The Nation Newspaper

Tag: teenager

  • Teenager ‘kills’ boy, 4

    The police have arrested a 16-year-old boy, for  the murder of a four-year-old boy in Ijanikin, Lagos.

    Lagos police spokesperson, Patricia Amadin, a deputy superintendent (DSP), made this known to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday.

    Amadin said the suspect was helping the police in their investigation.

    The police, she said, got an intelligence report that a boy was murdered, adding that when the police got to the scene, they  found the victim’s body on the floor with his stomach ripped open.

    The crime, she said, suggested ritual killing, adding: “At about 9.30 am on Monday, information received by the DPO Ijanikin Police Station was that a little boy was killed at the back of Anglican Primary School, Ijanikin.

    “The DPO swiftly led a team of his men to the scene.

    “The lifeless body of the boy of about four years was found in a pool of his blood with his stomach removed.

    “The DPO and his men commenced a search of the area and the suspect, a 16-year-old, was arrested.

    “He is in police custody. As at the time of arrest, he was found with blood stains on his body and he has since confessed to the crime.

    “The victim has been evacuated to the mortuary.

    “The case is currently under investigation to ascertain the motive behind the killing.”

     

  • Three Nursing students ‘violate’ teenager

    •NGO threatens to sue suspects  •Police: we are probing incident

    A six-year-old girl has allegedly been defiled by three final year students of the Edo State School of Nursing on Sapele Road in Benin, the state capital.

    Two of the students have been arrested while the third is said to be on the run.

    The victim is the daughter of a petty trader in front of the school.

    It was learnt that the victim was lured into one of the boys’ rooms when the mother went to the market.

    Her hands and mouth were allegedly tied to prevent her from screaming.

    The bubble was said to have bust when the victim narrated what happened to her mother, who noticed that she was urinating and stooling abnormally.

    The mother was said to have reported the matter to the Commissioner for Health.

    The school’s Principal Mabel Omobude said the case had been reported to relevant authorities for further investigation.

    She said: “Yes, we are aware. The case was reported to the Director of Nursing Services. The Commissioner of Health is also aware.

    “She (the mother) wrote a letter to the Commissioner of Health, which was sent to my director to investigate. That was on Thursday. We have started our investigation.”

    A non-governmental organisation (NGO), Child Protection Network’s Coordinator Jennifer Ero said the school’s authorities threatened to eject the victim’s mother, if she made the case public.

    She said the woman discovered that semen was coming out of her daughter’s anus and was behaving strangely.

    Ero said: “We will ensure that this matter is charged to court. We will ensure justice for this child and make sure she goes through counselling. The girl is now restless. They activated the hormone that relate to sex. She does not behave well. It is a life-time damage they have done to this child.

    “It’s because she was too small. It (the alleged act) affected her womb. She started stooling and urinating profusely. But she’s on treatment now.

    “The little girl said when they (suspects) took her there (hostel), they tied her hands and mouth. But she was able to identify the three of them.”

    The police, last night, said they were investigating the incident.

    Police spokesman Stephen Onwochei, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said a proper case of defilement had not been brought before the police headquarters.

    Onwochei said the accused had petitioned the Area Command against the mother of the victim for false accusation.

    He said: “That matter is not too straightforward. The little we know is that on May 15, the mother of the girl, who sells at the school, had a problem with some student-nurses because they asked her to pack out of the shop.

    “Later, on May 16, she reported to the school that something of that nature (defilement) happened. But she did not report to the police, in the first instance. So, it was later that the lawyer to the accused wrote a petition to the Area Commander that someone was trying to tarnish his clients’ image.

     

  • Teenager arraigned for alleged theft

    A teenager, Tope Oluwashola,  has been arraigned before an Ikeja Chief Magistrate Court, Lagos for allegedly stealing a computer laptop belonging to one Abiona Olusola.

    Oluwashola, 19, is facing a three-count charge.

    Police prosecutor, Inspector E. I. Nnamonu told Chief Magistrate A. O. Komolafe of Ikeja Chief Magistrate Court that Oluwashola with others, allegedly burgled  Olusola’s at No. 1 Muyideen Adeoye Street, Ogudu Orioke, Ojota last month and stole one Ipad phone valued N115,000, a Niopa laptop worth N95,000 and  N250,000 cash.

    He said the offence is contrary to Section 309(a) and punishable under Section 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria 2011.

    But the defendant pleaded not guilty.

    Chief Magistrate Komolafe granted the defendant bail for N100,000  and one surety.

    She orderd that the surety must be a blood relation and must show evidence of tax payment and verifiable address.

    She later adjourned the matter to May 21, 2011.

  • Civil servant charged with rape of a 15-year-old girl

    A 34-year-old civil servant, Segun Oluyara, on Tuesday appeared before a Yaba Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos over alleged rape of a 15-year-old girl.

    Oluyara, who resides at No. 36, Oduntan St., Ketu, Lagos, is facing a charge of unlawful sexual intercourse.

    The prosecutor, ASP Godwin Anyanwu told the court that the accused committed the offence on March 18 at about 2.00 p.m. at No.114, Ogunmefun St., off Pedro,Lagos.

    He said the accused and the victim met at a restaurant and promised her job.

    “The accused took the victim to a guest house and claimed to be the owner.

    “The accused took the victim to a room and pushed her on the bed before he forcefully had unlawful sexual intercourse with her.

    “The accused gave the victim a soft drink and a drug ‘postinor 2’ to prevent pregnancy.

    “The girl told her mother, who reported the case to the police and the accused was arrested,’’ he said.

    “The victim was taken to the hospital for medical checkup and treatment.”

    Anyanwu noted that the offence contravened Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the accused may be sentenced to life imprisonment on conviction.

    The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

    The Chief Magistrate, Mrs A.O. Soladoye, granted the accused bail in the sum of N200, 000 with two sureties in like sum.

    She said the sureties must show evidence of three years tax payment to the Lagos State Government as part of the bail conditions.

    She adjourned the case to May 4 for advice from the State Director of Public Prosecutions.

  • Trailer crushes teenager in Edo

    An articulated trailer belonging to Dangote Group of Company Tuesday crushed a 16-year-old-girl, Cynthia Nikoro, to death.

    Late Cynthia was crushed by the a trailer while attempting to cross the Auchi-Okene Highway.

    Witnesses said the victim was crossing the road with members of her family.

    An eyewitness, Mr Isaah Adamu, said the victim died on the spot.

    He said it was the intervention of men of the Nigerian Police that prevented angry youths from setting the trailer ablaze.

    According to him, “The victim and her families were crossing from the Angle 90 junction to the opposite side of the road when the trailer knock her down.”

    “The girl died on the spot,’’ he said.

    The body of the victim has been taken to the mortuary by the official of the Federal Road Safety Corps.

  • Teenager stowaway

    • More attention at airports will avert further incidents

    Security breaches have led to several cases of stowaways, especially teenage stowaways, at some of our airports. The most recent of such incident occurred at the private general aviation Execujet terminal of Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on February 1, when the commanding pilot of an aircraft detected a teenage boy in the tyre compartment of the aircraft operated by Tag Aviation. The aircraft was said to have flown in a former Minister of Petroleum, Chief Dan Etete, into the Lagos Airport the previous night, and parked at the private hangar from where it was expected to take off on February 1 before the teenager, Samuel Ogundeyi, was caught in its tyre compartment.

    The teenager was said to have been discovered at about 12 noon when pilots of the aircraft marked M-MYNA were carrying out a routine inspection on it. When Ogundeyi was interrogated, he reportedly said that he was able to cross the L18 runway over to the Execujet facility located at the international wing of the airport at night when he “noticed there was no flight landing or taking off on the runway”. The teenager also confessed that he entered the hangar through the facility of the Headquarters, Air Defence Corps of the Nigerian Air Force located next to the Presidential VIP Lounge in the airport, on January 31, with the help of somebody he identified as his brother.

    Arrests of teenager stowaways , usually boys, are becoming worrisome, especially as the incidents were caused by security breach in our airports. A few years back, we had a similar case of a teenager stowaway who was arrested in Lagos.

    Indeed, we have had several other cases of security breaches at some of our airports. For instance, some animals had strayed into the runways while even vehicles had crashed into some of the areas within the airport complexes. These incidents are bad advertisement for the country’s airports as they portray them as insecure.

    We are particularly bothered about the circumstances driving young Nigerians to desperately want to leave the country for abroad without minding the attendant risk to their lives. On August 24, 2013, a teenager stowaway, Daniel Ohikhena, followed an Arik Air plane from Benin to Lagos, thinking the plane was going abroad. He said he was disappointed when he eventually found out that the plane landed in Lagos. Although we can understand the cases of adults trying to check out of the country (as symbolised by “Andrew”) for greener pastures, the cases of teenager stowaways may portray Nigeria as a difficult country to live in, even by teenagers probably as a result of neglect, poverty and squalor.

    This is despite the fact that attractive as the idea of going abroad for better life is, the risks are equally enormous, because all that glitters is not gold. After all, the bodies of stowaways have been found in aircraft while some of those who arrived their destinations abroad safely were shamefully deported.

    The government’s job appears well cut out for it as far as these twin issues of security at our airports and unemployment are concerned. First, we need to provide adequate security in our airports because these security breaches have grave implications for passengers, especially in these days of insurgency and terror. So, the Nigerian Air Force and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) should wake up to see to it that our airports are safe.

    And, in order to prevent further occurrences of teenager stowaways in our country, our government should try as much as possible to make life worth living for all Nigerians, irrespective of age, caste, creed or colour. That is the only way Ogundeyi’s incident would be the last.

  • Suspected stowaway teenager arrested at airport

    There was anxiety yesterday at the Lagos Airport as a suspected stowaway teenager was arrested at a private terminal where he attempted to gain entrance into the tyre compartment of an aircraft.

    Officials of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), confirmed the incident, but pleaded not to be named.

    The officials said the teenager gained entrance through the Nigeria Air Force section of the airport.

    According to sources, the male teenager allegedly breached security to stowaway into the aircraft parked at a hangar near the international wing of the airport.

    Investigations revealed that the teenager was discovered yesterday afternoon when pilots of the aircraft were carrying our routine inspection before starting the aircraft engine.

    The commanding pilot of the aircraft was said to have detected the boy in the tyre compartment of the aircraft.

    Two mobile phone sets without SIM cards were also found at the tyre compartment of the aircraft.

    A source hinted that the teenager told the police that he entered the hangar through the facility of Air Defence Corp of Nigerian Headquarters located next to the Presidential/VIP Lounge at the weekend with the connivance of a person he identified as ‘a brother.’

    The teenager, the source said, crossed the L18 runway over to ExecuJet facility at the international wing, a distance of about one kilometre, at night when he noticed there was no flight landing or taking off.

    The aircraft operated by a charter company was said to have flown a former Minister of Petroleum into Lagos airport on Saturday night and parked at the private hangar, where it was expected to take off before the incident happened.

    Military officials could not be reached for confirmation of the incident.

    It was learnt that military authorities and the terminal operators are already trading blames over the ugly development over what a source described as security lapses.

    Investigations, it was learnt has commenced on the incident.

  • ‘Raped’ teenager delivered of baby

    ‘Raped’ teenager delivered of baby

    A 13-year-oldgirl allegedly raped by a 41-year-old man has been delivered of a baby in Lagos.

    The man was said to have threatened to kill the girl if she told anyone that she was raped.

    But she was over five months gone before the mother got to know that she was pregnant.

    The woman was jolted when a doctor told her: “Madam, your daughter is carrying a five months, two weeks’ pregnancy!”

    A dejected Mrs Mary Oboh looked helpless, wondering who could have put her first child in the family way. “Who is responsible for this?” she asked her daughter.

    When the girl opened up, the disconsolate mother could not believe her ears: Her fellow worshipper in  church was responsible.

    The girl was delivered of the baby last Saturday at a general hospital in Lagos through Caesarean Section.

    When The Nation visited the hospital, she was in pains. She nodded her head in response to greetings and found it difficult to speak.

    Mrs Oboh told The Nation she met the man and his wife in church and became friends.

    The wife usually keeps cooked food in the Obohs’ freezer, which the man fetch on returning from work.

    “Sometimes in March, I asked my daughter to take the food to their house when the man called that he was around. On getting there, the man locked the door, raped her and told her not to inform anybody. He said if she said anything, she would die,” Mrs Oboh said.

    “I have been noticing her for some time. I even asked her when last she saw her period, when her response was not convincing, I took her to a medical centre where we were told that she was not only pregnant but was carrying five months, two weeks old foetus. That same week the man’s wife gave birth. The police later arrested him a day after his child’s naming. Since then, he has been in police custody before he was transferred to Kirikiri because he could not raise fund for his bail,” she said.

    The grandmother hopes her daughter would recover soon to return to school.

    “She is a brilliant girl whose desire is to become a medical doctor; she missed the Junior West African Examination Council (WAEC) due to the pregnancy. I pray she recovers quickly to return to school while I take care of the baby,” said the mother of four.

    A lawyer and National Coordinator of Women Empowerment and Legal Aid (WELA), Mrs Funmi Falana, who is helping the Oboh family to pursue the case in court blamed the girl’s mother for negligence.

    “How could you have a girl under you and you couldn’t notice she was pregnant for such a long period. I think the woman is very careless,” she said, adding that the case was already at the Family Court in Ikeja.

    She said the man’s action may not be unconnected to the general moral laxity in the society.

    She noted: “If you go out, especially along Allen Avenue, you see nude girls there every night hawking their bodies. We also cannot take it away from the general violence in the society.”

    The WELA coordinator said most rape perpetrators got away with it because of the technicality involved in prosecuting the case.

    She explained: “You must be versed in this area of the law before you can get a conviction for an offender. From the time the girl is raped, she should not wash herself or her underpants. The first step is to take her for medical examination and because it must be established that there was penetration, the private part must be examined and a record of it must be taken. But the first thing they (victims) do is go and wash up and that destroys the first evidence.

    “After records have been taken, you report to the police. Usually, for an underage, it becomes more difficult. The police on the other hand, in the course of taking statements, several times created conflicts especially if the victim is an underage girl, there is no way she can comprehend what was happening. There is no way you can give a version of event two or three times without conflict and when there is conflict, the girl would be pressed again.

    “There was a case of a seven-year-old girl that was allegedly raped by her stepfather. The police took the statement of the girl about seven times and as a result, there was conflict in her statements because she could not understand what she was doing. She was too minor for such a thing and did not even know why she had to make the statements and because of that, the case was destroyed.

    “There is also a rule which has made its way into the criminal code now which is the Rule of Corroboration. It talks about the evidence of the victim by a third party as if the case of rape is a dinner that you invite someone to. So, usually, there is nobody to corroborate because such an offence is perpetrated in secrecy.”

    Mrs Falana blamed the society for stigmatising rape victims.

    She appealed to people to speak out on rape cases. “If the person is not your daughter, she may be the daughter of somebody close to you next time,” she said.

  • Teenager wins talent hunt competition

    Teenager wins talent hunt competition

    It was a night of glitz and glam. The venue was grand finale of the star rising competition which took place at the Civic Centre in Lagos. Here, ten finalists consisting of solo performers and groups of dancers and instrumentalists contested keenly for the star prize.

    After a very keen competition, Precious Udo, a solo performer, emerged as the new star winning the first position. Two other solo performers, Timothy Attah and Alex Louis, got the second and third prizes respectively. For Precious, it was the moment she had been waiting for after putting in a lot of effort before and after the auditions. She joined the school choir at the age of ten and that was where she discovered her talent in singing. At the moment, she is an evolving song writer, singer, guitarist and she recently launched her own album titled AMEN.

    Like Udo, Alex and Timothy also contested as solo performers. Other contestants included the Lillies Stars instrumentalists, Four and half men (Grace High School) instrumentalist, Baja girls cultural dance and Oyinkansola Ebony and Nonso Ifionu dance.

    In an excited mood, the initiator of the talent hunt, Kay Ovia, admonished the children to be hardworking, dedicated and strive for excellence in whatever they do. “It is a great privilege to seek and get this opportunity to mould their skills. At the end of the day, the children would be motivated and talented in their different areas.”

    She added that “At this time, we are motivated by the talents we have seen so far. We are motivated by children that have already on their own motivated themselves to the highest level of excellence. Apart from entertainment, these children are also active in other fields and subjects like English, the sciences and current affairs”.

    The amazon went on to talk about future plans for the children and the project. “Our intention is to establish the centre across Nigeria. This centre will act as a catalyst to protect our children into the open stage of the whole world. And by the time they are there, who knows, the sky may not even be their limit.”

    While wishing all the participants success and a brighter future ahead, Ovia stressed the need to be dedicated and have a focus. “The team would be there to guide, inspire and teach the young ones how to go about achieving their dreams as well as carving niche for themselves in life,” she disclosed.

  • Why I left my baby to die, by teenager

    A 16-year-old girl, who abandoned her 13-month-old baby in an uncompleted building, has said she did so because she was abandoned by her family.

    She was said to have put her baby inside a cement bag but he was saved by passers-by.

    The teenage mum, who said she stopped schooling at primary five, was among 42 suspects paraded by the police in Edo State for crimes ranging from robbery, kidnapping, rape, murder and unlawful possession of firearms.

    She told reporters that her father chased her away from home and asked her to go and look for her real father.

    Her words: “I went to Umelu village and met a friend who told me to follow her to Abeokuta, Ogun State, and that I would work there.

    “I did not know that she was going to introduce me to prostitution.

    “It was in Abeokuta I conceived. I don’t know if the man is still in Abeokuta.

    “He knew that I had a baby for him. I used to sleep with about 10 men in a day. I spent six months as a prostitute.

    “I left him at the uncompleted building because I didn’t have any money to take care of him.

    “My elder sister came to take the baby from me so that she can be collecting money from my mother but when I went to collect my baby she sent me away.

    “I was arrested after I decided to go back and check on the baby. The people knew who I was and they took me to the traditional ruler, who  handed me to the police.”

    Police Commissioner Foluso Adebanjo said the suspects would be charged to court after investigations.