigbe said: “We have been patrolling the waterways and our efforts yielded fruits when two suspected oil thieves were arrested before they could carry out their plan. They were arrested by vigilantes and handed over to us. They were going to open up an oil well in the Forcados.”

    On the rescue of the two Sao Tome and Principe nationals, he said: “They were rescued recently during our patrol of the waters. The two rescued black expatriates can only speak Portuguese. One of their boats was terribly damaged.”

  • Suspected robber implicates innocent man

    Suspected robber implicates innocent man

    After weeks in custody, a man implicated by an armed robbery suspect has been released by the police.

    Tunde Akanbi, 23, was released following the suspect, Ahmed Adekeye’s of his statement implicating Akanbi in a robbery in Ajangbadi, Lagos, last May 2.

    Adekeye, 32, said he implicated Akanbi because he did not want to die alone.

    At a media briefing, Lagos Command’s spokesman Ken Nwosu, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) said Adekeye was caught on May 2 at Imude, Ajangbadi by members of a vigilance group and Neigbourhood Watch.

    “Five of his gang members escaped; he was arrested. Ten minutes later, the vigilance group arrested another person identified as Tunde Akanbi and took him to the premises of the person the gang robbed. He was joined with Adekeye whose leg and hands were already tied on the ground.”

     “At the Ikotun Police Station, Adekeye said Akanbi was a member of his gang, but when he was transferred to Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Scorpion House, he confessed that he implicated Akanbi because he did not want to die or suffer alone.

    “Investigation is still ongoing and the suspect will be charged to court while the victim of circumstance, Tunde Akanbi, has been released and told to be reporting pending the conclusion of the investigation. Adekeye told SARS operatives that he lied to implicate Akanbi and that is why he is seen as a victim of circumstance.”

    In his confession, Adekeye said: “Please tell Tunde Akanbi, to forgive me because it was devil that confused me. I did not want to die or suffer alone because of the seriousness of the armed robbery case. I was the only person arrested, but we were six in number. I have been into many police cells, but this is the first time I would be in SARS cell.

    “I am from Iwo Village in Isi Local Government Area of Kwara State. I divorced my wife because of her unfaithfulness. My father, Adekeye Yusuf is late; he was a bus driver. He died in Ilorin in 2005 in an accident. My mother, Mrs. Ramota Adekeye, was the first to die because of the stress that my being a thief caused her.  I live in Suru Alaba in Lagos.”

    On the robbery that landed him in trouble, he said: “One of my friends, Aloma, a shoe maker based at Suru Alaba, called me to come and meet him at Ilogbo near Ajangbadi around 9.30pm. I met them in an Indian hemp joint, which is owned by Aloma. They were five there. They brought three cutlasses and three wooden batons. I took one of the wooden batons. Then we went to Orisa Street, Imude and stayed in an uncompleted building at about 10pm. At about 1.30am, we went to the victim’s house, a self-contained apartment. There were four of such apartments there. We broke the door of one of them, while Aloma cut the head of the owner of the house with cutlass. The man’s shout attracted neighbours and the vigilance group and people shouted “thief! thief! thief!” We ran to different directions; I ran to Mile 2. When I was caught, they asked me the names of my accomplices which I gave them. Maybe, that was why they went to the market and arrested Akanbi.

    “When we were handed over to the police, I still insisted that Akanbi is one of us. Even when I was writing statement, they asked me whether I knew him and I said yes. We were there four days before we were transferred to SARS. There, I insisted that Akanbi is one of us because I did not want to die alone.”

    In tears, Akambi said: “I have accepted his apology. I am from Okesuna side of Ilorin. I am a student of Arabic Studies. I have finished Q’uran but no money to continue. That fateful day, I just finished prayer and was coming back when one motorcycle rider carrying one person drove near me at about 7am on May 2. He asked me what I was doing there and I told him I was waiting to board a bus. He asked me where I was coming from and I told him I was coming from where I went for prayers. He tore my shirt and started calling me a thief. He forced me on his motorcycle. I sat between him and the other person. I was taken to Orise where I saw Adekeye tied. They asked for my name and I told them. They asked Adekeye whether I was one of them and he said ‘yes’. I was detained in police station three days before we were transferred.

    “Adekeye later told the Officer in Charge (O/C) of SARS that I was innocent; that he implicated me because he did not want to suffer alone. The O/C SARS ordered the investigating officer to hand me over to my people because I don’t know anything about the case.”

  • Suspected thugs attack INEC’s office

    Suspected thugs attack INEC’s office

    •SSG’s home torched 

    Suspected thugs yesterday attacked the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC’s) office in Gembu, the headquarters of Sardauna Local Government Area of Taraba State.

    They torched the home of the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mr. Gebon Kataps. He, however, escaped.

    Kataps said on the phone: “They have succeeded in burning down my house. As I speak with you, they have set it ablaze.”

    Kataps, a Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP’s) chieftain alleged that trouble started after the collation of votes, which gave the All Progressives Congress (APC) a little lead over the PDP, but not good enough to affect the results released by INEC, which placed PDP ahead.

    Police spokesman Joseph Kwaji confirmed the incident.

    He said they were investigating it.

  • Suspected political thugs kill two in Kogi attack

    An official of the Kogi State Government has been shot dead by suspected political thugs, a week to her retirement after 35 years in service.

    Killed along with her was a saxophonist at  the Crowther Memorial Anglican Church, Lokoja,Mr. Gbenga Kekere.

    They were gunned down penultimate Friday on their way back to Lokoja from Bassa.

    The Kogi State government described the attack  as tragic, sad and senseless.

    They were in the company of other people in two buses belonging to the Anglican Church when the yet to be identified thugs unexpectedly  opened fire on the vehicles,mistaking the occupants for political opponents.

    The State Command Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Shola Collins Adebayo said the case was under investigation.

    The victims’ corpses were deposited at the Ankuri Hospital morgue while the  injured are still receiving treatment at the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja.

    Kogi State Deputy Governor  Yomi Awoniyi visited Archbishop Emmanuel Egbunu to console with the church over incident  saying the state has lost one of its finest and best hands in Mrs.Alhassan.

    He described the death as even more sad, coming a few days to her 60th birthday .

    He described Alhassan as a wonderful personality, a complete woman and mother, saying her death was not only a loss to her immediate family but to the entire state.

    The Deputy Governor prayed God to grant her widower, her children and the immediate family the fortitude to bear the loss.

    The late Mrs Joe Alhassan  was an architect.