Crime Facts

Rivers Court Restrains Amaewhule, 24 Others From Parading As Legislators

  The Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt has granted an interim injunction restraining pro-Wike speaker of the state House of Assembly, Martin Amaewhule, and 24 other members from parading themselves as legislators. The court directive prohibits them from convening or participating in any official meetings at the Assembly premises. The court’s decision stems from an exparte order filed against the pro-Wike lawmakers by pro-Siminialayi Fubara speaker Victor Oko Jumbo and three others. The interim injunction declares the seats of the 1st to 25th defendants vacant pending further legal proceedings.   Additionally, the court issued a restraining order, prohibiting Governor Fubara and the chief judge, who are the 26th and 28th defendants in the suit, from engaging with Amaewhule and his 25 loyalists. This action is due to the defendants’ defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progress Congress (APC) on December 13, 2023. The court also directed Amaewhule and the others to hand over all official documents within seven days. The case is adjourned until May 29 for a motion on notice. The Rivers State House of Assembly has been embroiled in a crisis since last year which has seen the House balkanized into two, with some loyal to the Minister of Federal Capital Territory Nyesom, and others to Governor Fubara. In December, the crisis took an interesting turn when 27 members led by Amaewhule defected from the PDP to the APC. While the members loyal to Wike were led by Amaewhule as speaker, others loyal to Fubara were led by Edison Ehie as their speaker. The governor later appointed Ehie as his chief of staff, leading to his resignation. However, things took another twist on Wednesday when the members loyal to Governor Fubara elected the member representing the Bonny constituency, Victor Oko-Jumbo, as their speaker. Oko-Jumbo in his acceptance speech thanked the members for electing him as the new speaker sequel to Ehie’s resignation. He called on the executive and judiciary as well as the public to disregard every law purportedly enacted by the Amaewhule-led Assembly, describing it as an exercise in futility.

NIMC uncovers syndicate selling fake NIN

  The National Identity Management Commission on Friday said it had uncovered a syndicate of individuals posing as employees of the commission and issuing fake national identity numbers to unsuspecting Nigerians. It said some suspects had been arrested and were undergoing prosecution with relevant security agencies. The NIMC Director General, Abisoye Coker-Odusote, disclosed this at a press briefing on Friday in Abuja, adding that the commission got wind of the issue after a customer complained that she had paid N120,000 to modify her birth certificate. Odusote at the briefing also announced that over 107.34 million Nigerians had been enrolled into the NIN database as of May 2024 from the 104 million recorded in December 2023. So This Happened (247) reviews Wofai Fada’s engagement, a fake medical doctor, others0.00 / 0.00 The NIN, a unique identifier assigned to each citizen, has gained prominence in recent years as the cornerstone of various government initiatives aimed at enhancing security, governance, and service delivery. Detailing the mode of operation for the syndicate, the director-general explained that the individuals masqueraded as business vendors and operators of cyber cafes, crafting links for unsuspecting individuals, developing software, and fabricating fake NINs. “This data doesn’t reach our server, resulting in numerous Nigerians falling victim to scams,” she added. She said a further clampdown led to the discovery of a group of individuals around its annex office. The NIMC boss, however, declined to disclose details on the number of persons being interrogated but assured that as soon as the investigation was concluded, they would be prosecuted for cybercrimes. Odusote said, “I am going to speak on extortion, data breach, and privacy. When we carried out our investigations, we discovered that around NIMC’s offices, people were parading as business vendors and cyber cafes, creating links for unsuspecting persons, designing software, and generating fake NINs for people. This data does not come to our server and a lot of Nigerians have been scammed. “We will not allow them to parade as if they are part of us and they are not. A lot of people have lost money through this method. There is a case I got at our annex office and a lady approached me telling me that she had been extorted of over N120,000 to modify her birth certificate, and the person who extorted her was not an NIMC employee.” Meanwhile, Coke-Odusote said efforts had reached the advanced stage for ministries, departments, and agencies of government to harmonise their identity database with the NIMC for the country to have a central identity database.

Nyocha Eziokwu: Ọ bu asụsụ Ìgbo na French ka akacha asụ na uwà níle?

Pascal Ibe dere nyocha a  Ihe E Kwuru: Na ọnwa Febụwarị 26, afọ 2022, Akwụkwọ akụkọ Odogwu Blog bipụtere akụkọ dèrè na otu onye nta akụkọ bụ Dilibe Michael kwụrụ na asụsụ Igbo na French ka akacha asụ na ùwà nílé. Ihe Anyi Chọpụtara: Ụgha! Mgbe DUBAWA lebara anya na weebụsaịtị dị iche iche na kwa weebụsaịtị ama ama bu Statista , anyị chọpụtara na ọ bu asụsụ English na Mandarin Chinese ka akacha asụ na ùwà nílé. Ọzọkwa, Dubawa chọpụta na enweghị akwụkwọ akụkọ ọzọ doro anya nkè dere ihe Maazị Dilibe Michael kwụrụ na asụsụ Igbo na French ka akacha asụ na ùwà nílé. Akụkọ N’uju Na Febụwarị 26, afọ 2022, akwụkwọ akụkọ bu Odogwu Blog bipụtere akụkọ dere na onye nta akụkọ bu Dilibe Michael kwụrụ na asụsụ Igbo na French ka akacha asụ na ùwà nílé. Dika akwụkwọ Odogwu Blog si dee, Maazị Michael kwụrụ nke a ka ọ hụchara ezinụlọ China dị iche iche na-asụ Igbo. “Ihe onyonyo gosiri ndị mba ọzọ na-asụ Igbo si mba dị iche iche dịka UK, USA, China na Turkey,” Maazị Michael kwụrụ. Nyocha Ma Mgbe DUBAWA chọrọ na Google, ihe a Dilibe Michael kwụrụ, anyị chọpụta na ọ bu soso ndị Odogwu Blog  bipụtere akụkọ a. Anyị aghughị Ihe dị etu a na akwụkwọ akụkọ ndị ọzọ ama ama. Sịte na weebụsaịtị dị iche iche na kwa weebụsaịtị ama ama bu Statista, anyị chọpụtara na ọ bu asụsụ bekee na Chinese Mandarin ka akacha asụ na ùwà nílé. Statista chọpụtara n’afọ 2023, enwere ihe dị ka ijeri mmadụ 1.5 n’ụwa niile na-asụ bekee n’asụsụ ala ma ọ bụ asụsụ nke abụọ, karịa karịa ijeri 1.1 ndị na-asụ Chinese Mandarin n’oge nyocha. Hindi na Spanish bụ asụsụ nke atọ na nke anọ kacha gbasaa ebe niile n’afọ ahụ. Onye Bu Dilibe Michael? Ka weebụsaịtị Muck Rack si dee, Dilibe Michael bụ onye nta akụkọ Naijiria bu kwa onye na-ede blọgụ. Nchịkọta Ọ bụghị asụsụ Igbo na French ka akacha asụ na mba ụwa, anyị chọpụtara na ọ bu asụsụ bekee na Mandarin Chinese ka akacha asụ na mba ụwa. This report was produced for DUBAWA 2024 Kwame KariKari language Fellowship in partnership with CrimeFacts news to facilitate the ethos of “truth” in journalism and enhance media literacy in the country.

Police release Journalist, Daniel Ojukwu

  Following protests by some Civil Society Organisations in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory a journalist with the Foundation for Investigative Journalism, Daniel Ojukwu, who was abducted by the Intelligence Response Team of the Inspector General of Police has regained freedom. Ojukwu regained freedom on Friday after 10 days in police captivity. FIJ disclosed this on Friday on its website. Ojukwu was said to have gone missing on Wednesday, May 1, his numbers were switched off and his whereabouts unknown to colleagues, family and friends. Twenty-four hours after he went missing, FIJ made a missing person report at police stations in the area where Ojukwu was headed. Further, a FIJ hired detective tracked the last active location of the journalist’s phones to an address in Isheri Olofin, a location FIJ now believes was where the police originally picked him up. Ojukwu’s family subsequently got wind of his detention at Panti, where they were made to understand the authorities were accusing him of violating the 2015 Cybercrime Act. Meanwhile, on Sunday morning, the Intelligence Response Team of the Inspector General of Police relocated him to the Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre in Abuja. The police gave FIJ’s lawyers and negotiators led by the publisher of SaharaReporters, Omoyele Sowore; chairman of Nigeria Union of Journalists FCT Correspondent’s Chapel Jide Oyekunle; and Bukky Shonibare, chairman of FIJ’s Board of Trustees stringent bail conditions. On Thursday, some Civil Society Organisations and journalists stormed the Force Headquarters in Abuja to demand the release of Ojukwu. The protesters include a legal practitioner, Deji Adeyanju; a Pro-democracy activist and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress in the 2023 general elections, Sowore; amongst others. The protesters were seen carrying banners with the inscriptions, ‘Free Daniel Ojukwu,’ ‘No to a police state,’ Journalism is not a crime,’ and ‘Stop the impunity.’ However, after civil society organisations marched to the Force Headquarters on Thursday to press for his release, the police started to soft-pedal, leading to his eventual release on Friday. “Daniel Ojukwu’s case is one of the most egregious cases of human rights violation and misuse of the powers of the Police against journalists,” said Abimbola Ojenike, Managing Partner of Slingstone LP, FIJ’s attorneys. “This will not go unchallenged. There’s a significant public interest in Daniel’s human rights enforcement action that goes beyond just this violation. The constitutional right to free speech is dead if journalists can no longer expose the malfeasance in government officials without fear or oppression.”

DAILIES TOP STORIES: Senate okays death penalty for drug traffickers

  Friday 10 May 2024 Coastal highway probe: Reps to summon Edun, Umahi, AGF N2.7bn fraud: Court imposes travel ban on Sirika, daughter Q1 foreign debt servicing gulped $1bn – CBN Nigeria on track to attain food security – Tinubu Ooni disowns alleged son, petitions police Rescued Chibok girl, three children released to Borno govt NESG Faults Timing Of Cybersecurity Levy, Says Nigerians Battling High Food Prices In Benin, Tensions Soar Over Cost Of Living Emefiele: Witness Says CBN Officials Demanded $600,000 Bribe To Process Payment Of Executed Contract Fubara Not A Peacemaker, Unwilling To Reconcile With Wike – Adangor Amaewhule Group Says Fubara Plans To Demolish Rivers Assembly Quarters Police Rescue 13 Kidnap Victims, Recover 16 Rustled Animals In Katsina Another Chibok Girl Escapes From Boko Haram Captivity Tinubu Appoints Wike’s Ex-Chief Of Staff As MD Ogun River Basin Authority 24 hours after Army’s exit: 1 person macheted, 3 injured as intruders loot Okuama-Ewu IMF cautions FG against CBN Act amendment Court dismisses suit seeking to stop FG from securitising N23trn Ways and Means loan Insecurity: Kaduna To Relocate 359 Schools Suleja jailbreak: We’ve recaptured many fleeing inmates — FG We may increase N615,000 minimum wage demand if inflation bites harder –NLC president, Ajaero Prince Harry, Meghan expected in Nigeria today ASUU rejects wage award, insists on negotiated salary for members Visit a newspaper stand this morning, buy and read a copy for yourself…

Gunmen Raid Kogi Varsity, Abduct Students

  Bandits on Thursday night invaded the Confluence University of Science and Technology (CUSTEC), Osara, Okene in Kogi, and abducted some students. An eye witness said the bandits swooped on the university around 9.00 p.m. while the students were reading for their upcoming exams. Synthesize Beautiful Scenes of Ha Giang Via Super Quality Travel Video – Flycam Nem TV The source said that the bandits came in through the bush, went into three lecture halls and began to shoot into the air. “They trapped the students inside the halls and started taking them; the school was thrown into total confusion as fear-stricken students in other halls scurried to safety, scampering in various directions. VC sues for ethnic harmony Gunmen kill civil defence officer in Benue “By the time local security guards and the conventional security men at the gate engaged the bandits, they had already succeeded in abducting some students. But the efforts minimised the damage as the attackers didn’t go beyond the first three halls,” the source said. According to the source, the students were preparing for their first semester examination expected to commence on Monday, May 13, when the bandits struck. A student, who craved anonymity, said that he and some colleagues ran to the bush and hid there for “more than an hour”. “We only ventured out when everywhere became quiet,” he said. Contacted, CUSTEC Vice Chancellor, Prof. Abdulraman Asipita, confirmed the incident but refused to give details of the number of students abducted. “I don’t talk to journalists on incidents like this, but I want you to know that we are on top of the situation,” he said. Efforts to reach the Commissioner of Police in Kogi, Mr Bethrand Onuoha, were not successful. Retired Cdre Jerry Omodara, State Security Adviser, could equally not be reached for comments as calls to his line were not picked nor returned. (NAN)

Chad Junta Chief Deby Wins Presidential Vote

  Chad’s junta chief Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno won this week’s presidential election in the first round, according to provisional official results released Thursday, extending his family’s decades-long grip on power. Monday’s vote aimed to end three years of military rule in a country crucial to the fight against jihadism across Africa’s Sahel desert region. The ANGE electoral commission said Deby won 61.03 per cent of votes, beating Prime Minister Succes Masra, who garnered only 18.53 per cent, in results due to be confirmed by the Constitutional Council. “I am now the elected president of all Chadians,” Deby said in a brief televised address, promising to make good on his “commitments”. Masra had earlier claimed victory and warned Deby’s team would rig the results. Soldiers in the N’Djamena neighbourhood where Masra’s party is based fired their guns in the air after the results were announced, both in celebration of Deby’s win and to deter protesters from gathering, AFP journalists there reported. Some frightened people ran for cover or to their homes and the capital’s streets were soon empty. Meanwhile, near the presidential palace in central N’Djamena, Deby’s supporters shouted, sang, sounded car horns and fired their own guns in the air in celebration, AFP reporters saw. At least two teenagers were injured by falling bullets, an AFP journalist saw. – Parallel count – Supporters of Masra, a 40-year-old economist, had been holding their own ballot count in parallel to the official one, and in a speech posted on his Facebook page hours before the results were released, Masra said his team’s count “establishes the victory in the first round, that of change over the status quo”. “The victory is resounding and without blemish,” he said. Masra went on to say the team of Deby, who was proclaimed transitional president three years ago by the army, would soon announce that he had won and “steal the victory from the people”. Masra, a former opposition leader appointed prime minister in January, urged Chadians to “mobilise peacefully to prove our victory”. Thursday’s announcement was a surprise, coming nearly two weeks earlier than the scheduled release date of May 21. Deby and Masra faced eight other candidates who were either relatively unknown or considered not hostile to the regime. Former premier Albert Pahimi Padacke placed third with 16.91 per cent of votes in an election that saw a turnout of 75.89 per cent, ANGE chief Ahmed Bartchiret announced. – ‘Pilot, co-pilot towards democracy’ – Opponents had called for a boycott of the vote, dismissing it as fixed. After announcing he would stand, Masra said he was doing so to maintain the current team of “pilot and co-pilot” in a plane headed “towards democracy” — a reference to himself and Deby. Masra had been a fierce opponent of the regime before it named him prime minister in January after he returned from exile. He faced accusations of being a stooge by the opposition, which has been violently repressed and its leading figures barred from standing. Early in the campaign, observers predicted a massive win for Deby, aged 40, whose top rival was killed earlier this year. – Ally against jihadism – Deby was proclaimed transitional president by fellow army generals in 2021 after his father, Idriss Deby Itno, who had ruled Chad with an iron fist for 30 years, was killed in a gun battle with rebels. Deby promised an 18-month transition to democracy but then extended it by two years. Opposition figures have since fled, been silenced or joined forces with Deby. Deby’s cousin and chief election rival Yaya Dillo Djerou was shot point-blank in the head by army soldiers on February 28, according to his party. The International Federation for Human Rights had warned that the election appeared “neither credible, free nor democratic”. The International Crisis Group also noted that “a number of problems in the run-up to the balloting cast doubt on its credibility”. Chad has remained a firm ally of traditional security partner France, whose forces in recent years have been ousted by military regimes in former African colonies including Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. The Sahel nations are reeling from jihadist insurgencies and have strengthened ties with Russia after severing them with Paris.     AFP

Emefiele: Witness Says CBN Officials Demanded $600,000 Bribe To Process Payment Of Executed Contract

  A witness, Victor Onyejiuwa, has testified against the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, in his trial over alleged abuse of office and accepting of gratification to the tune of $4.5bn and N2.8bn. Onyejiuwa, the Managing Director of The Source Computers Limited, said he was allegedly pressurised by the management of CBN to pay the sum of $600,000 for the payment of contract which he had executed. This was the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has tendered more documents against Emefiele on Thursday. The bundles of documents were tendered through the third prosecution witness, a compliance officer with Zenith Bank, Mr Clement Ngolu, by EFCC Counsel, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN). The documents were admitted into evidence with no objections from the defence team. Justice Rahman Oshodi admitted the original copies of Zenith Bank account opening package and statement of accounts of Limelight Multidimensional Services Ltd. Ngolu, in his evidence in chief, said his department responded to enquiries from regulators and law enforcement agencies in order to ensure that the bank activities were in line with bank’s policies and regulations . He added that his department worked with agencies like EFCC, Nigeria Police, ICPC and NSCDC. The witness said that sometimes in 2014, his department got a request from EFCC to furnish the agency with statements of accounts of limelight and two other accounts and we duly furnished them with the request . “The documents we sent to EFCC was duly signed by staff of the bank. “The process of generating the statement was through our computer system which was in good condition as at the time. “The documents were printed out from the company’s computer which was working well and the documents are in the bank’s custody,” the witness said. The defence had no question for the witness. The prosecution swiftly called its fourth witness, an IT contractor. He tesfied that he was allegedly pressurized by the management of CBN to pay the sum of $600,000 for the payment of contract which he had executed. The witness said his company was awarded at least five contracts within the stipulated period. He added that sometime in 2017, his company was awarded an “enterprise storage and servers” contract by the CBN. The contractor said after the contract was executed by his company, he was approached by John Ikechukwu Ayoh, a former director at the Central Bank of Nigeria, that the “management needs something” from the contract. The managing director said Ayoh told him that if he did not accede, the funds meant for the contract would be deployed by the apex bank. The court also listened to the conclusion of the evidence of John Ayoh who testified as the second prosecution witness. At his last testimony, Ayoh had narrated before the court how he collected $600,000 as contract gratification allegedly on behalf of the former CBN Governor. In his testimony today, the witness claimed that he was sidelined by the former CBN governor. According to him: “I was not happy being unpopular with the former CBN governor but on a number of occasions, I signed contract letters to vendors. “While I was a director with the CBN, my loyalty was to the bank and the Nigerian nation and my relationship with Emefiele was only formal and based on instructions. “The governor and the four deputy governors of the bank alongside the directors makes up the management of the CBN”, he testified. EFCC had on April 8 arraigned Emefiele on a 23-count charge bordering on abuse of office, accepting gratifications, corrupt demand, receiving property fraudulently obtained and conferring corrupt advantage, while his co-defendant was arraigned on a three-count charge bordering on acceptance of gift by agents. The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge. The judge has adjourned the case until May 17 for the continuation of trial.

FAKE NEWS: Reports of gunmen killing 21 soldiers in Anambra untrue

  Anambra State Police Command has debunked viral report of gunmen killing 21 soldiers in in the State. The command’s spokesperson in Anambra, SP Ikenga Tony said the command is aware of a misleading, unfounded, and false report titled *Gunmen Kill 21 Soldiers in Anambra* recently peddled by some online media and national dailies. The Anambra PPRO stated that the report is untrue, a product of fiction, and the handiwork of mischief-makers. The statement reads in part, ”Also, the Command in dismay at the news, has observed that the said hospital mentioned in the report, where the corpses of the soldiers are allegedly kept, does not exist in Awka, the State Capital. ”Further inquiries were made by the Command, showing that there is no record of such an incident or otherwise, but deliberate acts by unscrupulous elements are to cause tension in the state. Therefore, the Command shall not hesitate to invoke relevant cyber laws on persons found wanting in this regard. ”However, the Command urges the public to disregard the report.

BREAKING: Army leaves troubled Okuama

  The Nigerian military has pulled out of Okuama community in Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State, Vanguard is reporting. According to sources in neighbouring Akugbene and Okoloba communities in Bomadi local government area, the soldiers pulled out of the embattled community, Tuesday, 7th May, 2023, suddenly without any prior information to do so.