JTF uncovers Lebanese terror cell in Kano

The Joint Task Force on Thursday said it had uncovered a Lebanon-based Hezbollah armoury and terror cell in Bompai, Kano State.

The force, which said it found large cache of arms and ammunition, also confirmed the arrest of three persons in connection with the armoury and the cell.

A Lebanese national currently out of the country reportedly owns the premises where the armoury and the cell were found at No 3, Gaya Road, Off Bompai Road in the ancient city.

A statement by the JTF spokesman, Captain Ikedichi Iweha, said the JTF operatives, comprising officials of the 3rd Army Brigade in Kano and the State Security Service conducted the operations.

The operatives, he said, uncovered an underground bunker in the premises where large quantities of assorted weapons were hidden.

Iweha, who said the construction of the bunker was special, listed anti-tank weapons, rocket propelled guns and anti-tank/personnel mines as some of the dangerous weapons found in the premises.

He added that the weapons and ammunition were concealed in coolers, drums and bags.

According to him, the latest recovery followed an ongoing robust counter-terrorism investigation by the SSS.

Confirming the existence of a Hezbollah cell in the country, Iweha noted that the SSS had arrested one Mustapha Fawaz, co-owner of Amigo Supermarket and the Wonderland Amusement Park, in Abuja.

The arrest of Fawaz, Iweha said, led to the arrest of another Lebanese terror suspect, Abdullah Tahini, at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport with over$60,000

He added, “Thereafter on May 26, 2013, one Talal Roda, also a Lebanese with a Nigerian Passport, was arrested in the same house.

“All those arrested have confessed to have undergone Hezbollah Terrorist Training and further implicated one Fauzi Fawad, also a co-owner of Amigo Supermarket and Wonderland Amusement Park.”

When one of our correspondents contacted the Director of Defence Information, Brig. Gen. Chris Olukolade, he described the discovery of the arms and the arrest of the Lebanese importers as “a major breakthrough.”

The action of the JTF operatives, he said demonstrated the commitment of security agencies to riding the country of illegal arms.

Meanwhile, the SSS said the weapons  were intended for use against “Israeli and Western interests”.

“This is the handwork of Hezbollah,” Bassey Ettang, director of the SSS said in Kano.

“You can also be sure that if a group like this is existing, then it may even lend support to some of the local terrorists we have on the ground.”

Hezbollah is a Shia military and political movement based in Lebanon considered by the United States to be a terrorist organisation.

  The sect was conceived by Muslim clerics and funded by Iran following the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, and was primarily formed to offer resistance to the Israeli occupation.

Its leaders were inspired by former Iranian leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, and its forces were trained and organised by a contingent of Iranian Revolutionary Guards.

Hezbollah’s 1985 manifesto listed its four main goals as “Israel’s final departure from Lebanon as a prelude to its final obliteration.”

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Kano: JTF arrests foreigners, uncovers missiles, grenades

Four foreign nationals, suspected to have hailed from Middle East, were arrested in Kano by the Joint Task Force over a large cache  of arms and ammunition uncovered in their  mini-warehouse located in the Bompai area of Kano on Wednesday.

Following the shock discovery, owner of the complex, where the dangerous weapons were impounded, simply identified as a Lebanese national, was arrested by military personnel.

As of the time of filing this report, the building, located on Gaya road in Bompai area of the metropolis, was under surveillance by heavily armed, stern-looking soldiers.

Security sources disclosed that items recovered from the extensive operation included 40 air-to-surface missiles, 50 cluster bombs, 200 rocket-propel launchers, eight AK-47 rifles, 200 military hand grenades and some military hardware capable of destroying  Armoured Personnel Carriers.

The “weapons of war” were said to have been evacuated to the headquarters of the 3rd Motorised Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Kano, alongside the foreign nationals.

It was learnt that  preliminary investigation had begun while “three countries have been indicted and the military high command is working to ascertain the culpability.”

A  resident of the area, said he counted over “300 AK-47 riffles” during the evacuation.

Spokesman for the JTF Captain Ikedichi Iweha, promised to brief newsmen later on the issue, even as he declined comment on the incident, which occurred on Tuesday night.

“You would get the details tomorrow (Thursday) because of the Democracy Day celebration. We have resolved to talk to you after the break,” he said.

According to him, as a result of the Democracy Day celebration, security was fortified in the commercial city of Kano, with increased vehicular patrols by the military, JTF operatives and the police, as part of the measures to sustain relative peace in the city.

Meanwhile,  the JTF has arrested 50 terror suspects in Borno State with the  aid of special dogs, says the Director of Defence Information, Brig.-Gen. Chris Olukolade.

Olukolade said in a statement on Wednesday that the terror suspects were arrested with the help of specially trained dogs while trying to infiltrate Maiduguri.

The Defence spokesman said 15 of those arrested were caught with arms concealed either in their bodies or their properties.

He said various attempts by terror suspects, who were dislodged from their camps in the forest in Borno to enter the cities and towns of the North-East,  had been thwarted with the aid of the dogs

Olukolade said, “Trained Military Police dogs are participating in the cordon and search phase of special operations against terrorism in the country.

“The efforts of the specially trained dogs have so far led to the arrest of over 50 terrorists who were trying to infiltrate Maiduguri.”

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Man, 60, allegedly kills wife over N500

LAGOS — Oronna Street in Abule-Egba area of Lagos was, yesterday, thrown into confusion after a 60-year-old man who allegedly killed his wife over his missing N500, locked himself up with the corpse.

Reports said fight broke out after the man identified as Gbadebo Elegbede, accused his 17-year-old son of stealing his N500 at about 7am. His wife, Maria, was said to have defended his son, an action that reportedly led to a verbal confrontation with her husband,which degenerated into a scuffle.

In the process, Gbadebo was said to have hit his wife with a hard object on the face, causing her to slump.

His son, Johnson, was said to have attempted to lift his mother from the floor only to discover that she was motionless and bleeding from the mouth and nose.

Johnson reportedly ran out to alert neighbours to come to his mother’s help, but they met the door of the apartment locked from inside, with Gbadebo threatening to kill anyone who attempted to force the door open.

Eye witnesses said some of the deceased’s relatives who rushed to the scene were also prevented from seeing Maria’s corpse as the door was still locked.

Policemen at nearby divisions who were contacted said they had not been informed about the incident yesterday evening.

An eye witness said , “ this is not the fight time he is doing this. The first time they lost their daughter, he locked her up in the room preventing everyone, including his wife from coming inside.

Till date no one can tell what he did with her corpse. . As you can see, everyone is afraid of him in this area”, the eye witness who simply gave her name as Nwankego told Vanguard on the telephone.

As at 4pm, Vanguard gathered that Gbadamosi was still inside the room with Maria’s corpse

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How stigmatisation promotes baby factories in Igboland

Three incidents regarding teenage pregnancy in Yorubaland remain evergreen in my memory. Some 19 years ago, on being told that I was posted to a mixed secondary school in the South-West for the one-year National Youth Service Corps scheme, a relative (but born and bred in Yorubaland) warned me with all seriousness: “Be careful! Yoruba girls are very fertile.” I laughed at such a ridiculous statement, asking her if fertility had anything to do with race or ethnicity.

 A few months later, while discussing with a Yoruba friend on our small street (a close in which almost all of us knew one another), one of the teenage girls on the street passed by with a protruded stomach. I was shocked at her pregnancy. My friend sneered at her and told me that two other girls of her age on the street were also pregnant. Given my background as someone who grew up in the South-East, it was strange to me, but I kept quiet to avoid being accused of bigotry. The Yoruba friend asked me with surprise: “Why is it that I have never seen a pregnant Igbo girl? Is it that they don’t do what other girls do?” I laughed heartily but knowingly.

 Some years later, my landlady at that time sent some snacks to me, saying that her unmarried and unemployed son had had a baby. I was surprised. Shortly after, the young mother arrived with her son. I thought the young man had married her. No. She stayed a few months to nurse the baby, and when the baby was weaned, she departed, leaving the baby behind with his father. I was shocked. But I sought an explanation. I saw myself as a baby in kindergarten, being schooled in a different culture. I learnt that the Yoruba never wish that their unmarried daughters get pregnant, but if such a pregnancy occurs, so long as the man claims responsibility, the parents’ anger and disappointment will be lessened. There is little or no stigma on the girl, the man, the baby, as well as both parents, once the man has claimed responsibility and the child has an identifiable father. No doubt, this worldview has its drawbacks, but that is not our focus now.

 Contrast that with the practice in Igboland, where I was born and bred. When a teenage girl gets pregnant, it is most likely that the man or boy responsible will deny ever touching her. He may even disappear from the community, never to be seen again, especially if he is not an indigene. The Igbo tradition holds that the baby belongs to the girl’s family, because no bride price has been paid, even though these days some individuals and families go against that tradition. But the bottom line is that the girl’s parents will feel utterly disappointed and ashamed of her. People will make snide remarks about them not training their daughter properly. Some parents go to the extreme of sending such a girl away. Her school will rusticate her. If she is a member of the church choir, Block Rosary, Girls’ Guide/Brigade, Red Cross, etc, in her local church, other girls will be warned by such a church society never to be like “the prodigal daughter.”

To avoid public odium, she will stay indoors throughout the pregnancy. Her chances of marriage are drastically reduced, as every prospective suitor who hears that she is a single mother will change his mind (unless she becomes successful later in life). If she eventually finds a husband, it may be as a second wife: to a man whose first wife has not had a child or son, a widower, a man her father’s age, or a man below her dreams of a husband. She may never return to school to avoid ridicule, and her dreams to become a doctor or lawyer dies.

On the contrary, if she miscarries, aborts the pregnancy, or loses her baby during delivery or shortly after, she becomes “a good girl again,” and can walk about with more confidence, even though some may still sneer at her silently for a year or two.

 So, in response to my friend who said he had never seen a pregnant Igbo spinster, this is the reason. It has nothing to do with Igbo girls being more chaste than other girls in Nigeria. In the distant past, the Igbo society had no respect for a girl who was not a virgin during marriage. Today, virginity before marriage is no longer an issue. The unspoken law is: Thou shall not be caught pregnant before marriage. An Igbo proverb describes this mindset aptly: All dogs eat faeces, but it is only the one that bears the remnants on its snout that is called Faeces Eater. Consequently, Igbo girls are more exposed to sex education and contraceptives. When those two fail, they resort to abortion, commonly called D & C (dilatation and curettage). But if the baby is born, some resort to dumping of such babies in a pit toilet or a bush, where they may die or be found by someone else.

However, while teenage girls don’t need their babies, there are some women who need children desperately: Married women with no child or no male child. Such women are most times put under intense pressure by their mothers-in-law or husbands. They are constantly threatened with divorce or a second wife, or they are branded witches or “men”. To make matters worse, there seems to have been a rise in childlessness among married couples in recent times.

Furthermore, in most Igbo communities, adoption still has a stigma. An adopted child is seen as not a “real son/daughter of the soil.” Everyone wants a child that society will believe is a biological child.

And so “demand” meets “supply.” Some smart alecs discovered this and took advantage of the situation by setting up baby factories under different guises. Childless women are given some special “herbs” that make them have a false sense of pregnancy. They look bloated like pregnant women and feel some sensation in their wombs. They are warned never to visit any other hospital or do any scan, to avoid losing the baby. They are told to come in and live in the so-called maternities from the fifth or sixth month of “pregnancy” for special attention. So they travel from the big cities of Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, etc, to these remote villages in the South-East to “deliver.”

Meanwhile, the so-called midwife that administers the special herbs has a baby factory where pregnant girls are housed. Some of these girls were kicked out by their parents; some ran away from home to avoid the heavy consequences; some are lured in from poor homes with a promise to be handsomely rewarded if they could take in. Any day one of these girls in their custody is delivered of a baby, the woman with a fake pregnancy is given an injection that makes her feel she is in labour. When she wakes up, she is presented with “her” baby. She pays between N400,000 and N600,000, depending on the sex of the child, believing she actually delivered a child, unless a future DNA or blood test comes up. Even if she suspects that she did not actually deliver any child, she keeps it a secret and raises “her child”. She organises a big thanksgiving in her church with a soul-lifting testimony of “divine visitation and favour” after 15 years of marriage, with a lot to eat and drink at home after the church service. The pressure on her from family and society eases off, because now she has a child, who will keep her husband’s lineage alive.

The real teenage mother of the child is paid off with an amount that is less than N100,000. She is not much bothered because her burden and stigma have been removed. She returns to her family and education and continues her normal life as “a good girl.”

So from one Igbo state to another, baby factories and baby thieves are discovered regularly. During interrogation by the police, one point runs through their stories: they are rendering a service to society by ensuring that children are raised by those who have the financial capacity to take care of them. There is no sign of remorse in them for being involved in a heinous crime. As far as they are concerned, they are making the world a happier place.

Therefore, it is not enough for fellow Igbo people to feel mortified that such baby factories and baby-stealing stories are emanating from different parts of Igboland. The time has come for Igbo families and communities to stop treating pregnant teenagers as the worst sinners on earth. Pregnancy before marriage should not be encouraged, but if a girl makes such a mistake, she should not be treated like an outcast for life. Such stigmatisation does not discourage girls from having pre-marital sex. What it does is to make them devise means — no matter how atrocious — to ensure that they are not single mothers.

The sad truth is that most teenagers get pregnant because of naivety rather than promiscuity. The girls who are really sexually hyper-active never get pregnant! And even when they do, such pregnancies are terminated in a matter of weeks before anyone can notice.

In the same vein, the pressure on married women to have children or male children as well as the stigma associated with adoption makes many women undergo emotional trauma and also resort to illegal ways of having children that society will call their biological children. Action usually begets reaction. We must not cling to a vacuous moral high ground that drives people to worse crimes in their bid to be seen as chaste or well-trained.

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Six killed as Lagos youths clash during match

No fewer than six youths were killed, while others sustained injuries after youths clashed during a football match at the Ajah area of the Lekki-Epe Expressway, Lagos State.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the youths had converged to play football during the compulsory monthly sanitation exercise when an argument ensued.

According to police authorities, the clash was between three factions, the Olumegbon boys, Ajah boys and Ilaje boys.

It was learnt that there was no winner in the battle as the casualties were spread evenly among the three factions.

It was also learnt that the whole area was filled with blood as well as broken glass and sticks after the fracas.

According to eyewitnesses, the damage had already been done before the police arrived.

An eyewitness, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said Ilaje boys were not playing football but got involved in the clash when Ajah boys attempted to escape through their own territory.

He said, “Ajah youths were playing football. Later Olumegbon boys arrived the place and soon an argument ensued which led to the clash. As the fighting continued, some of the Ajah boys tried to escape through Ilaje Community so the youths attempted to push them back so that they would not be embroiled in the fight.

“The Ajah youths in the process, killed two of our youths and of course a fight ensued.”

It was learnt that before the police could respond, the wounded had been rushed to the hospital, while the dead had been taken away by their respective factions.

The Olumegbon boys were said to have carried the corpses of their dead colleagues to the palace of the Olumegbon.

It was learnt that the incident was also part of a supremacy battle for the control of motor parks in the area.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the factions were formed after some landowners started having disagreement over parcels of land in the area. The issue soon metamorphosed into divisions as each faction started having its area of  control, including motor parks.

It was learnt that some elders and security agents had made various proposals for peace to reign in the area.

Some of the proposals were that no member of a faction should trespass on another faction’s territories.

A faction going into another faction’s motor park to collect toll, and dispute over land, had often been the causes of most of their clashes.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, confirmed that six youths were killed.

Braide said two youths died from each group adding that it was a supremacy battle for the control in the area.

She said the police had beefed up security of the area.

She said, “Six youths were killed in the clash which started during a football match. Two youths from Ilaje, two from Ajah and two from Olumegbon were killed. Their fight  is always because of supremacy claims.”

PUNCH Metro had reported in December 2012 that over seven people were killed during a similar clash between Ajah and Ilaje youths which left over 50 houses burnt.

New terror group emerges

As the country grapples with the terror activities of the fundamentalist Boko Haram sect, another terror group, Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa, has emerged.

Our correspondents gathered that the new sect also has a strong presence in Niger Republic.

Currently, two terrorist groups exist in Nigeria — Boko Haram and Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina fi Biladis Sudan.

SUNDAY PUNCH reports that there are fears in security circles that MOJAO may infiltrate the country due to the porous nature of Nigeria’s borders.

Minister of Interior, Mr. Abba Moro, had last week said there were 1,497 illegal routes into the country.

MOJAO, a splinter group of the international terror group, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, is after military operatives and facilities of countries that are complementing France’s efforts in quelling terrorists’ insurgency in Mali.

Besides Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Bukina Faso are involved in military operations in Mali.

On Thursday, the Jihadist group claimed responsibility for a twin suicide bombing attack at the Nigerian/Nigerien border.

No fewer than 26, mostly Nigerien soldiers, were killed and about 30 injured, in the multiple attacks.

MOJAO spokesman, Abu Walid Sahraoui, said the attacks were targeted at “the enemies of Islam.”

“We attacked Niger Republic because of its co-operation with France in the war against Sharia,” he added.

A highly placed security official told one of our correspondents that the group had been in existence since 2011.

According to the official, who pleaded anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the subject, MOJAO poses a threat to Nigeria’s security.

He said, “We now have to prevent them from infiltrating Nigeria; we have enough Boko Haram challenges. Don’t forget that members of Boko Haram, who were dislodged from Sambisa Games Reserve and other camps in Borno State fled to neigbouring states and the Niger Republic.  So many of them from Abadan, Malam Fatori and other villages, are now refugees in Difa, Niger Republic. They can decide to pitch tents with MOJAO.

“MOJAO has attacked barracks in Niger, which is similar to what Boko Haram does in Nigeria. This new group may want to do the same in here majorly because we are also involved in the Malian operation — which is one of their grievances.

“They are also likely to target our soldiers at the border.”

When SUNDAY PUNCH contacted the Director of Defence Information, Brig.-Gen Chris Olukolade, on Friday about the threat of the new group, he said efforts were on to sensitise all military formations across the country to exhibit a high level of alertness.

Olukolade said the Nigerian troops were at the border with Niger in line with the military’s decision.

He said, “Our troops are everywhere. They have been at the border since the beginning of the operation.

“Military formations are being sensitised on the need to maintain a high level of alertness in all locations whether or not they are involved in any operation or exercises.

“The public is implored to be vigilant and ensure that they report all suspicious movements or activities to security agencies promptly.”

President Goodluck Jonathan had on May 14, 2013, during a national broadcast, declared a state of emergency in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states.

This was in response to the activities of suspected terrorists in North-Eastern part of Nigeria.

Some sections of Nigeria’s border with Niger pass through Yobe and Borno states.

Meanwhile, Adamawa State has begun the registration of residents of communities in its domain as a precautionary step against infiltration by  militants fleeing military  bombardment in Borno State.

SUNDAY PUNCH learnt that holders of the traditional titles of Sarkin Matasa (youth leaders) in communities across the state were driving the project.

A military source in the state said, “Adamawa State through the emirate council has introduced a house-to-house count of people in the state. This is to enable all wards leaders to know the exact number of persons per household and to check infiltrators in Borno.”

The source, who pleaded anonymity, added that suspected Boko Haram members, who had fled northern Borno, were regrouping at Zumo area of Song Local Government Area of Adamawa State.

The area is believed to have a difficult topography comprising mountains, rocks, and thick forest that extends to the country’s northern border with Cameroon.

The Director, Press and Public Relations of the Adamawa State Government House, Mr. Ahmad Sajoh, confirmed the development.

He said, “What is happening is part of our pro-active measures to mitigate the effects of the state of emergency. The Sarkin Matasa, who are traditional title holders in the state’s Emirate Council, will mobilise people to be pro-active.

“What they are doing is to encourage the people to open registers, either in writing or using indigenous methods, to keep track of residents of a given area.

“You know, counter-insurgency cannot succeed without security winning the hearts and minds of the people. With this method, the people will know one another better and will be able to account for members of the community, in case they go out and do not return.”

I gave hoodlums N40,000 to escape being gang-raped –Resident

Residents of Mushin area of Lagos are still living in an atmosphere of fear after Sunday’s mayhem in which their homes were looted and a man was allegedly killed.

Saturday PUNCH visited the area on Wednesday to see what has changed since the incident, but observed that many of the residents are afraid that the hoodlums who carried out the attack might soon come back as they reportedly promised.

Some of the residents, who told our correspondent their stories, insisted the perpetrators, who they said numbered more than 50, came from Akala Street, Mushin.

Ike Olu Street was the most affected area. There were still remnants of shattered vehicle windscreens, house windows and burnt vehicles on the street when our correspondent visited.

The residents told Saturday PUNCH that the hoodlums went from house to house about 1.30 am on Sunday, robbing, looting shops and smashing cars before fleeing when they noticed police presence.

The looting hoodlums came back after they had initially fled, Saturday PUNCH learnt.

More looting was recorded during their second coming, it was learnt. It was during that period that they reportedly burnt the vehicles they had already smashed.

At least eight vehicles were said to have been burnt down. Our correspondent counted five burnt vehicles that had not been taken away by their owners.

A youth in Fadeyi, Monsuru Olayiwola, who had been reported to be one of the masterminds of the attack, told our correspondent he knew nothing about the matter.

He said, “I read in a newspaper report that I was wielding a pump-action rifle during  the mayhem. That is a blatant lie.

 “It was a ploy by the  criminals responsible to implicate me. I was at Ikorodu overnight during the mayhem and a lot of people can attest to this. I have not been in that particular part of Mushin for three years because of the violence of the youths in the area.”

A resident of Fadeyi, Wale Ayodele, told our correspondent that the hoodlums were suspected to comprise area boys and cult members.

He said, “We were very shocked when it was reported that the attack was carried out by youths from Fadeyi. This is not the first time this kind of attack would be blamed on Fadeyi boys by Mushin youths.

“Go to the street where the attacks took place and the residents themselves will tell you where the hoodlums came from.”

Tunde, a resident of Ike Olu Street, said the hoodlums announced their presence by shooting and smashing the windos of parked cars.

He said, “They smashed anything in sight and went from house to house, robbing people of cash, telephone sets, televisions, generators and even clothes.

“They destroyed some of the furniture I had been contracted to make for someone. But I fared better than some other people on this street.”

But another resident, who identified herself simply as Florence, said she narrowly escaped being gang-raped by about 15 men, who kicked down the door of her apartment.

Florence said, “I have no doubt that the men moving about the street, robbing and attacking people were up to 70 because the ones who came into my room were up to 15. There were other groups in other apartments at the same time.

“They kicked down the door and demanded money and my phones. But I was begging them that I had nothing in the house.

“I thought they would move on to other houses if I told them that. But some of them suddenly pulled down my trousers and wanted to rape me. I started begging and quickly dipped my hand into a place where I had saved N40,000 and handed it to them.

“I begged them to let me go. I told them that was all I had. I was lucky they left after that.”

Another resident, who pleaded anonymity, lost his commercial buses to the hoodlums.

He said, “I’m just a mechanic and I have a shop on this street. I’m not a resident of this street. I got to the workshop on Monday morning and saw the burnt carcass of my bus.

“I told the driver to always park the bus in front of my workshop every night. These hoodlums have destroyed a good source of money for me. To add to my woes, I have not finished paying for the bus because I’m paying on an instalment plan.”

Our correspondent learnt that a driver with a new generation bank has been arrested in connection with the burning of a vehicle during the mayhem.

The unidentified driver was said to have taken the official vehicle of his boss, a new Toyota Corrolla, home after the close of work the previous Friday.

It was burnt by the hoodlums where he parked it. The burnt car was still on the street when our correspondent visited.

Each of the residents had one thing or another to tell our correspondent, as he moved round the area.

A hairdresser said the door of her shop was kicked down and the hoodlums took away her generator.

A resident, Mrs. Rachael Adepoju, lost her savings and telephone sets to the hoodlums who came into her house, wielding guns, broken bottles and machetes.

Another resident said they threatened to kill two people in her house if she did not hand over her belongings.

A man next door was brutally beaten because he was not fast enough when he was handing over his belongings.

“They are cult members,” a resident, Fatai Owolabi, told our correspondent.

“Everybody on this street is aware that there has been a long-standing feud between members of the Eiye Confraternity and Black Axe.

“I don’t know who is accusing who, but we heard that one said the other was responsible for the death of two of its members. Anytime there is a problem, they use the opportunity to loot, rob and unleash mayhem on residents,” he said.

Saturday PUNCH learnt that the men responsible for the mayhem were suspected to be those vending hard drugs and Indian hemp in Mushin.

Spokesperson for the state police command, Ngozi Braide, had on Sunday said some suspects had been apprehended in connection with the case.

It is not clear how far the investigation had gone as Braide’s phone line indicated it was switched off when our correspondent contacted her on Wednesday.

Pregnant woman, husband, sell unborn baby for N200,000

A 23-year-old pregnant woman caused a stir at the Lagos State Police Command headquarters on Thursday after she confessed that she had sold her unborn baby for N200,000, in advance.

The suspect, Adaeze Mba, who was arrested for conniving with her husband to sell their neighbour’s four-year-old son for N400, 000, said it was poverty that pushed them to crime.

She confessed that she and her husband, Chibueze, had sold two other children for N700, 000.

She said, “In March 2013, my neighbour’s son, Stanley Ezeaka, was following me about in the compound at Jakande Estate and it was at that time that my husband received a phone call from his partner that she needed a child for sale. My husband then suggested that we took Stanley even though he was a bit old.

“We travelled to Imo State the following morning and sold him for N400, 000 after  which we relocated to Calabar.”

When asked why she took to crime and how she would feel if someone bought her own children, she said, “I am seven months pregnant and as I speak to you, my husband has already sold our unborn baby for N200, 000.

“I was against it but he convinced me to agree to it, saying he had already collected the money.”

When asked about the other children she and her husband had sold, she said, “The male child was sold at N400,000 while the female child, who was two months old but is now over a year old, was sold at N300,000.”

Chibueze on his part, said he went into the business last year. He said he had sold ‘only’ three children to his business partner, Benedicta Ogbonna, and maintained that the children were in turn sold to caring parents and not ritual killers.

He said, “One of the children was born by a mentally challenged woman; so I have committed no crime by selling the child to people who would take care of her.”

Ogbonna, who bought the three children from Chibueze and his wife at different times, said she sold children to bAREEN.

She said, “I am doing this business for humanitarian reasons and not for monetary gain. I am 35 years old and I have four children. I can never sell my own children and in fact my husband does not know I am into this kind of business.

“Chibueze brought Stanley to me and told me that his mother was a prostitute so he sold him to me at N400, 000. I then sold Stanley to Mrs. Patricia Anibogwu for N600,000. So far, I have sold only three children. I buy boys at N400, 000 and girls at N300,000.

“I use the money to take care of people and also invest it in my business. I sell shoes for a living at Anambra Wholesale Market.”

Anibogwu, who was the final buyer, said she thought Ogbonna was an employee of an orphanage. She said she bought Stanley because she was lonely having lost her husband.

She said amid tears that, “I was married for 28 years without a child. After my husband died, I decided to adopt the child because I was lonely. Someone introduced me to Ogbonna. Ogbonna told me she worked at an orphanage and would sell Stanley to me for N600, 000.

“I used my savings to pay for him and she brought Stanley to a roadside. I took Stanley home and started taking care of him like my own child. I changed his name to Uchenna. Ogbonna promised me that she would give me legal documents later but, unfortunately, I was arrested.”

The Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, urged parents to be vigilant and also advised childless women to go through the formal process of adoption rather than buying children.

She said, “In March 2013, one Caleb Ezeaka reported at Ilemba Hausa Police Division that his son, Stanley, had gone missing the previous day, adding that he was last seen with his neighbour, Adaeze Mba. All efforts to reach the neighbour proved abortive as she and her husband had disappeared and their phones were switched off.

“Through investigations, we traced them to Calabar and they confessed that they had sold him at N400,000 to one Benedicta Ogbonna. We traced Ogbonna to Anambra who then said she had sold him to Patricia Anibogwu for N600,000. So we arrested them all.

“Adaeze and her husband, Chibueze, confessed that they had sold three children to Ogbonna and they were also rescued. One of the children was sold when she was three months old and she is now a year and three months old.”

Gov ordered police to bring my head – Ombatse chief priest

The Chief Priest of the Ombatse cult group in Lakyo, Nasarawa South Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, Ala Agu, on Wednesday said that security men that invaded the community were ordered by the state governor, Alhaji Tanko Al-Makura, to kill him.

The 76-year-old Agu, popularly called Baba Lakyo, spoke with journalists on Wednesday at Lakyo during a visit of Senator Solomon Ewuga (Nasarawa North Senatorial District) to the community.

The chief priest, who spoke through an interpreter, said the security operatives did not come to arrest him, but to kill him “and cut off my head and take it to the governor.”

“It is the governor that asked the people (police officers) to come here and arrest me, cut my head and take my head to him.

“When they came, because they were themselves drunk, my god did not allow them to come to me and they died on the way.

“The question I asked is, ‘has the governor ever invited me and I refused to go?’ If am invited, I will go. But he sent people to come and kill me and to destroy Lakyo as a whole. That is just what it is.”

Al-Makura had rushed to the Presidential Villa, Abuja on May 8, 2013 to brief Vice-President Nnamadi Sambo on the security situation in the state, saying that 20 policemen were killed in Lakyo by cultists.

The governor had said that members of Ombatse laid ambush and killed security agents sent to arrest the members in their shrine.

On Wednesday, Baba Lakyo said that he had never been invited by security agencies, contrary to reports that the police invaded the village after he shunned their invitation.

The chief priest said that he was willing to honour any invitation either by the governor or the police.

Although Lakyo is peaceful, besides the sight of burnt vehicles used by the security men, Agu said he was unhappy with what happened and was apprehensive of what might befall him afterwards.

Ewuga toured Lakyo community, and led reporters to the home of Agu, which represents the “shrine” of the Ombatse.

Agu however denied ever forcing people to join the group through any initiation or drinking of concoction.

“I am grateful for your coming, Senator. I am very, very grateful for your coming. Even if the Senator did not come here, I had intended to go and see him in his house but since he is here, I am very grateful,” he told the senator.

Agu also said that he was in a nearby village when the incident took place only for him to come back to be informed that the governor sent people to come and kill him.

Asked whether the incident had anything to do with the politics of the state, he said, “If you are talking about politics, it does not bother me. I don’t even understand Hausa language. Politics is not for me because I am not a politician. Politics is for politicians but I hear that the time for politicking has not even come.

“If I ever opened my mouth to force anybody to take oath, God should punish me”.

He said that Ombatse was an association of Lakyo boys into which nobody was forced to belong.

He said he was ready to honour any police invitation but insisted that nobody had invited him.

According to him, it is even more saddening that he is being linked to the incident, especially when he knew nothing about what happened to the policemen.

But Al-Makura on Wednesday dismissed Agu’s claim that he was never invited for any meeting.

The governor, who spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Iliya Aliu, in a telephone interview, said it was on record that the head of the cult group did not honour several invitations extended to him.

He said, “It is not true that he was never invited. The Emir of Lafia who is the Chairman of the Nasarawa State Council of Chiefs invited him, he refused to honour it.

“Are Eggon, who is the chief of his area invited him, he refused; the Police, the SSS all invited him before this incident but he refused to honour any of them.

“His followers attacked and killed people in Asakiyo Alago; they went to Arga Migili, Kwadere and did the same.

“No responsible government will sit by and watch such things happen without taking action.

“It was after he refused to answer all of these invitations that the state security council met and decided that he should be arrested.

“Even their name, Ombatse, means it is our turn. Their turn for what?

“In any case, no matter the grievance, no individual or group has the right to kill innocent security officials.

“He and all those responsible must face the consequence of their action.”

The President of the Egon Cultural Development Association, Mr. Chris Mamman, said the only way to get to the root of what happened at Alakyo was for the Federal Government to set up a judicial commission of inquiry.

Ewuga said he decided to tour the affected area as a matter of national responsibility, saying he needed to see things for himself since he is also an Eggon man even though it was not within his senatorial district.

Five nabbed for exhuming corpses, selling human parts

The Lagos State Police Command has arrested five men for allegedly exhuming corpses and selling their parts for ritual purposes.

According to police authorities, the suspects –, Jamiu Adeleke, Ajibade Rafiu, Fatai Akiwowo, Kazeem Sanni and Agboola Kolawole – had at different times sold human parts in Owode, Ogun State.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Lagos State Command, Ngozi Braide, said Adeleke was arrested by the police and through his confession, were able to apprehend the others.

She said, “On May 15, 2013, Adeleke was arrested by operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad while he was trying to sell human hands for N21,000. Upon interrogation, he confessed that he bought the parts from Sanni at the cost of N6,000.

“Police arrested Sanni and he in turn confessed that the eight hands which he sold belonged to his siblings- his two brothers and sisters. He confessed that he went to their graves and cut off their heads. He confessed that he sold the heads for N8,000 each while he sold the hands for N4,000 each.

“Investigations led to the home of an herbalist, Rafiu, who is also the receiver. He uses the human parts for rituals. In his house, police recovered fresh hands which he claimed was meant for jobs for his customers. We also saw a bottle which he said was crushed human skull mixed in fluid. He said it was for power and he uses it to make medicine for people.”

Braide said investigations showed that prior to his arrest, the herbalist had hired some of the suspects to help him get a living human being at the cost of N40,000.

Braide added that Adeleke, who is an Islamic scholar, however, died while trying to escape from police custody.

The suspects, who did not deny the allegations, said they never killed anyone but only exhumed corpses from graveyards.

Kolawole said he went into the business because he needed money to pay his children’s school fees.

He said, “I am a farmer and I live in a graveyard in Owo, Ogun State. In December last year, I went to see my friend and begged him to lend me money to pay my children’s fees. He then said if I could help him to get human skulls, he would pay me N8,000 for each.

“He came to my house at night and after he had exhumed two of the corpses in the graveyards, he gave me N16,000.

“In May, 2013, I needed money to purchase examination form for my child and I went to meet him again. He said he would give me N16, 000 for two more skulls, so he exhumed two more corpses.”

A 25-year-old suspect, Sanni, who claimed to be a commercial motorcycle rider, said he had only exhumed two corpses, adding that he ran out of the business when his clients started demanding for a human being.

He said, “Akinowo told me to get two skulls for him and I did. He gave me N6,000 and N8,000. He later told me to get a live human being for him but when I could not find one, they started disturbing me with telephone calls.  I only sold two skulls.”

The herbalist, Rafiu, said he never exhumed any corpse rather, it was the other suspects that were always pestering him to buy body parts.

Rafiu, who claimed to be 28 years, said he did not use the corpses for money rituals but used it in preparing a potion which people drank for protection.

 “I never sent anyone to supply me human parts. They always bring the parts to my place and beg me to buy,” he said.

Asked what was in the bottle recovered from him, he said, “The bottle I am holding contains a burnt and crushed human skull and schnapps. Anybody who drinks it will be immune to all forms of attack. I have been doing this for about seven years now but I have never drunk the potion. I am even scared to use it.

“I have a wife and child and it is this job I use in sustaining myself.”

Another suspect, Akinowo, said poverty pushed him into the illegal business. Akinowo, who spoke amid tears, said he was paid N8,000 for each body part.

Akinowo said in his statement that he cut the heads of his late brothers and two sisters buried in private graves in his compound and sold them for N8,000 each.

Lady bares her breast on court premises!!

Lady bares her breast on court premises!!

In a desperate attempt to draw attention to her misfortune, Esther Odozi, 21, bared her breasts on Monday on the premises of Ikeja Magistrate’s Court as she protested against hunger that was “killing her and the five children” she left back home in Agbor Owanta, Delta State.
Odozi laid half-unclad on a road in the court shouting, “Hunger, hunger. Government must do something today. I have not received anything from the plenty crude oil money government is spending in our state. Nigerians are wicked.”

She impeded movement on the premises. Passersby were astonished. One of them, who did not state her name but said she was a lawyer, told our correspondent that Odozi abused the “temple of womanhood.”

Odozi shunned passersby who shouted at her to cover herself as she rolled on the ground. She revealed wounds on her left leg and the right side of her hips; she said she was hit by a car. She refused a N500 given to her by a passerby, saying, “I don’t want your money. I want Fashola to give me N200, 000.”
When our correspondent approached her, she said, “After confronting serious hardship in my state, I was advised by an official of Human Rights Commission in Delta to go to Human Rights Commission in Abuja. I also went to Police Headquarters and NAPTIP (National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons) in Abuja. They all told me to go to Lagos; they said that is where I could get help.”

“My husband, Donald Ogbaja, was a retired policeman before he died of hunger. He married me when I was 17. I bore five children, including twins for him.”
Odozi said she tried to survive on her own by cultivating some crops. She, however, said she was hit by a car and had been hindered by her injury to continue working on her farm.

She said, “I will not leave this court without seeing N200,000 to start business. I want to sell melon and garri. Tell Emmanuel Uduaghan, the governor of my state, and the Federal Government to do something about my condition. They must give me part of the petrol money. I must take care of my five children.”
When she was asked that as a young woman, didn’t she feel ashamed to bare her breast? She answered, “I don’t have anything and I don’t have anything to hide anymore.

2,000 flee Borno to Niger Republic

More than 2,000 Nigerians living in border villages in Borno State have reportedly fled as a result of the ongoing military operations targeted at routing insurgents from the area under the emergency rule.

The fleeing villagers were said to have headed to the neighbouring Niger Republic.

“Most of the residents of border villages of Borno have fled to Niger. About 2,000 people from Abadan, Malam Fatori and other villages are now refugees in Difa, Niger Republic,” a top security officer told one of our correspondents on Sunday.

The source said that the Joint Military Task Force was on the trail of members of the Boko Haram sect, who were dislodged from the Sambisa Game Reserve and other camps on Thursday in Borno State.

It was learnt that residents of Maiduguri and other communities far from the border, who did not want to be caught in the cross-fire had also fled to some neighbouring states, including Kano and Bauchi.

The Director of Defence Information, Defence Headquarters, Brig.-Gen. Chris Olukolade, could not confirm whether the Nigerian villagers had fled to Niger Republic.

 “I will have to find out,” he said.

As the time of sending this report, he had yet to comment on the development.

Also, Nigerian Immigration Public Relations Officer, Ekpedeme King, promised to find out if any Nigerian villagers fled to Niger Republic.

However, he did not respond to subsequent calls and a text message sent to his phone.

Olukolade, in a statement on Sunday, said, “A total of 20 terrorists were apprehended as they fled. Altogether, three soldiers died, while seven are wounded and are being treated in military medical facility, one soldier is missing.”

According to Olukolade, patrols are also ongoing to secure towns and villages from infiltration by the terrorists.

He added that the curfews imposed on identified flashpoints were being enforced.

The military spokesman said that dislodged terrorists had been in disarray with a large number of them heading for various borders.

He said, “Their bases are being deserted but they are making efforts to evacuate most of the large stock of logistics, including scores of vehicles in their holdings.

“In the course of special forces and operations, a number of encounters have ensued since yesterday (Saturday).”

The military had on Saturday said 10 Boko Haram members were killed, while 65 others were arrested during encounters with the terrorists on Friday.

On Sunday, Olukolade said, “The required reinforcement and logistics have been delivered to forces in fronts where they have been engaging a large number of heavily armed terrorists since yesterday.

“Defence Headquarters is quite satisfied with the high standard of compliance with operational order and strict observance of the rules of engagement so far.

“The forces have been directed to maintain the robustness of the patrols and enforcement of curfews where emplaced and ensure that civilians are kept out of harms as much as possible.”

A 24-hour curfew had on Saturday been imposed in parts of the city of Maiduguri.

In Adamawa State, the curfew imposed in parts of the state has been biting harder on residents, especially those living in the capital city, Yola, and the border towns of Mubi and Maiha.

A resident of Jimeta-Yola, Ms. Rifkatu Iliya, who spoke to one of our correspondents on the telephone, said, “The curfew is still on and we are learning to live with it, those of us who go to work leave earlier than usual so that we are not caught up.

“For those who are trading, it is more difficult because their trading hours have been reduced to between three to five hours a day.

“I will be lying if I say we are not living in fear, we have heard of the atrocities of Boko Haram in some parts of the state and we have seen an increase in the number of security forces.”

But a security source in Yola, who asked not to be named because she was not authorised to speak to the media on the issue, said the military crackdown, had been concentrated in Borno.

The source said, “The military operations are targeted largely at terrorist training camps and strongholds in Borno.

“However, we in Adamawa are also on the alert because we are aware that the insurgents who are under intense pressure in Borno may want to seek a safe haven here.

“We are under instructions not to allow this to happen.

“The pains of the checkpoints and the curfew are temporary; residents will have to bear with us.”

I gave Obasanjo N100m for 1999 elections –Kalu

Former Governor of Abia State, Orji Uzor Kalu, has said he gave  ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo N100m to run his campaign in 1999.

He said he gave another N100m to the Peoples Democratic Party prior to the 1999 elections.

The former governor said this as ‘Guest of the Week’ on a Kaduna-based Liberty FM radio programme on Saturday.

He said, “I made millions before joining politics. I was doing business between Maiduguri and the East. I carried fish from Maiduguri to the East and palm oil from the East to Maiduguri. So, I had money and invested so much in the PDP.

“If the party is a company, I would have been a major  shareholder. I and (Saminu) Turaki spent more on the party than any other Nigerian. How much did (President Goodluck) Jonathan have before he became the President? I was the first to give the party N100m to register. I was also the first to give Obasanjo N100m to campaign during the 1999 election.”

On the frosty relationship between him and Obasanjo, Kalu said things fell apart between him and the former leader when he discovered that Obasanjo was deceiving Nigerians.

Kalu said, “I fell apart with Obasanjo on the issue of third term. He wanted to be a life President. Nobody can tell me that Obasanjo was not interested in a third term. Huge money was involved in the project.  Two senators from my state came with the money and I asked them to return it.

“It was the then President of America, George Bush, who genuinely derailed the third term agenda. I told Bush about it and that is why Obasanjo hates me. Bush told him that it was not possible in a constitutional democracy. I try to avoid him (Obasanjo) at public functions.”

On the 2015 election, Kalu said, “People should stop imposing the President on Nigerians. Let the people chose their President.

“Igbo are going to vote for Igbo in 2015. Jonathan has the constitutional right to run but he is not an Igbo man. There are many qualified Igbo men. I am not saying I’m running for President now but there are possibilities that other Igbo men are thinking about that. Northerners should support us for the presidency in 2015 because we supported (Shehu) Shagari. We supported (Umaru) Yar’Adau, (Yakubu) Gowon and Tafawa Balewa,”  Kalu added.

He said his return to PDP was to give the party a second chance and to see if he could make positive changes in the party.

On the state of emergency declared by the President on three North-East states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa,  Kalu said the declaration was nothing but a movement of troops from one place to another, adding that the security chiefs did not advise the President properly.

He said the President should have allowed the amnesty committee to work for at least three months before declaring the state of emergency.

The former governor said, “I am for amnesty. The President should have allowed the amnesty committee at least three months. He shouldn’t have made any announcement. There is nothing like state of emergency but just a movement of troops. Jonathan is not that wicked to be playing politics with human life. Let’s remove politics or 2015 from this thing.”

However, Obasanjo’s Media Assistant, Vitalis Ortese, said the former President would not join issues with “Kalu who has credibility and integrity deficit.”

He said, “This is a man who is known to have stuffed paper as money in a bag and donated it at a public function in Maiduguri. He has no credibility and integrity. So, we will not like to join issues with him.

“He is only trying to cover his lack of credibility by seeking to join issues with someone, who clearly is not in his level or class. He is only seeking relevance. Good luck to him.”

Boko Haram Gunmen Cart Away Over N200 Million From First Bank, Access Bank, Keystone Bank, Unity Bank In Daura Attack

Boko Haram Gunmen Cart Away Over N200 Million From First Bank, Access Bank, Keystone Bank, Unity Bank In Daura Attack

Fresh facts have emerged that raw cash worth over N200 million were carted away by Boko Haram insurgents numbering over 200 who invaded the hometown of former Head of state, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari between Thursday night and the early hours of friday during which they attacked four banks namely First bank, Access bank, Keystone bank and Unity bank.


The Brigade Commander, 3rd Brigade of the Nigeria Army , Bukavu,Brigadie­r Illysu Abbah who briefed the media on the incident in Kano today confirmed that security agencies that suffered heavy casualties in the attack were able to recover some assorted arms and ammunition used by the insurgents. He listed them to include 11 AK47 rifles, 73 magazines, 275 rounds of 7.62 ammunition , 118 rounds of FNW ammunition , 141 rounds of 9 mm ammunition , 1 smoke gun , two vehicles and various improvised explosive devices.

“The Brigade would like to also like to advise financial institutions with outstations outside of the state capitals to always leave minimal unattractive cash in their vaults at the end of a business day as terrorists are in need of cash” he stressed. The Brigade would like to reassure the general public of the determination of the Unit and other security agencies to protect the lives and property of the law abiding citizens” he added.

The insurgents were said to have used IEDs to blow off the entrances and vaults of the banks where they looted millions of cash. In the attack, Access bank alone was said to have lost over N34 million, First bank over N70 million, Unity bank over N40 million and Keystone bank over N40 million.

Food prepared with Indian hemp gives me inspiration ~Pastor Ezeigbo

Food prepared with Indian hemp gives me inspiration ~Pastor Ezeigbo

~asks anybody to show him where it was written in the bible that thou should not cook with Indian

The General Overseer of a Pentecostal Church in Owerri, Imo state, was recently nabbed by men of the Imo State police Command for his alleged involvement in various kidnappings in the state. Pastor Clement Ezeigbo, who is currently cooling his heels in the police Anti Kidnap Unit of the state police command, shocked the detectives when a bundle of Indian hemp was found in his church.

However, Ezeigbo told the police that, “I don’t know anything about kidnapping but I am the owner of the Indian hemp (Igbo) but the good thing is that I don’t smoke it, I use it to prepare my food. I enjoy eating food prepared with Indian hemp. I don’t think there is anything wrong when you use Indian hemp to prepare your food; it gives inspiration and it makes one have sober reflection and that is why I recommend it to my Church members. I preach to my members against smoking it but I encourage them to cook their food with hemp.

“Some of my members do prepare some delicacies with it, which they serve me. I love Indian hemp because after eating Indian hemp, it gives me inspiration,
then when I mount the pulpit, you will notice the efficacy of hemp.....Let any man show me where it was written in the bible that thou should not cook with Indian hemp.

Teacher arrested for fondling 14-year-old pupil

A 24-year-old teacher, Phillip Ebong, was arrested on Wednesday by the Gowon Estate Police Division, Akowonjo, Lagos, for allegedly victimising a 14-year-old pupil (name withheld) and banning her from attending his classes.

Ebong, who teaches Physics and Chemistry at the Dee Jewels International College, Gowon Estate, Egbeda, was arrested during school hours after a complaint was lodged at the police station by Spaces for Change, a non-governmental organisation on youth development, on behalf of the pupil and her guardian, Mrs. Theresa Amaechi.

A copy of the petition made available to PUNCH Metro revealed that Ebong began harassing the victim from the first day of her enrolment in the school in January 2013.

The petition read, “On repeated occasions, Ebong invited the victim to the staff room informing her of his desire to have an intimate relationship with her. Consequently, the victim became a regular visitor to the staff room during break periods.

“On such visits, he made sexual advances to her which often involved kissing and hugging. Several times, Ebong followed her home, waiting at the gate to avoid being seen by her guardian.”

The petition alleged that under much pressure from Ebong, the victim eventually invited the teacher to her guardians’ home while they were away.

Ebong was alleged to have cajoled her to expose her private part, after fondling her breasts and kissing her.

It was said the harassment became too persistent, that the victim allegedly earned the title, “Uncle Phillip’s wife,” among her classmates and friends.

Amaechi told PUNCH Metro, “The victim is a timid girl. I did not know the extent of the harassment she was facing until she opened up to me last Friday. Earlier, she had told me Ebong was asking her for a relationship and I told her to reject his advances. I thought it would stop at that.

“I was shocked when she told me last week that she was no longer interested in staying in the science class; she wanted to switch to the arts and when I asked why, she said it was because Ebong had banned her from his classes.

“Apparently, she had told him that I was aware that he had asked her for a sexual relationship. The revelation angered him. He even went as far as threatening that she would fail her examinations,”

As of the time of Ebong’s arrest, the school principal was said to be busy as the SSS III students were taken the WAEC examination.

However the school proprietor, identified as Mrs. Azubuike, who was alerted to the development, rushed down to the school. She said the victim never made a formal report to the school.

She said, “We don’t condone such acts here. Had we been informed on time, we would have taken appropriate action.”

When confronted, Ebong allegedly denied the accusation. He blamed the entire situation on his interest in his students’ success.

He said, “I am close to all my students; that is what I was taught in the College of Education that a teacher had to be friendly. I just took an interest in the victim because I noticed she was not taking her homework seriously. All this talk of my touching and kissing her, they are all lies. I admit going to her house but it was because I wanted to see her guardian.”

Executive Director of Spaces for Change, Mrs. Victoria Ibezim-Ohaeri, said Amaechi came to her with the case on the same day her ward confided in her.

She said, “We are prepared to seek legal redress in the court should the school and police fail to investigate this matter and exercise full disciplinary action against Ebong.

“Our investigation has also shown that there are other students currently being abused by this same Ebong.

“These acts of misconduct are not only indicative of poor supervision and negligence on the part of the school authorities, but also amount to continuing breeches of the victim’s fundamental human rights.”

As of press time, PUNCH Metro gathered that the police had obtained statements from the victim’s classmates and friends.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ngozi Braide, when contacted, said, “I will let you know when I have the full details.”

Woman Declared Wanted 10 years Ago Found In His Son's Wardrobe

S-H-O-C-K-I-N-G­!
Woman Declared Wanted 10 years Ago Found In His Son's Wardrobe.
The police in Imo State have arrested one ChimezieOsuigwe­, a retired vice-principal,­ for the alleged murder of his 78-year-old mother in 2003.

Osuigwe was arrested after the embalmed body of the septuagenarian was discovered in a cupboard at his house by a family member as reported by Hope For Nigeria yesterday.

According to Mr Musa Katsina, the Commissioner of Police in Imo, the woman, Mrs Lucy Osuigwe, was declared missing since 2003.

Katsina told newsmen at the house in Ejemekuru in Oguta Local Government Area on Monday that the embalmed body had been kept in that condition since 2003.

“The corpse of Mrs Lucy Osuigwe, who was declared missing in 2003 was found in a large cupboard inside a shrine in a private room in a circumstance depicting ritual practice.

“The embalmed body, which was kept in that condition for about 10 years is believed to have been placed in the wardrobe by her son, Dr ChimezieOsuigwe­, a devotee of the Guru Maharaji Sect.

“Preliminary assessment of the scene of crime revealed that the woman must have been murdered by the son for ritual purposes,” he said.

The commissioner said that plans were on to arrest other members of the sect who visit Osuigwe’s shrine.

He said the body would be handed over to the forensic team of the command to determine the cause of death.

He also said the suspect would be held for first degree murder until the cause of death was established.

Rhodes-Vivour: 100 policemen comb kidnappers’ hideouts

Commissioner of Police in Edo State, Mr. Foluso Adebanjo, said the command had deployed no fewer than 1,000 police officers, consisting of anti-kidnapping, mobile units and Special Anti-Robbery Squad in suspected kidnappers’  hideouts in the state in an effort to rescue the wife and daughter of a judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour.

Adebanjo, who spoke in Benin on Monday, however, declined to give details of what the command had done for security reasons.

The wife and daughter of the judge were abducted on Friday in the Okada area of Edo State.

He told journalists that since the kidnapping occurred, he had devoted most of his time  to working on strategies that would ensure that the victims were  released safely.

The CP said, “I can tell you that we are working assiduously to locate the victims and then arrest the criminals.

“Believe me, all our striking units – SARS, anti-kidnapping, mobile units – have been in that area since that day. I am just coming from there.

“I will not want to say much because so far, they have not been released. But we are in contact with the family.

“We don’t want to jeopardise what we are doing because they (kidnappers) too read the (news)papers. So,  it will not be nice to tell you this is what we are doing.

“We don’t want to jeopardise their safety which is paramount; their families would want them to be brought back safely.”

Adebanjo confirmed that the Rhodes-Vivours were kidnapped in the state.

“It is in Edo State, near Okada area,” he said.

He added that the policemen had combed “the evil forest.”

Adebanjo added,  “I have been there with about 100  men, comprising  mobile policemen, SARS, anti-kidnapping and other officers.

“For Iruekpen area, I was there about a week ago and we have mapped out strategies. If you have been following us, last week, we killed two of the suspected robbers in a gun battle with our me.

“When they were robbing, there was a distress call and our men gunned down two of them. And we have arrested so many too.”

Nigeria sliding into lawlessness –Sultan

Sultan of Sokoto and President-General of the Jama’atu Nasril Islam, Alhaji Muhammad Abubakar III, on Sunday decried the killings in Bama in Borno State and Alakyo in Nasarawa State by insurgents.

Abubakar, also the President of Nigeria Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs, noted that with the killings in Bama and Lafia, it had been shown that the nation was sliding gradually into lawlessness.

The Bama and Lafia incidents mostly involved security agents.

A statement on behalf of the Sultan by the JNI Secretary-General, Dr. Khalid Aliyu, on Sunday in Kaduna described the incidents as quite “unfortunate, regrettable and condemnable.”

It cautioned all and sundry to be wary of happenings around their vicinity and inform authorities of doubtful persons and events, just as it urged Nigerians to give unflinching support to the Federal Government Amnesty Committee to tackle the insecurity in the North and the country at large.

The statement also implored law enforcement agencies to ensure that the rules of engagements were professionally employed in curbing insurgencies so as to minimise collateral damages.

It read, “The JNI and the Sultan lament this sorry state of affairs in strongest terms. The nation seems to be gradually sliding into lawlessness, leading to multiple losses of lives.

“The JNI, therefore, calls on all and sundry to be wary of happenings around them and take proactive measures by reporting to appropriate authorities doubtful persons and events.”

It added, “It is quite unfortunate, regrettable and condemnable that, after the unfortunate Baga massacre, which should have been the last of such attacks at these times, a more devastating attack would be unleashed on innocent citizens of Bama in Borno State, and would continue unabated for a number of days.”

Meanwhile, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian of God. Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has enjoined Christians in the northern part of the country to be steadfast in the belief that Nigeria will overcome the security challenges facing the country.

Adeboye, who gave the admonition at the 2013 Northern Ministers and Workers Conference of the church at Redemption Camp, Kassa, Plateau State on Sunday, said on no account should they allow insecurity to separate them from God.

SEE The Face Of Ombaste Militia Informant , Corporal Enugu

**Corporal Enugu is a serving Corporal in the Nasarawa State Police Command.
**Corporal Enugu is an Eggon man and also a member of the deadly traditional group.
**leaked every steps made by the security operatives, to the militias.

Over 43 policemen and other security agencies were killed by the Eggon militias known as Ombaste in Nasarawa State, a situation that has shocked not only the Nasarawa People but also the entire country as a whole.

However the face of the Informant to Militia has been exposed by the Nasarawa State Police Command.

According to our reporter in Lafia the Nasarawa State Capital, the Nasarawa state police Command today paraded the informant to the Eggon militant group.

According to the Command the said informant is a serving Corporal in the Nasarawa State Police Command. The police also revealed his name as Corporal Enugu today.

However,investigation by our reporter also confirms that Corporal Enugu is an Eggon man and also a member of the deadly traditional group that led to the death of over 43 of his colleagues including men of the State Security Services, SSS and Civil Defence.

It was also gathered that the said Enugu leaked every steps made by the security operatives, to the militias which also led to the ambush and disappearance of some policemen.

How Ombatse ‘Cult’ Group Killed Scores Of Security Agents In Nasarawa-PREMIUM TIMES

Security leaders in Abuja were late Thursday scratching their heads, trying to make sense of how a militia group in Nasarawa State, the Ombatse, that built a fierce loyalty through blood oaths, killed over 55 police officers and 10 operatives of the Directorate of State Security.
Part of the puzzle, knowledgeable sources told PREMIUM TIMES, was how the security officers were lured into a cruel ambush, dispossessed of their weapons, brutally murdered, and then burnt into cold ash.
“It is the most cold blooded act I have witnessed against the law enforcement community in my three decades in the force” a senior police officer in Lafia, capital of Nasarawa State, told PREMIUM TIMES struggling to conceal bitter groans.
Other puzzles include who authorized the ill-fated operation in the first place, both at the police end, and at the Directorate of State Security end, which cost both institutions of the team leaders of the operation.
Deputy Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mbah, describing the event as an act of impunity in Abuja on Thursday, adds that “enough is enough,’’ promising also that the police will track down the killers, which robbed the institution of its operational chief in the state, Mohammed Momoh, an Assistant Commissioner of police who hails from Kogi State.
Force headquarters also repudiated earlier claims Thursday that the Nasarawa State Police Commissioner, Abayomi Akeremale, due for retirement at the end of the month, had been placed on suspension, and that the operational coordination of the crisis had been handed over to a deputy Inspector General of police from Abuja.
The DSS, on its part, would not confirm its casualty to PREMIUM TIMES; merely saying it had deployed a search and rescue team to determine fatalities of its operatives on the assignment.
However, sources in Lafia disclosed that the Nasarawa state director of the Service has been recalled to Abuja and placed under “some preliminary punitive sanction while full investigations is apace,” evidence, according to the sources, that he might have over-reached his powers in ordering such a high level operation without the mandatory clearance and approval from Abuja.
Eight operatives and two drivers of the agency were reportedly killed in the operation, including the team leader, a mid career officer, thought to have been “obviously saddled with an assignment beyond his pay grade.”
PREMIUM TIMES also gathered that the local army unit declined to join on the Tuesday mission citing the need for higher authorization. Police and security sources in Lafia have so far been mute on civilian casualties, but the broader narrative of the Nasarawa tragedy, late Tuesday, pointed more on the role of the Nasarawa state administration, its desire to calm rising political temperature in the state, the fear that the Eggon militias bore the marks of a nascent terror movement, and the pressure it put on the security forces to initiate the Tuesday raid.
Security sources said the state administration triggered the initial petition to the DSS and the police on the presumed nefarious role of the militia.
Based on the security report from the DSS, PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the police proceeded to build an armada of 13-truck load of men late Tuesday on a mission to Asakio village to disrupt a planned oath ceremony of the group, destroy the shrine, which houses the shrine of Ombatse cult, a deity of the Eggon people, and to arrest its spiritual leader.
Police sources and officials in the state administration, in Lafia, who sought anonymity told PREMIUM TIMES that just ten kilometers out of Lafia, what set out as a clandestine operation came upon an ambush, well laid out by the Eggon attackers, who took on the security convoy ultimately turning their mission into a monstrous killing field.
“This was planned as a clandestine operation for which resources in men and materials were mobilized from different units of the Lafia command, and for which almost none of the men in the convoy knew their destination. Now how it all ended so terribly, that the cultists would anticipate and wreck this kind of attack on security people speak volumes of either infiltration or mission betrayal” a distraught police officer told PREMIUM TIMES in Lafia.

Mission of the police
Yet the Eggon crisis that led to this tragedy was not a new phenomenon. The militia forces attacked Agyaragu community in December last year, which led to the death of ten persons of Koro extraction including a traditional ruler.
That attack led to the banning of the group by the government of Nassarawa State in an official gazette. Also last year, soldiers reportedly stormed the shrine in the group’s ancestral home in Nassarawa-Eggon local government and dispersed them, forcing the cult’s leader and some of his members to migrate to Asakio.
But while at Asakio, the group soon began having difficult relationship with the dominant Arago tribe leading to skirmishes and perennial loss of lives.
Some residents of Lafia who spoke to PREMIUM TIMES painted the picture of a powerful group that has members in many establishments in the state, and which built a tight loyal core through an oath administered on members at the Ombatse shrine, called “the Mbase.” The oath, observers of the group claimed, was always the prism through which members sought to read presumed injustice in political power, and sought to restructure the political and power landscape in Nasarawa State.
Persons who took the Ombatse oath, and swore to its loyalty pledge, were therefore assured of presumed “invisibility to bullets,” PREMIUM TIMES learnt.
Tuesday’s raid was an attempt by the state government, using the security agencies to break the nerve of the group.
According to Eggon News, a local newspaper, the Ombatse, which means ‘time has come,’ was founded by six people. They include Alaku Ehe, Zabura Musa Akwanshiki, Shuaibu Alkali, Hassan Musa Zico Kigbu, Iliyasu Hassan Gyabo and Abdullahi Usman.
Mr. Zico was quoted in a chat with Eggon News as saying the group was born from a revelation through a dream where their ancestors directed them to “rise up and cleanse the land of societal ills such as adultery, fornication, drunkenness, theft, and killings.”
Sources in Lafia informed PREMIUM TIMES that politics may be behind the oath of secrecy, initiation and violence by the group. They said the Eggon people are primarily based in Nassarawa-Eggon and Akwanga Local Governments, but added that “they are spread in almost all parts of the state”.
They also said despite their numbers and perceived influence, the Eggon have not been able to produce the governor.
“The Ombatse therefore, pledged that come 2015 they will not be kingmakers, but must produce the king themselves.” said Salisu, a resident of Lafia.
Throwing more light, Mr. Salisu said the group felt that they were unable to produce the governor because they are not united and are always fighting each other, hence, he said, “I am not surprised they are taking an oath this time around.”
To buttress his point Mr. Salisu said “Look at Labaran Maku (Information Minister) and (Solomon) Ewuga (a senator), they are both Eggons, very influential, but hardly see eye to eye politically.”