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Tag: suspects

  • Task force arrasts 210 suspects at Oshodi

    Task force arrasts 210 suspects at Oshodi

    Lagos State Environmental Sanitation and Special Offences Unit (Task Force) has arrested 210 miscreants in Oshodi during a raid. They were charged to court last Friday.

    A statement by its Public Relations Officer, Adebayo Taofiq, quoted the task force Chairman, Olayinka Egbeyemi, a Superintendent of Police, as saying that the hoodlums were raided along the railway line, markets and under bridge.

    An ex-convict, who just left Potoki Prison at Badagry, the statement claimed, was among the suspects.

    The ex-convict, according to the taskforce, said he was just released from Potoki Prison last Monday after serving a six-month term for robbery.

    He said he was arrested by the task force last September for snatching a ‘Samsung’ phone under Oshodi bridge.

  • Army frees 257 Boko Haram suspects in Borno

    Army frees 257 Boko Haram suspects in Borno

    •Tearful widow lays wreath in Yobe

    The Armed Forces Remembrance Day in Borno State was marked with the release of 257 suspected Boko Haram members arrested by the Army at the expansive Ramat Square, Maiduguri.

    Handing over the suspects to the Deputy Governor Usman Mamman Durkwa, the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj.-Gen. Lucky Irabor, said they were thoroughly screened before their release.

    Durkwa, Maj.-Gen. Irabor and other personalities later performed the tradition laying of wreath for the fallen heroes.

    Also at the state capital, one of the widows of a deceased soldier, who joined Governor Ibrahim Gaidam in the wreath-laying ceremony, broke down in tears, apparently reflecting the memories of her late husband as she stood at the cenotaph to pray for the fallen soldiers.

    At the event at the Quarter Guard of the Government House, Damaturu, the governor inspected a guard of honour mounted by officers and men of the 241 RECCE Battalion, Nguru.

    Gaidam led the GOC 3 Div. Major General Peter Dauke, other service commanders, Emir of Fika and Chairman, Yobe State Council of Chiefs Alhaji Mohamadu Abali Ibn Mohammadu Idrisa, Nigeria Legion Chairman Captain Ibrahim Gadine (rtd) and one of the widows of the fallen heroes to perform the symbolic laying of wreath.

    Prayers were offered for the repose of the souls of the fallen heroes. The governor performed the release of pigeons symbolising peace.

    The occasion was attended by prominent government functionaries, including the deputy governor and other members of the state executive council.

  • Navy arrests 16 suspects in Lagos

    Operatives of the Nigerian Navy (NN) at the weekend arrested four officials of proscribed Merchant Navy (MN) and 12 trainees at a camp in Ijanikin, Lagos.

    The suspects who were handed over to the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) were apprehended at the camp situated at Oto Awori, Ijanikin on Lagos-Badagry expressway by naval personnel attached to the Forward Operation Base (FOB) Badagry.

    Commanding Officer Adewale Seun (CO), Musa Masiru, Olabimi Bisola, Lukman Bello, Sunday Sule, Ilesanmi Quadri, Dauda Dogara, Beshel Godswill, Lieutenant  Adeoye Busuyi, Awha Seyon, Monday James, Cecilia Okpa, Manmanse Foiter, Olowokere Babatunde and and Adebayo Blessing were said to be between ages 17 and 42.

    According to the Commander, NNS BEECROFT, Commodore Maurice Eno, Bello was nabbed by some soldiers at Irekiti in Badagry while parading himself as a naval personnel.

    But when the NN was contacted to identify him, it was discovered that he was an impostor, said Commodore Eno.

    After investigation, operatives at the FOB led by the CO, Commodore Simon Dogo stormed the training camp where 15 others,including three females were apprehended.

    Commodore Eno said that the trainees were made to pay N30,000 fees, noting that the NN has severally warned operators of the illegal agency to desist.

    He said: “The Federal Government has proscribed such agencies by an official Gazette number 58 Volume 100 dated August 28, 2013. The NN has severally warned its operators and also advised parents  not to take their children there. It is illegal for them to parade themselves as naval personnel.”

    One of the trainees, Bisola, said she paid N55,000 for training, forms and letter.

    She said: “I paid the money to a man called Godwin at Shagamu and was told the training was going to take place in Port Harcourt.”

    “I and few others met Godwin in Shagamu and boarded a bus en-route Port Harcourt but he detoured  and told us that the training was now in Lagos. He claimed that they have found another base. We were supposed to spend six month but had only completed three months training before we were arrested by the Navy.

    “They told us to be patient that the academy would be approved by the government before the completion of training. We have been deceived and are innocent. We fed ourselves but sometimes, our commanding officer gave us some money to feed. We were seven female and 29 male on training.”

    Denying that the agency has not been proscribed, Seun claimed theirs was Nigerian Merchant Navy Coastal Defence Force, adding that the process for their approval was ongoing.

    He debunked the allegation of impersonation, noting that they were not using NN’s uniform nor accoutrements.

    He said: “We’re not impersonating Nigerian Navy. We are not using their property. I don’t see any reason why they should arrest us. In respect of the legal backing of our operations, it is only my boss, Commodore Agaba in Abuja that can explain that.

    “We secure the coastal area and protect lives and properties. We are waiting for the federal government to pronounce us as a registered body. Merchant Navy has been in existence since 1941. I am a sailor and have worked in different ships before joining merchant navy.’’

  • Suspects: we rob, gang rape our victims

    Suspects: we rob, gang rape our victims

    Three suspected robbers and serial rapists have been arrested by Rapid Response Squad (RRS) operatives at Charity Bus Stop in Oshodi, Lagos..
    Sunday John, 27, Saviour Daniel, 23, and 17-year-old boy were arrested by RRS Decoy Team.
    John was said to have confessed that he led three other members of his gang to rape nine women in two weeks.
    The suspect, a bus conductor in Oshodi, hails from Akwa-Ibom State. He said a 17-year-old boy is a member of his gang.
    A statement by RRS said John’s colleague, Daniel Olayemi, 18, was arrested on Tuesday while fighting with some boys over a stolen Samsung tablet in Oshodi.
    It said Olayemi told his interrogators that he stole the tablet from a woman that they gang raped at Charity Bus stop.
    This prompted the RRS’ early morning raid of Charity Bus Stop, where three other members of the gang were arrested.
    According to Olayemi, the gang robbed 12 passersby and raped no fewer than nine women in the bush at Charity Bus Stop.
    He said: “I have followed him to more than 12 operations. We were always operating at Charity Bus Stop between 4am and 5:40am. Our last operation was on a woman of about 57 years old. She was passing by Charity Bus Stop. I snatched her hand bag and disappeared into the bush. I came out of the bush to see the three others having sex with the woman. I hid the best of the three phones I found in her bag. I disclosed to them that I saw two small phones and N8,000 in the bag.
    “We had in a similar circumstance days before, raped a 42-year-old woman at the same spot when we didn’t see any valuable from her bag. We took turns to rape her, then, we allowed her to go.
    “In all the rape cases, John takes the initiative and the lead. He dragged the women into the bush before calling us to take our turns. He is the leader of the gang. None of us dare challenge him. He doesn’t share with us whatever we made from the robberies. That was why I stole the Samsung tablet from that woman.
    “We also robbed men too. I participated in the robbery of about three men at the Charity Busstop. In all the instances, John took a lead, seizing the victims and dragging them into the bush where we either raped or took their valuables.”
    Daniel said: “I didn’t partake in all the raping. I was only involved on three occasions. John was the one who dragged them into the bush and undressed them. He took the lead and ordered us to take turns.
    “He is our leader. He is stronger than us and he instructed us to have sex with them. Whenever, he is exhausted, he ordered us to take our turns. I go after him. It is the youngest of us, Olayemi that came last. At times, they distanced themselves whenever we were taking turns”.
    John said: “In the last two weeks, we had robbed and dragged nine women between the ages of 27 and 57 into the bush and raped them.
    “We took turns to rape them. While our primary aim was to steal their valuables, I have been raping most of them after robbing them. It is true that it has been my idea but we have all been doing it together.
    “After robbing the women, I drag them into the nearby bush. If they are younger women, I carry her into the bush. Like the about 24-year-old I carried into the bush two weeks ago.
    “After taking our turns on her, they (colleagues) all ran away. They took all she had on her. When they were gone, all her dress was all messed up. I took her to where she cleaned up. She couldn’t even find her shoes. I got new set of slippers for her before I gave her N500 transport fare, and took her to where she boarded a bus to Iyana Ipaja.
    “Whenever, we take a woman, we normally rape them but not all women. Most of those we raped were between 24 years and late 50s, like a mama we raped last Sunday, she was in her late 50s.
    “We are not the only gang that operate there. I know of about three other gangs that rob there. Some groups of boys come from Agbado and Agege to operate at Charity Bus Stop. They operate in the evening”.
    The decoy team is on the lookout for the other gangs.
    Police spokesperson Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent (SP), said the suspects have given out vital information that would lead to the arrest of others.
    The suspects have been transferred to the State Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department (SCIID) at Panti, Yaba, Lagos Mainland.

  • Police arrest robbery suspects, recover items

    Operatives of the Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) Zone II, Onikan, have arrested 10 suspected robbers terrorising 15 Lagos and Ogun communities.

    The suspects – Lekan Akinola, Mutiu Oyekan, Akeem Sanusi, Olahusi Rasaq, Kazeem Oladipupo, Waheed Amusan and four others – were arrested on Tuesday after police tracked a mobile phone stolen from one of their victims at Arigbajo in Ogun months ago.

    It was gathered the unnamed victim reported the case and the Zonal Intervention Squad (ZIS) was deployed to fish out the hoodlums.

    The Nation learnt the detectives, with the cooperation of police ICT experts, arrested Akinola, who led the team to his accomplices.

    The zonal police spokesman Muyiwa Adejobi said the suspects confessed to have robbed residents of Ibafo, Ifo, Ewekoro, Mowe, Adigbe in Abeokuta, Iju-Ota, Alakuko and Agege in Lagos.

    Adejobi said some of their victims were identified and their items recovered.

    He said: “Items recovered from them include refrigerators, laptops, plasma television sets, generators, wears, electrical appliances and their operational bus, a Mazda: Lagos BDG602XM.”

    “AIG Abdulmajid Ali directed that the suspects be charged to court, and that fleeing members of the gang be apprehended.”

  • Avengers deny paraded suspects

    The Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) has distanced itself from the two suspects who were paraded on Saturday by the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Delta as its members.

    In an electronic statement last night by its spokesman, Agbinibo Mudoch, NDA also urged security agencies to search the creeks, its hidout.

    The insurgent group said it would not shirk from confronting the military, if federal forces trailed its operatives into the creeks.

    It added that defeating the military in the creeks would not be a diffult task for its operatives.

    The NNS Delta, a a media briefing, paraded two suspects – Felix Miyenminiye and his nephew, Stanley Tonghan – as suspected members of the insurgent group.

    The suspects were said to have made “useful” statements.

    Although Miyenminiye denied being a member of the Avengers, Tongha admitted, saying his uncle (Miyenminiye) was the ring leader of a group, which had been destroying oil pipelines in the Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State.

    But denying the suspects, Avengers said: “Stanley Tonghan and Felix Miyenminiye are not members of NDA; we don’t know or have any connection with them. The Navy Commanding Officer (of) NNS Delta in Warri (Commodore Joseph Dzunve) is trying to impress his boss in Abuja by arresting sleeper agents recruited by his predecessor. Any criminal arrested is now an NDA member.”

  • Police arraign 22 suspects over Ibadan violence

    Police arraign 22 suspects over Ibadan violence

    Security goes tough following mayhem at motor parks

    Suspected commercial drivers numbering 22 were yesterday arraigned by the Oyo State Police Command for offences bordering on perpetrating violence in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

    The suspects were arrested during violent clashes between members of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) and the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in the city on Friday.

    They clashed at different motor parks, including Iwo Road, Monatan and Agugu.

    No life was lost but several people were injured.

    Among the suspects arraigned at an Iyaganku Chief Magistrates Court in Ibadan were  Modasiru Muraina, 48; Sikuru Olaiwola, 22; Oyebanji Kabiru, 23; Alade Busari, 28; Lateef Afeez 29; Safiu Abass 25; Tunde Saka 21; Mumini Ganiyu 40 and Ahmed Moshood 25.

    Others are Aminu Saibu, 37; Tunde Ajayi 23; Lukmon Rasheed, 31; Abudulahi Olode 35; Yekini Aliu 26; Akibu Kazeem 40; Muideen Anifowose 27; Mustapha Ogunjide 30, Oladipo Sakiru 53; Sunday Aromolaran 25; Peter Adekunle 34; Adesina Alaba 23 and Raheem Musa 42.

    They were charged with six-count of conspiracy, attempted murder, unlawful possession of criminal charms and acts in a disorderly manner.

    The charge sheet shows that the suspects were accused of an attempt to kill one Kazeem Oguntolu, 42, with cutlass.

    The first two counts of conspiracy and attempted murder were, however, not read to the defendants and no pleas were taken for the two charges.

    But the accused persons pleaded ‘not guilty’ to other charges of unlawful possession and acts likely to cause breach of public peace in the metropolis.

    Police prosecutor M. A. Ojeah said the defendants had in their possession criminal charms without lawful and reasonable excuse.

    He added that the offences contradicted Sections 80, 86, 213 and 249 (d) of the Criminal Code Cap 38 Vol. II Laws of Oyo State of Nigeria 2000.

    Ojeah said the jurisdiction of the court did not extend to criminal offences that carry life imprisonment so the plea on attempted murder could not be taken before the court.

    “The court cannot equally grant bail when a court cannot try such offence in accordance to Section 118 of the Criminal Procedure Act. The power to grant bail in such matter is reserved for the high court judges,” he said.

    A counsel to one of the defendants, Mr. John Adejumo, urged the court to strike out all counts, including the one of attempted murder on the grounds that it lacked competence and failed to comply with statutory provisions.

    The magistrate, Mrs. A. F. Richard, adjourned the case till today for ruling on bail application and directed the accused to be remanded at the Iyaganku Police Station.

  • Six suspects held for Abuja preacher’s murder

    Six suspects held for Abuja preacher’s murder

    Six suspects have been arrested in the murder of an itinerant preacher, Mrs Eunice Olawale Elisha, in Abuja.

    Mrs. Elisha was killed early  Saturday at Pipeline, Kubwa, Abuja.

    The deceased was found dead, with her Bible, megaphone and cellphone by her body. She was a deaconess at the Divine Touch Parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Old NEPA Road, Phase 4, Kubwa.

    The Deputy Commissioner of Police, Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (CIID), is leading the team probing the murder.

    The Commissioner of Police in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Alkali Usman, said he ordered the investigation.

    The police also said the six suspects are in custody undergoing interrogation.

    Usman assured other residents of the police’s commitment and determination  to fish out perpetrators of the crime and bring them to justice.

    He promised to make the outcome of the investigation public.

    A statement yesterday by police spokesman Anjuguri Manzah, said: “The commissioner of Police FCT has ordered the deputy commissioner of Police, Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, to lead discreet investigation into the murder of Mrs. Eunice Olawale Elisha, 40 years old, who was murdered by unknown persons in the early hours of Saturday at Gbazango Pipeline area of Kubwa.

    “Contrary to reports from some sections of the media that the deceased’s head and legs were chopped off, the command wants to state that apart from marks of injury inflicted on some parts of her body, all parts of the deceased body were intact and the Police have taken custody of her remains for preservation and examination.”

    Usman urged residents and the public to remain calm and cooperate with the Police in the investigation.

    Also yesterday, the Vice President’s wife, Mrs Dolapo Osinbajo, visited the family of the late Assistant Pastor of the Divine Touch Parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) in Abuja.

    Mrs Osinbajo condoled with them on the murder of the mother of seven. She was received around 1:30 pm by the widower, Pastor Olawale Elisha; children; church members and loved ones.

    In her condolence message, Mrs Osinbajo wrote: “May her gentle soul rest in peace.”

     

     

  • NDLEA arrests 203 suspects in Niger 

    NDLEA arrests 203 suspects in Niger 

    The Niger State Command of the National Drug and Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested 203 suspects and seized 2,770 kilograms of various hard drugs in the last six months.

    The Niger State Commander, Joseph Iweajunwa made this disclosure yesterday while marking the United Nations Day against Drug Abuse and Trafficking in Minna.

    He also said that 14 youths have been counseled and rehabilitated in the last six months.

    The Commander lamented that psychotropic drugs have become major drugs of abuse adding that the increase in this abuse could be connected to the massive production by pharmaceutical companies who are cashing in on the growing demands for the drugs which are not for medical purposes.

    A breakdown of the drugs seized revealed that 2,484.9kg of Tramadol was seized while 253.17kg of Cannabis Sativa was seized.

    According to him “there is no doubt that the efforts of the NDLEA in arresting the problem of cannabis sativa has given some positive result as the availability of cannabis on our streets have been greatly reduced to the extent that the criminals are now importing them from other countries like Ghana and Benin Republic.

    “This year is not different, for the first half of this year which is between January and June, the Niger state Command has been able to make a total seizure of 2,770.451kg of various drugs and we have arrested a total of 203 suspects.”

    Iweajunwa also bemoaned that the Agency has been neglected and grossly underfunded which has made it unable to carry out its statutory responsibilities especially in the area of drug demand reduction activities.

  • NDLEA arrests 66 drug suspects in Ondo

    NDLEA arrests 66 drug suspects in Ondo

    The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Ondo State at the weekend said it had arrested no fewer than 66 drug offenders in the state between January and May this year.

    State Commander Mr. Mohammed Malami Sokoto spoke at a news conference on the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking held in Akure, the state capital. The event was themed “Just Listen”.

    Sokoto said those arrested were 55 males and 11 females. He added that 22 of the suspects had been charged to court and convicted to various jail terms.

    He said the agency had seized Cannabis sativa weighing 1,348.62kgs within the period under review.

    The NDLEA boss, who noted that there was a reduction in the demand for drugs, said 23 persons were under counseling and seven had been rehabilitated.

    He hinted that the agency destroyed 36.7tons of cannabis at a farm land.