A 13-year-old girl (names withheld) was allegedly abducted and defiled by a man identified as Prince in the Ogbogoro community in the Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.

It was gathered that the suspect, popularly known as Don P, defiled the girl for two days after she was abducted in a lonely area and took her to his house on Monday evening.

The mother of the assaulted teenager, who gave her name as Ify, said she sent her daughter on an errand when the incident happened.

The distraught woman stated, “I sent my 13-year-old daughter to go and buy charcoal and leaf for me on Monday around 5pm. But I waited till 8pm I didn’t see her. So, I became worried.

“So, I, my son and my husband’s brother started looking for her. I went to the place where they were selling leaves and charcoal and was told they had not seen my daughter.

“We continued searching for her street-to-street till Wednesday morning around 12pm when we saw our daughter running towards us and holding my son. We immediately asked her where she had been and why she was running. She said one man was pursuing her.

“We asked her to take us to where the man named Prince is staying around what they call the White House area in Ogbogoro.

“We saw the brother and he said he was the one who took and held our daughter for two days while she was on an errand.

“I checked my daughter as a mother and she has been touched. I’m calling on the government and police to arrest this man to pay for what he did to my daughter.”

Meanwhile, a rights group, the Centre for Basic Rights Protection And Accountability Campaign, said the parents of the teenage girl contacted them three days after the incident, saying the matter had been reported to the Ozuoba Police Division.

The National Coordinator of the group, Prince Wiro, said, “The police should ensure the immediate arrest of the suspect for him to be held accountable for his alleged crime.

“We also express worry about the safety of young girls in Ogbogoro as the incident seems to be a recurring one considering the fact that a similar incident happened on February 15, 2024, in the same Ogbogoro where a 42-year-old man and two of his gang members abducted and took a 12-year-old girl to an uncompleted building where she was defiled for days.

“The police must ensure that such incidents do not become a norm in that area.”

When contacted, the spokesperson for the state Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, said she would find out and get back to our correspondent.

She had yet to revert as of the time of filing this report.

The Rivers State Police Command has announced the arrest of 26 suspected car snatchers, including five ex-convicts, after busting a syndicate involved in stealing cars and selling them to ready buyers outside the state.

The police stated that the arrest followed several reports of stolen cars, including some snatched from victims at gunpoint within and outside Port Harcourt.

Also, a fake police Inspector was apprehended, and three luxury cars were recovered from him.

The state Commissioner of Police, Olatunji Disu, disclosed this while parading the suspects and the recovered cars before newsmen shortly after a media briefing at the command headquarters in Port Harcourt.

Disu expressed satisfaction with the arrests, stressing that the apprehension of Chidozie Anthony Onyekwe and Kelechi Uzogwe, who were identified as leaders of the syndicate, was a result of the command’s quick deployment of its tactical unit and investigators.

He stated, “Today, I’m very happy to inform you that about 26 suspects who specialise in stealing vehicles, robbing motorists, and snatching their cars have been arrested.

“Our greatest joy is the arrest of Chidozie Anthony Onyekwe and Kelechi Uzogwe. Chidozie is the leader of persons who come into Rivers State to steal cars. Not only does he come in here, but he also trained his men well before bringing them to come and perpetrate their crimes here. He is linked to all the other suspects arrested at one time or the other over this same crime of stealing cars.

“At the same time, Kelechi Uzogwe is an expert in removing trackers from vehicles. Almost all the vehicles stolen from Rivers State must pass through Kelechi for him to remove the trackers for them. He is also a mechanic and rewires at the same time.

“Most of these cars stolen are taken to Anambra, Kano, and some find their way outside the country. The cars were taken to Mgbuka-Obosi, Onitsha in Obosi in Anambra State where they are cut to pieces and sold as scraps.”

The CP further disclosed, “In total, 79 stolen vehicles have been linked to these arrested suspects. The funny thing is that most of these suspects met while they were in the Correctional Centre. About five of them are ex-convicts.”

Explaining how the suspects steal and move the vehicles, Disu mentioned that they possess master keys which have been recovered from them.

He added, “How do they drive these cars out of town? They quickly convert them to commercial vehicles, go to motor parks, pick up passengers, and drive out of town with passengers. Almost all the cars recovered have their trackers removed by Kelechi.

“We have for you two sets of people who wait for them to receive the cars, buy the vehicles immediately, and take them away.

“Some of the receivers even come into town with them, tell them the kind of cars they want them to steal. They steal and hand them to the receivers who pay them off to seal the business.”

CP Disu also disclosed the arrest of a fake police Inspector and the recovery of three posh cars from him, stating that the suspect was a former Police Sergeant dismissed after being indicted in a kidnap case in 2021.

He stated, “The command commenced an investigation in response to a report filed on the 11th of August 2023, by one Fibika Kingsley that his Lexus EX330 had been stolen at gunpoint along Agip road by five gunmen.’’

“The investigations led to the arrest of one Monday Igbali, aged 43, a native of Okwuzi in the Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni LGA of Rivers State.

“He is a former Police Sergeant who was dismissed after being indicted in a kidnapping case in 2021.

“Since his dismissal, he has continued to parade himself as a police officer, even claiming to be an Inspector of Police, a rank he did not attain before his dismissal.

“He works with a gang of five, with four gang members still at large.

“He has robbed a total of nine cars and sold them between N1.3m and N2.5m each. He was arrested on the 8th of March 2024, at his home in Chokocho, Etche after the police conducted due surveillance following investigations. We have recovered three cars from him: a Lexus 330, Lexus IS250, and Toyota Highlander.”

The police in Ogun State have arrested two persons suspected to be members of a gang of one-chance robbers in the Ewekoro Local Government Area of the state.

One-chance robbers are criminals who operate with a vehicle, disguise themselves as drivers and passengers and pick up unsuspecting passengers whom they forcibly rob of their belongings.

The police said the suspects, identified as Aliu Oyetola, aged 35, and 40-year-old Seyi Afolabi, were members of a four-man gang of ‘one-chance robbers’ terrorising residents of Sango Ota and its environs.

Oyetola and Afolabi were said to have been arrested by the policemen attached to Sango Ota while on routine patrol around Itori, the headquarters of Ewekoro on Thursday.

The police were said to have been on the trail of the gang after a victim reported how she was robbed on March 23, 2024, by the suspects, losing over N320,000 to the terrible experience.

The spokesman of the state police command, SP Omolola Odutola, who disclosed this in a statement on Friday, said, “The victim boarded a Toyota Corolla taxi at Ijako market, going to Itori, with four men who surreptitiously posed as fellow passengers in the said taxi.

“While on the way, the said men robbed the victim of her valuables, by forcibly dispossessing her of her smartphone valued at N85,000, a cash sum of N123,000, and a separate cash sum of N105,000 and subsequently pushed her out of the car and fled.

“Acting on the report, the DPO Sango Ota Division gave his surveillance team a matching order to be on the lookout, and unravel the perpetrators of the crime.”

She explained further that on March 28, 2024, while the police were on surveillance on Itori road, a Toyota Corolla which the gang usually used to operate was approaching the police but it suddenly stopped and the occupants fled in different directions.

The policemen were, however, said to have given them “a hot chase and succeeded in arresting Oyetola and Afolabi, while a blue Toyota Corolla marked, GGE 659 FR, was recovered.

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Anambra State Command, has arrested three suspected oil thieves operating in the state.

The state Commandant of the NSCDC, Olatunde Maku, during the parade of the suspects, on Friday, vowed to step up the fight against crude oil theft, illegal oil bunkering and petroleum products black market racketeering in Anambra.

Maku said the operation was carried out by the joint operating team of the anti-vandalism squad of the command, headed by ACC Chinenye Chinwez,e and the Nigerian Navy.

He said, “The three suspects: Okechukwu Okeke, ‘m’ aged 28, from Ojoto, Idemili South; Emeka Chukwuma, ‘m’ aged 34, from Akili-Ozizor, Ogbaru, both in Anambra State; and Ifunanya Ike, ‘m’ aged 29, of Mbano, Imo State, respectively, were arrested on Thursday, March 28, along Atani Road in Odekpe community in Ogbaru.

“They were conveying 65 kegs of 25 litres each of suspected adulterated automotive gas oil estimated to be about 1,625 litres in two shuttle buses – one a white coloured bus with plate number, Anambra AWK 429 XY, and an ash coloured bus with registration number, Anambra GDD277XB.

“Preliminary investigation carried out revealed the illegally refined products were loaded at Ogbakuma community and headed to Okoti community both in Ogbaru of Anambra.

“I want to commend the Nigerian Navy for their support in the fight against criminality in the state. This type of synergy is what is needed to wage a full-scale war against perpetrators of the heinous crime.”

He further stated that the NSCDC, as the “lead agency in the protection of critical national assets and infrastructure,” remained focused on freeing Anambra State of illegal petroleum products racketeering and other related criminalities.

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have detained a 35-year-old lady, Chidinma Chinenye-Agbazue, after she was caught attempting to export 20 parcels of Cannabis Sativa weighing 10.70kg to Doha, Qatar through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos State.

The illicit drugs were said to have been concealed in African salad popularly called Abacha; and dried vegetables.

The operation was carried out in conjunction with operatives of the Department of State Services.

The anti-narcotics operatives also reportedly rejected a N5m bribe from another suspect in Lagos State.

The spokesperson for the NDLEA, Femi Babafemi, revealed the development in a statement on Sunday while detailing arrests and recoveries made by the agency over the past week.

Babafemi said, “Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have detained a 35-year-old lady, Chidinma Chinenye-Agbazue after she was caught attempting to export 20 parcels of cannabis sativa weighing 10.70kg concealed in African salad popularly called Abacha and dried vegetables to Doha, Qatar through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja Lagos state.

“NDLEA officers at the Lagos airport working in partnership with men of the Department of State Services had on Thursday, March 28 intercepted Chidinma, an outbound passenger from Lagos to Doha, on Qatar Airways during clearance of passengers at the screening point of Terminal 11 of the MMIA.

“Preliminary investigation revealed that Chidinma was based in Qatar but returned to Nigeria last December for Christmas celebration. She said preparatory to her return to Doha, she was lodged at Club Dice Hotel in Ikotun area of Lagos where the consignment was handed over to her for trafficking to the Arab country,”

A man identified as Sunday Ogah from Benue State has drowned in the Eyinwa River in the Odogbolu Local Government Area of Ogun State.

This threw the Eyinwa community into disarray on Saturday as PUNCH Online learnt that the incident occurred at about noon when Ogah, who was said to have accompanied his friend, Otusanya Abayomi, to the community, visited the river to have fun.

A source who was privy to the incident told PUNCH Online that the victim did not tell his friend before he left for the river to swim.

The Public Relations Officer, Ogun State Police Command, Omolola Odutola, confirmed the incident and told our correspondent that efforts were ongoing to retrieve Ogah’s corpse and inform his relatives about the incident.

She said, “It was a disheartening afternoon for people of Eyinwa Community in Odogbolu Local Government Area of Ogun State where one Otusanya Abayomi’m’ of Igbe Ilara Ikorodu, Lagos State, reported at Odogbolu Divisional Police Station that at about 1200hrs today, March 30, 2024, he came with his friend, one Sunday, Ogah’m’, an Igede man from Benue State to his community.

“He stated further that his friend left him and others at an unknown destination without notifying anyone. Information later got to him that the said Sunday Ogah’m’ had gone to swim at the Eyinwa River, where he got drowned.

“Upon the receipt of the information, the DPO Odogbolu detailed surveillance police officers in collaboration with some local divers to locate the corpse, but their efforts proved abortive.”

The command further warned fun seekers, visitors and other residents of the state to steer clear of swimming in rivers whose depths are unpredictable.

“The Commissioner of Police, Ogun State Police Command, CP Alamutu Abiodun, while extending his deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased during this difficult time, assured that the Command remains committed to promoting public safety and preventing such tragedies in the future,” Odutola added via WhatsApp message.

This is not the first time visitors and fun-seekers will drown in a river in Ogun State.

In August 2023, two fun-seekers from Lagos State drowned in a river at Itori, Ewekoro Local Government Area, while swimming after a church programme in the town.

The victims, Femi Akinola, 32, and Tunde Falade, 35, were reportedly swept by a heavy tidal wave.

Men of the Bauchi State Police Command have arrested Isyaku Babale, 30, of Anguwan Dawaki in Bauchi Metropolis, for allegedly stabbing his brother to death.

The spokesperson for the command, SP Ahmed Wakil, made this known in a statement on Sunday in Bauchi.

He said the suspect was arrested following a report received by the Divisional Police Officer, Township Police Station, Bauchi, and detectives from the division were drafted to the scene immediately.

“They rushed the victim to Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Teaching Hospital but he was certified dead by a medical doctor.

“The development prompted the detectives to initiate a manhunt for the suspect, who was apprehended near Kasuwan Shanu area of Bauchi metropolis.

“Preliminary investigations conducted by the detectives revealed that the suspect used a knife and stabbed his elder brother on the March 31, 2024 at about 0400hrs after an argument between them,” he said

Wakil added that the altercation started when the younger brother (suspect) asked his elder brother (victim) to stop taking cold patch liquid, popularly known as ‘Sholi’, in their room because of the unpleasant odour of the liquid.

“Both of them became furious with each other and began fighting. Shortly after mediation, the suspect ran and picked a sharp object, suspected to be a knife, and stabbed the victim in the stomach.

“Further investigations revealed that both men were always fighting using dangerous weapons,” he said.

Wakil said the state Commissioner of Police, Auwal Musa, has ordered a discreet investigation into the incident to unravel more motives behind the action of the suspect before prosecution.

There was panic on Friday after a middle-aged man identified simply as AJ was found dead in his car at Mechanic Village in the Idimu area of Lagos State.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the deceased was attending the Good Friday service in a church located in the area when the incident happened.

The late AJ, who was a member of the church, reportedly stepped out while the service was ongoing to pick up something in his car which was parked on the premises.

An eyewitness who spoke to our correspondent on the condition of anonymity said another member who saw him in the car some moments later, exchanged pleasantries with him but did not get a response.

The curious member was said to have moved close to him and in the process found him motionless in the vehicle.

The source said, “He said he wanted to pick up an item in the car, but nobody really noticed he had not returned to join the service. One of our members who was passing by his car saw him in a sitting position and greeted him but found out that he did not respond. The person said he moved close to him and jokingly asked if he was tired as a result of fasting.

“It was at that point that he discovered that he was not moving at all. So, he quickly alerted other members who rushed out of the church to see what was going on. Efforts were made to revive him, but he was already foaming from his mouth and that was when we realised he was dead.”

The incident was said to have caused apprehension in the community while the church service ended abruptly.

According to the source, the wife of the deceased, who was also present during the service, was quickly attended to by other female members who consoled her.

“It was a sad day for us because nobody saw that coming. We could no longer go ahead with the service. We prepared refreshments for members that day, but no one could eat. We also tried all we could to console his wife,’’ the source added.

Another source, a mechanic, who gave his name as Lukmon Salako, and claimed to have visited the Mechanic Village to fix the customer’s car, said members of the church were moody after the incident while the female members were seen consoling the wife of the deceased.

“I came to fix my customer’s car in the mechanic village when the incident happened. The members were all moody. The wife of the deceased was also sitting on the floor while the female members of the church were consoling her.”

“His body was carried in his car to the nearest hospital where he was said to have been confirmed dead by the doctor on duty,” Salako added.

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, said he was unaware of the incident.

He said, “I am not aware.”

A suspected homosexual identified as Chigozie Okpara was arrested on Sunday night by members of a local vigilante group for allegedly engaging in sexual activity with an underage boy in the Okujagu community, Trans-Amadi, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

A resident of the area informed PUNCH Metro that the man, who is in his 40s, claimed to work in the security department of a company in Port Harcourt and would typically entice his unsuspecting victims with food and snacks before sexually abusing them.

The source, who requested anonymity, revealed that during interrogation by the vigilante, the man confessed to being homosexual and admitted to engaging in such acts. He added that he resided in Lagos before relocating to Port Harcourt two years ago.

Luck ran out for him when residents heard screaming from his room while he was with one of his victims, prompting them to alert the vigilante group.

The source stated that one of the vigilantes described how they apprehended the suspect. The vigilante was quoted as saying, “He lured the boy into his house and was engaging in the act while the boy was screaming. That’s when they called our attention, and we went there, broke into the house, and found them (the man and his victim).

“That night we took him and handed him over to the police. He is currently in police custody.”

Meanwhile, a video seen by our correspondent depicted the interrogation of the suspect by the vigilante and some residents, during which he confessed to the crime.

The remorseful-looking man, who stated he is from Imo State, admitted to engaging in such acts while in Lagos but claimed the recent victim was the first he had abused in the community, emphasising that he was neither married nor had a girlfriend.

The suspect said, “This particular boy I knew from where I’m working in security at JDP roundabout (along Odili Road in Port Harcourt).”

Another video seen by our correspondent featured the victim speaking to the vigilante, though his words were not audible when he was asked how long the man had been engaging in sexual activity with him.

It was also reported that another boy, whom the suspect attempted to lure using the same tactics, shared how the man would use snacks and food to entice innocent boys, mentioning that he personally declined the man’s offers of food, saying he was not hungry.

When contacted, the spokesperson for the state police command, Grace Iringe-Koko, confirmed the incident, adding that the suspect, who is already in custody, would be prosecuted.

Iringe-Koko said, “Yes, I can confirm the incident. The suspect has been arrested and is presently in our custody. Investigation is ongoing.

“The matter has been transferred to the State Criminal and Intelligence Department. We will ensure that the suspect is prosecuted.”

The Borno State Police Command says it has arrested eight persons in connection with the suspected murder of a University of Maiduguri lecturer, Kamar Abdulkadir.

The command’s Public Relations Officer, Nahum Keneth, disclosed this in a telephone conversation with PUNCH Metro on Monday.

It was gathered that the don was killed on Sunday when the assailants invaded his office, stabbed him with a knife, and hit him with a hammer.

It was also learnt that the victim was later found dead with several injuries inflicted on his body.

Speaking to PUNCH Metro, the state PPRO, Keneth, disclosed that upon receiving the report of the incident, a police team was deployed to the scene where the body of the lecturer was found dead in his office.

He added that the police immediately launched an investigation into the matter and arrested eight suspects in connection with the murder.

The police spokesperson said, “The police received a distress call from the university in the early hours of today and immediately swung into action. Upon getting to the scene, the body of Dr Abdulkadir was found dead in his office.

“Investigation was launched into the matter and we have been able to apprehend eight persons in connection with the murder. They are currently undergoing investigation.”

He added that the vehicle of the late lecturer was also not found at the scene of the incident, and it was suspected to have been whisked away by the assailants.

“The vehicle of Dr Abdulkadir was not at the scene of the incident. The assailants may have whisked the vehicle away from the scene of the accident.”

Keneth, while stressing that the police would ensure to bring the perpetrators of the act to justice, urged residents of the state and the university community to go about their daily activities without panic.

“There are tensions because of the incident, but the Commissioner of Police hereby urges members of the public and the university community to remain calm and go about their activity without fear.

“The command will ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice,” he said.

PUNCH Metro reported in July 2023 that some suspected gunmen reportedly killed Opeyemi Ajewole, a Professor of Social and Environmental Forestry at the University of Ibadan, Ibadan in Oyo State.

Ajewole was reportedly murdered while returning home from the office.

Police operatives from the Bode Thomas Division, Lagos, have rescued two individuals suspected of theft from a mob.

This was made known by the state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, on his X handle on Wednesday.

He wrote, “While a passerby was making a phone call at about 11pm, five young men in a tricycle accosted her and robbed her of her expensive phone.

“She quickly raised the alarm, prompting people to go after the men.

“Three escaped while two were apprehended.

“Officers of Bode Thomas Division got wind of this and raced to the scene.

“They arrived quickly enough to rescue Kehinde Olayinka ‘m’ aged 22 and Junior Olanrewaju ‘m’ aged 21 from an angry mob.

The Ebonyi State Police Command has dismantled a child abduction ring, culminating in the rescue of six kidnapped children.

This was made known in a statement by the state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Joshua Ukandu, shared on the command’s X account on Tuesday.

The statement read, “On January 21, 2024, one Nkwuda Francis reported to the command that a woman, initially identified as Mercy Francis, allegedly a youth corps member, had kidnapped two young children from his house in Nwezenyi Igbeagu, Izzi LGA, Ebonyi State after she rented a room in the compound.

“The children, aged three and seven, were later found to have been taken by Ngozi Blessing Abia, which was revealed to be the suspect’s true identity.

“Following a diligent investigation by officers attached to the gender unit of the command, the suspect was located in Oba, Anambra State, where the children were rescued and returned to their family.

“In a related case, Lovina Iwuorah and Ndifereke wisdom Clement, mothers whose children had been similarly abducted in Ohaozara LGA of Ebonyi State, identified the suspect as the conspirator in the disappearance of their three children, aged between one and three years old.

“The investigation led officers to Benin City, where the children were found in an orphanage. The proprietor of the orphanage has been detained and is providing valuable information to the police.

The Nigerian Police has apprehended the leader of a “one chance” robbery gang in Abuja who physically attacked a pregnant woman, causing her to lose her pregnancy.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, made this known on his X account on Sunday.

Adejobi wrote, “This is a ring leader of one chance robbery gang in Abuja. He used this wheel spanner to beat a pregnant woman (one chance victim) until she had a miscarriage. The woman had been waiting for a child for more than eight years.

“This is wickedness. Anyway, he’s having a trial in the court and has been arrested for the same offence again.”

Two citizens of the Netherlands, Eline Holtes and Henricus Jacob De Kok, are slated to be arraigned before the Federal High Court in Lagos on April 17, 2024, over alleged $1,407,373 theft.

The charges, brought by the Police Force Criminal Investigation Department, include conspiracy, obtaining by false pretence, and stealing.

They are to be arraigned alongside a company, Damen Charter International 12 B.V. in a charge marked FHC/L/153c/24, before Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke.

In the charge filed by the Force CID’s prosecutor, S. O. Ayodele alleged that the defendants conspired among themselves to commit the offences sometime in 2019.

Holtes and De Kok, alongside the company, were alleged to have fraudulently obtained the sum of $707,363.10, from a firm, NUE Offshore Resource, by selling a vessel which was represented to the company that its engine was manufactured in 2019, a pretence they knew to be false.

They were also accused of stealing the sum of $700,000 from NUE Offshore Resource.

According to the police, the offences committed contravened Sections 8(a), 1(1)(c), 1(3), 383, 390 (9) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Related Offences Act, CAP A8 Vol 1, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo has ordered the arrest of one Mr Itoro Monday Uko in Ikot Ekpene Local Government Area of the state for contempt of court.

Itoro Uko is said to have abandoned his wife and only child, a two-year-old girl, in the village to live with his girlfriend in Ikot Ekpene Town.

The presiding judge, Justice Ntong Ntong, gave the order after hearing Counsel for the applicant and mother of the child, Barrister Ekom Friday Inwang, following the absence of the contemnor and his Counsel.

The applicant, a private school teacher from Mkpat Enin Local Government Area told the court that apart from neglecting his responsibilities as a father in providing for the needs of his child, the respondent also refused to refund the N200,000 loan she collected for her husband to fix his car since March 2022.

She said they got married on January 18, 2020 and the marriage was blessed with the first child, after which she got pregnant for the second child when her husband started to beat her, resulting in her first miscarriage.

She also told the court that she got pregnant again for the third time and her husband continued to assault her, adding that she was rushed to a hospital where she spent three nights due to bleeding in May 2022, and her husband never showed up even one day. She added that it was her siblings who financed her medical bills.

She told the court that she had to travel to her village in Mkpat Enin for her mother to take care of her till she fully recovered and that throughout her stay, her husband did not call or visit.

Upon recovery on July 4, 2022, the applicant said she went to her husband’s family home in Itak Ikot Udo, where they were living, to find out why her husband did not visit but to her surprise, the keys to their apartment were changed and she could not enter the house to pick her clothes or that of her child.

Mrs Itoro Uko said she became aware after the birth of her first child that her husband was keeping multiple s*x partners and efforts to get him changed proved abortive.

She said she became pregnant again for the third time, and the act of battery persisted, which prompted her in-laws to advise her to stay with her parents in Mkpat Enin to avoid being killed by her husband.

Counsel to the applicant urged the Court to order the arrest and detention of the respondent for being in contempt of the order of the Court made on April 6, 2023.

Justice Ntong granted the order and commanded “Akwa Ibom State Commissioner of Police and the Divisional Police Officer, Ikot Ekpene Division, their officers and men in the name of the Governor of Akwa Ibom State and the Inspector General of Police to cause the arrest and detention of Mr Itoro Monday Uko and produce him in court” and adjourned the case to Thursday, April 25, 2024, for hearing.

A yet-to-be-identified corporal in the Nigerian Army was said to have allegedly stabbed a commercial motorcyclist simply identified as Saheed Isa with a knife at a lounge at Itamaga in the Ikorodu area of Lagos State.

PUNCH Metro gathered that the incident occurred on April 13 at about 3:00 p.m.

It was also learnt that the soldier allegedly stabbed Isa as a result of a misunderstanding.

A police source in the division who pleaded anonymity, because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, told our correspondent that the soldier, who is attached to the 159 Battalion in Yobe State, allegedly stabbed the victim on the upper left side of his stomach with a gun-like jack knife.

“On April 13, 2024, at about 0300 hrs, the Chief Security Officer of a lounge at Itamaga, Ikorodu, Lagos reported at the Ikorodu Division that on the same date, at about 0200 hours, one CPL (name withheld), a serving member of the Nigerian Army attached to 159 Battalion, Yobe State, with a gun-like jack knife, stabbed one Saheed Isa, a commercial motorcyclist, on the upper left side of his stomach when a misunderstanding ensued between them at the bar.

The source added that the victim was seriously injured, adding that detectives from the division examined the crime scene, and the victim is currently receiving treatment at the hospital.

“It thereby caused grievous injury. Detectives from the division visited the scene of the crime, and the victim was taken to the hospital for medical attention, where he was admitted and is responding to treatment,” the source said.

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hudeyin, confirmed the incident to our correspondent.

He added that the suspect had been arrested and an investigation was going on.

He said, “The suspect has been arrested. The investigation is ongoing.”

In 2023, PUNCH Metro reported that men of the Ondo State Police Command arrested a soldier, Tope Kazeem, for allegedly stabbing one Bunmi Omodele in Akure, the state capital.

Kazeem is said to be attached to the 32 Artillery Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Akure, and was detained in police custody.

Dr Richard Somiari, a forensic expert in the alleged murder trial of Chidinma Ojukwu, on Tuesday, revealed that the DNA blood sample found on Chidinma’s red dress matched that of the victim, Michael Ataga, the late Super TV CEO.

Somiari, who is a director and consultant for the Lagos State DNA and Forensic Centre, gave the evidence before the Lagos State High Court, at the Tafawa Balewa Square.

Ojukwu, a 300-level, Mass Communication student of the University of Lagos, is being prosecuted for the murder of Ataga, alongside her sister, Chioma Egbuchu and one Adedapo Quadri.

At the resumed hearing of the trial on Tuesday, the witness who is the 11th prosecution, told the court that his office received 21 different items on different days from their DNA centre staff members.

The forensic analyst who was led in evidence by the Lagos State Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, Mrs Adenike Oluwafemi, told the court that he had practised in the area of forensics for 15 years and had conducted over 500 forensic tests.

According to him, the items that were received for evidence included a stained red dress, an army green T-Shirt, and a DNA sample from Chidinma Ojukwu.

He also told Justice Yetunde Adesanya that other items that were received were urine, blood, gastric content and byle which were retained for toxicology reports.

The witness said the goal was to create an evidence triangle to link the suspect to the crime scene and the victim.

Somiari said the DNA on the red dress matched that of the victim, Ataga, but it did not match that of Chidinma and the other suspects, who were Babalola Disu and Oluwatomi Dada.

The witness during cross-examination by the first defendant’s counsel, Mr Onwuka Egwu, told the court how the result of the toxicology report was forwarded to the office of the Attorney General of Lagos, Commissioner of Police and the Director of Public Prosecutions.

He, however, said that not all forensic reports went through such procedure.

When asked if he questioned the report given by Dr. Andrea Nuhu, in the United States of America, the witness said, “I have already said that I am not a toxicologist. It is a toxicologist that can do such.”

Egwu, however, requested the video of the crime scene to be played and the court granted it.

While the video was playing, he asked the witness whether the samples of blood on the cotton, the wall, duvet, the white polo the victim was wearing, the chair, and a rug were tested.

The witness answered that the samples were not submitted.

He explained that the markers indicated in his report had nothing to do with the video.

Earlier, Somiari told the court that some samples were in storage but not tested.

The second defendant’s counsel, Mr Babatunde Busari, also cross-examined the witness.

He asked if any DNA sample was taken from the second defendant, Quadri, and the witness said no.

The counsel also asked the witness if he took part in the toxicology analysis which he answered no.

The third defendant counsel, Ms C. G. Ugochikwu, said that she had no examination for the witness.

After listening to the testimony of Somiari, Justice Adesanya adjourned the case until May 30 for continuation of trial.

Ojukwu and the two others were arraigned on October 12, 2021, by the Lagos State Government.

Ojukwu and Quadri are facing the first to eight counts bordering on conspiracy, murder, and stabbing while her sister, Egbuchu, is facing the ninth count of stealing an iPhone 7 belonging to the late Ataga.

Barely a month after a businesswoman, identified as Risikat Oladokun, was abducted by gunmen in the Awa Ijebu area of Ogun State, her husband, Mathew Oladokun, has lamented the inability of the Nigeria Police to rescue her despite the payment of N5m as ransom to the abductors.

The distressed husband, while speaking with our correspondent on Monday, said the police appeared to have given up on the search for his wife, even as the abductors had been contacting the family for payment of additional ransom.

PUNCH Metro gathered that Risikat was abducted by gunmen at her residence in Awa Ijebu, Ijebu North Local Government Area of the state on March 12, while returning from work.

The victim’s husband blamed the police for the prolonged abduction of his wife, lamenting that the abductors had refused to release his wife even after his payment of a N5m ransom.

Oladokun said, “The abductors have collected more than N5m from us as a ransom to secure the release of my wife who was abducted over a month ago and they are still demanding more money.

“The abductors have refused to let us speak with her since she was abducted. We don’t know her current status, they are just asking us for more money.

“We were just driving into our compound when the gunmen struck. They were about five in number, and they attacked me first. Two of them with guns later locked me and our children in the house and took my wife away.”

Recounting the sad experience, Oladokun said they took “both our phones, some cash, and our ATM cards. They withdrew all the money in our bank accounts and they have been calling the family for ransom.

“Initially, when they contacted us, they demanded N15m, but we told them we didn’t have such an amount. We saw N1.2m at first, later we sent N2.2m and we have sent more, but they kept demanding more money and have refused to release her”, Oladokun said.

He noted that the case was reported to the police and later transferred to the anti-kidnapping unit, “but no concrete thing has been done yet to ensure the safe return of my wife.”

Oladokun, however, appealed to the state Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, to collaborate with other security agencies to fast-track the safe release of his wife.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer of the command, Omolola Odutola, said, “This is an old case. I have not been able to call the Divisional Police Officer for an update.”

She, however, promised to get back to our correspondent if there was any update on the incident but never did as of the time of filing this report.

A mobile court in Oshodi has sentenced a man simply identified as Paul to nine months imprisonment for not using a pedestrian bridge and assaulting personnel of the Lagos Environmental Sanitation Corps.

The state Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, disclosed this in a post on his X handle on Thursday.

Wahab wrote, “Paul was apprehended on the April 16 for not using the pedestrian bridge at Agbado Oke Odo, and in the process, he assaulted and wounded the enforcement personnel of LAGESCOfficial (KAI).

“The mobile court sitting at Oshodi yesterday sentenced him to nine months imprisonment.”

The ministry had recently warned residents against shunning pedestrian bridges, as it described the crossing of major highways in the state by pedestrians as an offence.

PUNCH reported on Tuesday that the state government arrested and arraigned 76 persons for allegedly shunning pedestrian bridges in the Ojota, Ladipo, and Oshodi areas of the state.

It also reported in March that a 22-year-old lady, Fasia Ajoke, was sentenced to seven months and three weeks in prison for assaulting a LAGESC female officer while on duty.

Ajoke was also reported to be guilty of resisting arrest and refusing to use the pedestrian bridge.

A hit-and-run driver had allegedly fled the scene of an accident which claimed the life of a student of Osun State Polytechnic, Iree, Osun State, late Monday.

The accident was said to have occurred when the driver reportedly driving against traffic, collided with the motorcycle conveying the student identified as Olanrewaju Olatona, and one other along the Ikirun-Osogbo road area of the state.

PUNCH Metro gathered on Wednesday from a student of the Polytechnic who was privy to the incident but pleaded anonymity that the driver was driving in the wrong direction when he allegedly hit the motorcycle conveying Olatona and one other yet-to-be-identified person.

The severe impact of the collision was said to have led to the National Diploma 2 student’s death.


Our correspondent further gathered that Olatona, the Financial Secretary of the Department of Mass Communication, was preparing for his mandatory one-year Industrial Training.

The source said, “A student of Iree was killed by a trailer driver on Monday night. The student was on a motorcycle with one other person when the driver, who was driving against traffic, collided with them.

“The student died on the spot. He was the Financial Secretary of the Department of Mass Communication and was about to go for his IT before his untimely death.”

Confirming the incident to our correspondent in a telephone conversation on Wednesday, the state’s Police Public Relations Officer, Yemisi Opalola, disclosed that the police have launched a manhunt for the fleeing driver.

“Yes, the incident happened and we are just confirming that he is a student. When it happened, it was not reported to the police at first that the victim was a student.

“It was a case of a hit-and-run and the driver could not be apprehended immediately. Meanwhile, the police will not relax. We will arrest the driver,” Opalola said.

PUNCH Metro reported in April 2018 that a hit-and-run driver crushed a first-class student of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Deborah Olajide, to death.

She was reportedly run over and killed along the Akure-Ilesa Expressway, a few metres away from the main gate of the university.

The driver of the vehicle was said to have escaped from the scene of the accident.

Following the incident, the students organised a procession in front of the school gate and blocked the expressway for several hours.