The coronavirus death toll in China has risen to 811, surpassing the death toll from the SARS epidemic of 2002-3, according to official data released early Sunday.
The number of confirmed infections rose to 37,198, according to China’s National Health Commission. Eighty-nine deaths and 2,656 new cases were recorded in the preceding 24 hours, most of them in Hubei Province, the heart of the outbreak.
The SARS epidemic, which also began in China, killed 774 people worldwide.
Many doctors believe that deaths and infections from the current epidemic in China are undercounted because testing facilities at hospitals and laboratories are under severe strain.
The number of new cases confirmed in the country has stabilized in recent days, but World Health Organization officials cautioned against reading too much into those numbers, saying that Wuhan and Hubei Province were still in the midst of a “very intense outbreak.”
“It’s very, very early to make any predictions,” said Dr. Michael Ryan, executive director of the W.H.O.’s health emergencies program. “This is still a very, very intense outbreak in Wuhan and Hubei.”
Nollywood actress, Faithia Williams is off the market. She got engaged to her man on her birthday, 5th of February, 2020. She was formerly married to Saidi Balogun but their marriage crashed in 2006. They have two kids together.
The actress who recently marked her birthday said "YES" after her boyfriend got down on one knee and proposed to her. We say big congrats to her.
Mr Oladele Oluremi, Cross River Branch Controller of the West African Examination Council (WAEC) has blamed parents and guardians over the spate of poor academic performances of their wards in the country.
Oluremi stated this at a pre-varsity forum titled ‘Admission Processing: Laying a Solid Foundation,’ on Saturday in Calabar.
The symposium was organised by the Deeper Life Schools Outreach in collaboration with WAEC and the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
Represented by Mr Aderibigbe Adeniyi, the Head of Result and Certificate Department of the Council, Oluremi noted that many parents contributed to their children poor performances by aiding malpractice which in-turn made them lazy.
He alleged that parents pestered officials of the Council to change grades of their wards after they had written the examination and performed poorly.
“It is sad that when you go to the examination venues, you see as many parents as the number of students writing the examination.
“Many of them even stay outside with phones to send answers to their children who have smuggled phones into the examination halls.
“For you to excel, as a student preparing for an external examination, you need to be ready by reading your books and refusing to procrastinate.
“You need to read wide and deep, practice with past question papers and ensure you get appropriate instructions from the WAEC platform,” he said.
Men of Ogun State Police Command have arrested a 50-year-old man, Kayode Oladehinde, a resident of Olope Street Ogijo for defiling his 13-year-old stepdaughter.
The suspect was arrested following a report from the mother of the victim who complained at Ogijo Divisional headquarters that her daughter informed her that the suspect who is her present husband forcefully had carnal knowledge of her as a result of which she got pregnant.
The mother stated further that the suspect, having realized that the victim was pregnant, gave her drug to abort the pregnancy resulting to her bleeding seriously.
On the strength of the report, the DPO, Ogijo Division, CSP Suleiman Muhammad detailed his detectives to the suspect’s residence where he was promptly arrested.
On interrogation, the suspect who was dumbfounded when confronted by his wife only pleaded for forgiveness from his wife and the victim who is his stepdaughter.
Investigation revealed that the mother of the victim got married to the suspect after the death of her first husband who was the father of the victim some years ago and had a child for him.
The Commissioner of Police, Kenneth Ebrimson has ordered the transfer of the suspect to Anti-human Trafficking and Child Labour unit of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department for further investigation and possible prosecution.
A yet to be identified man in Lagos has died after an early morning s.e.x with a woman. In a video that has gone viral, the sex worker, who identified herself as Precious from Akwa Ibom State said she alerted the hotel staff early Saturday, when she found that the man was not responding when she tried to nudge him to pay her, as she was about to leave the hotel.
Policemen who interrogated the girl in the video found some drugs in the man’s bag and it was believed the man used them before going to bed.
In the video, Precious said she was introduced to the deceased by someone who told her that a man who just ‘came back’ needed a lady to spend the night with.
Precious met the man and they finally lodged in a hotel. After taking their meals, they slept off. The man woke up around 5am and they had s.e.x. Precious insisted that they must use the condom, which she brought out.
According her, after having s.e.x, the man stood up and went into the bathroom to dispose the condom. When he returned, she remembered asking the man for the time. And he said around 5am, meaning they only had a quickie.
One hour later, Precious woke up to leave. She tried waking the man up but the man didn’t wake up. That was when she alerted the hotel staff.
One of the drugs found with the dead man is called Meinnah, a member of the Viagra family.
Like all Sildenafil, it is a common medication used to stimulate erections in men with erectile dysfunction (ED) and treat certain heart conditions.
Also found on him was an anti-malarial drug called Coatal Forte, Chinese made, but distributed in Nigeria by Geneith Pharm Limited.
Investigators looking into the helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna say there is no evidence of a 'catastrophic internal failure'.
The interim report issued by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) 12 days after the accident also said examination of both rotor assemblies found damage "consistent with powered rotation at the time of impact."
The preliminary findings pointed to no obvious signs of mechanical problems that may have contributed to the fiery crash on January 26.
New images have been released by the NTSB which show the doomed helicopter moments before the crash that killed everyone on board.
The death of Bryant, an 18-time all-star in the National Basketball Association and one of the world's most admired sports figures, prompted an outpouring of shock and grief from fans and fellow athletes around the globe.
The retired Los Angeles Lakers forward had been on his way to a youth basketball tournament in which he was coaching and his daughter and two other girls aboard the luxury chopper were due to compete.
The report did not rule out that mechanical issues might yet be identified when the engines and other parts recovered from the wreckage of the Sikorsky S-76B are disassembled and more closely examined.
NTSB board member Jennifer Homendy said two days after the tragedy that clouds, fog and limited visibility reported in the vicinity of the crash would be a key focus of the investigation.
Videos and photographs taken by the public in the area depict fog and low clouds obscuring the hilltops around the crash site, including security video footage showing the helicopter disappearing into clouds moments before it went down, according to the report.
The NTSB also quoted a witness from a mountain bike trail in foothills surrounded by mist who recounted briefly glimpsing the helicopter emerging from clouds as it rolled to the left before crashing seconds later a short distance away from him.
The pilot, an experienced aviator certified as an instructor, was navigating by visual orientation, not by instrument guidance, during the entirety of the ill-fated flight, the NTSB said.
"An experienced but nevertheless single pilot in bad weather is a bad formula for the safe operation of a helicopter," he told Reuters.
Shortly before radar contact with Bryant's helicopter was lost, the pilot had told air traffic control he was trying to climb above a cloud layer, the NTSB said.
Moments later the aircraft banked to the left and began to descend, slamming into the ground at more 45 miles per hour (72 kph) and bursting into flames.
"The entire fuselage/cabin and both engines were subjected to a post-crash fire," the report said.
The wreckage, strewn about an impact crater, was found in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains near the town of Calabasas, about 40 miles (64 km) northwest of downtown Los Angeles.
The agency said the conclusions it reaches on the cause of the crash and contributing factors will be published in its final report, which is expected in 12 to 18 months.
Manchester United new boy Odion Ighalo has been left out of the club's Spanish training camp in Marbella with the club wary about potential changes which could see border restrictions tighten.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has confirmed that the deadline Day signing from Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua will not travel to Spain.
After discussions over the potential risks involved with taking the new arrival abroad, United chiefs have decided that the former Watford star should stay behind.
United are wary over border regulations relating to the potential spread of the Coronavirus, and the potential for rules changes which could see border restrictions tighten on travellers who have been in China within the last 14 days.
As such, they are unwilling to risk potential complications when they return from Spain next week.
Instead, Ighalo, 30, will remain in Manchester to work on a personal training programme, as he looks to step up his fitness ahead of a potential Premier League debut against Chelsea on February 17.
“Odion will stay in Manchester, because he arrived from China in the last 14 days,“ said Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
”Because of the situation in China, we're not sure if he'd be allowed back into England if he leaves the country again, so he's staying here working with a personal coach, individual programme and his family then can settle in England as well. That's a plus.
“Of course he might have liked to have come with the players and got to know them, but the risk [of potential border restrictions tightening], we don’t want to take that."
Three other players - Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford and Lee Grant - have not travelled either.
An overly jealous lover has allegedly killed his girlfriend over a text message she got from her ex.
23 year old Pennsylvania man, Nicholas Forman reportedly got angry after his 22-year-old girlfriend Sabrina Harooni received a text message from an ex-boyfriend, and beat her to death according to police investigators.
But Forman gave a different version of events to police, he claimed three women had attacked his girlfriend the previous night but that she had gone to bed okay.
According to the arrest affidavit, Harooni was beaten so badly that her pupils were ‘blown out’ – which medical experts say is a sign of head trauma or a lack of oxygen.
Forman told police they went to a bar to watch the Super Bowl in Pennsylvania and that Harooni had gotten into an argument with three women.
According to him, the argument got so messy that she gave them his address in case they wanted to fight her later. He claims he didn’t get involved because he was on probation, having pled guilty to driving under the influence and resisting police arrest in 2017.
But when the police carried out their investigations, the Uber driver who took them home that night said Harooni joked about receiving a text from an ex, which made Forman get angry and demand to see her phone. According to the Uber driver, Harooni was so scared of Forman’s anger and remarks about checking her phone.
When the driver dropped them off he said Forman was still demanding “give me the f–king phone”; He waited around the block and the shouting died down about 5-10 minutes later. He said he heard him shouting he would not let her in until she showed him the phone.
Police say they were shocked when they searched Forman’s phone and they found a video showing Harooni lying motionless on the lawn, while a male voice shouts: “This is what a cheating liar gets. You hear me? Cheating f–king liar.”
When they searched his house, they found a clump of hair similar to Harooni’s in the front driveway. and found blood on the carpet and bedclothing.
On Thursday, Forman was arrested and charged with first and third-degree murder and a video posted on Twitter shows him being led from his home in handcuffs, calmly proclaiming his innocence.
“I didn’t do it. Three girls [did]. Not Me. This is crazy,” he said in the video.
Nicholas Forman told detectives 3 girls came to his Perkiomen home to fight his girlfriend & he didn’t get involved due to his probation. He stuck to that story as he was escorted in cuffs today. But evidence on his phone proves he is lying, police say @NBCPhiladelphia at 11pm pic.twitter.com/u8iuSsSr4m
A yet to be identified woman narrowly escaped death, Saturday evening, when a container that fell off a truck on Iyana Ipaja Bridge, landed on her leg, cutting the foot off.
It took the efforts of men of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, and passers-by to save the woman’s life.
According to an eyewitness, the tragedy which occurred at about 6.30p.m., caused panic and traffic jam as passers-by scampered for safety.
The Director-General of LASEMA, Dr. Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, who confirmed the incident, said: “Upon arrival of LASEMA officials at the accident scene, it was discovered that a 40-foot container had fallen from the bridge at Iyana-Ipaja on an adult female. She, unfortunately, got trapped under the fallen container.
“She was subsequently, extricated from beneath the container by the agency’s rescue team and taken to the hospital by officials of Lagos State Ambulances Service, LASAMBUS, with a severed limb.
“Subsequently, rescue team recovered the container as well as the limb of the victim from under the container.”
Phillip Schofield 's daughter Molly, 27, has broken her silence after her father came out as gay yesterday.
Phillip, 57, released a statement on Instagram yesterday where he came out as gay, and shortly afterwards he spoke to Holly Willoughby on This Morning about the revelation.
Phillip thanked his two daughters, Molly and Ruby, 24, as well as Phillips wife of 26 years, Stephanie Lowe, for their support.
And Molly has now released a touching tribute to her dad on Instagram, where she has 44,500 followers.
She posted a photo of the whole family, beaming in a sweet holiday snap.
Tagging her dad's Instagram handle, Molly wrote: "Love you always, so proud of you".
Despite being Phillip's rock and supporting his decision, a friend close to the couple has told The Mirror that Stephanie is "absolutely shattered" that "they have been living a lie for so long."
"Steph is being a rock for Phillip, as she always has been, but there's no denying she is absolutely shattered by all this.
"She and the girls love him very much and will support him as much as they can, but the knowledge they have been living a lie for so long is terribly hurtful."
They added: "It's humiliating to think that you're married to someone who doesn't love you the way you love them."
Kylie Jenner made waves with her Playboy shoot accompanied by her now-ex Travis Scott last year.
And the Keeping Up With The Kardashian toyed with her fans as she shared behind-the-scenes shots from the mesmerising photoshoot on Saturday.
In the fresh new snap, the mother-of-one oozed sexuality led on a bed with only a sheer turquoise wrap covering her n.a.k.e.d curves.
Kylie's luscious raven-coloured locks tumbled down her back while she shot a look over her shoulder towards the camera.
Having made a fortune as a make-up mogul, of course the youngest Kardashian-Jenner had the right lip kit to make sure her looks caught the eyes of everyone.
In the second shot, the cosmetics expert rested her head on her hand while she relaxed with her one of her legs kicked up in the air.
She wrote in the caption: "Playboy outtakes."
Kylie shared the slider of photographs with her 161million followers on Instagram.
Emmanuel Gyang and his wife, Deborah Pam, have emerged as the first Nigerians to complete the 42km race at the 2020 Lagos City Marathon.
The Punch reports that Gyang, who was the fist male Nigerian, finished 33rd overall with a time of 2:25.30secs.
Pam was the first female Nigerian to get to finish in her category, finishing 14th overall with a time of 2:45.17secs.
The couple had exactly three weeks after their wedding emerged the first Nigerian finishers in their respective categories at the seventh edition of the Okpekpe 10km International Road Race.
Popularly referred to as Nigeria’s No.1 long-distance couple, Gyan and Pam got married in 2019.
Gyan, an athlete from Plateau State, also emerged as the first Nigerian at the 2019 Abeokuta Road Race, clocking 31.03secs behind Kenya’s Biwott Alan Kemboi who finished first in 28.76secs.
A Kenyan, David Barmasai, emerged winner of the 2020 Lagos City Marathon.
A 30-year-old man, Ibrahim Shina, who allegedly stole a transformer and one pumping machine, belonging to the Ekiti Ministry of Agriculture, on Friday appeared in a Magistrates’ Court in Ado-Ekiti.
Shina, whose address was not given, is charged with theft.
The prosecution counsel, Insp. Caleb Leranmo, told the Court that the defendant and others at large committed the offence on Jan.25 at about 9 p.m., at Emirin area in Ado-Ekiti.
He alleged that the defendant and others at large, stole one transformer and one pumping machine, property of the Ekiti State Ministry of Agriculture.
The offence, he said, contravened the provisions of Section 390(9) of the Criminal Code, Laws of Ekiti State, 2012.
Leranmo prayed the court to give him a date within which to bring present his witnesses.
The defendant pleaded not guilty.
Counsel to the defendant, Mr Timi Omotosho, prayed the court to grant his client bail.
Chief Magistrate Abdulhamid Lawal admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N100, 000 with two sureties in like sum.
Most of the petroleum stations in Badagry communities have closed as the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers of Nigeria suspended distribution of fuel to the city.
Chairman, South-West Chapter of the union, Mr Tayo Aboyeji, told the News Agency of Nigeria in Badagry that the suspension was due to harassment and molestation of its members by men of Customs and Army in the area.
According to him, NUPENG has directed its members to stop the distribution of petroleum to Badagry until justice is done.
He said NUPENG will be forced to extend the suspension to Lagos as a whole if nothing to correct the injustice was done to members.
“An injury to one is an injury to all,” he added.
The chairman said the customs under the Joint Border Patrol operations arrested a tanker driver, who missed its way in Badagry and drove it to Nigeria Customs Service.
The customs was of the Federal Operations Unit Zone ‘A’ in Ikeja.
“A tanker driver from Port Harcourt was sent to Badagry to deliver petroleum to a station, unfortunately, he missed his way and while asking for direction, the tanker driver was arrested by the men of joint border patrol.
“The tanker was taken to FOU in Ikeja. I wrote to the Controller on the issue and met DC Enforcement on the matter and I was directed to the Officer in Charge of Legal issues in the same office.
“OC Legal told me that he had not received the file from the joint patrol operation office and promised to call me later.
“But surprisingly, our enforcement unit in Agbara stopped a tanker to check his paper to find out if its delivery documents were intact, but there were errors in his documents,” he said.
Aboyeji said the enforcement team thought it was a stolen product, adding that they did not know that it was a product that was under investigation that had been sold to a buyer.
“Thinking that it was a stolen product, they drove it to Area K Police Command in Morogbo.
“I wrote a petition to the Lagos State Commissioner of Police as regard to the incident.
“Surprisingly, soldiers under the drilling exercise came to police station beat my members and forcefully drove away the tanker with its contents.
“We later heard that the tanker was used to remove the petroleum of a filling station in Badagry that had been sealed since February 1.
“Both the products and the tanker have not been found, this is not done in a civilized society, a product under investigation to be sold out just like that,” he said.
Eight Local Government Council chairmen elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Zamfara State, have switched loyalty to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The Local Government Council chairmen who joined the ruling PDP in Zamfara State are; Alhaji Muhammadu Umar, Birnin Magaji LGA chairman, Alhaji Salisu Isah Dangulbi(Maru LG), Alhaji Nasiru Zarumi Masamar Mudi( Bukkuyum LG) and Alhaji Ahmed Balarabe Anka( Anka LG).
Others are Alhaji Lawali Abdullahi( Kaura Namoda LG), Alhaji Shehu Muhammad Faru (Maradun LG), Alh Abdulaziz Ahmed Nahuche(Bungudu LG), and Aminu Mudi Tsafe of Tsafe LG.
The council Chairmen announced their defection shortly after a meeting with Governor Bello Muhammad Matawallen Maradun in Sokoto on Saturday.
Alh Ahmed Balarabe Anka, who briefed after the meeting, said their decision to join the ruling PDP in Zamfara State, along with their supporters, was as a result of Governor Bello Muhammad’s leadership style in restoring peace and tranquility in all parts of the state within a short period of time.
A 25-year-old woman from Kilimani, Nairobi was on Friday, February 7, charged in court with physically assaulting her 42-year-old ex-boyfriend outside the Milimani Law Courts.
Mildred Aoko Okello is said to have beaten up Anti-Jussi Ahveninen on January 7, 2020, when the ex-couple had gone to court for a mention of their child custody case.
On December 13, 2019, the children’s court — through Senior Resident Magistrate G.M. Gitonga — had given Ahveninen temporary custodianship of their daughter as the custody case went on in court.
Aoko was only allowed restricted access to the child over the weekends. The court directed that Aoko could access the child from 10am Saturday to 5:30pm Sunday.
And, on January 7, the former couple appeared in court for a mention of their case, when Aoko allegedly clobbered Ahveninen.
7th of January being a Tuesday, it was Ahveninen’s turn to be with the child. However, after a mention of the case, Aoko refused to hand over their daughter to her father, prompting an argument between the ex-lovers.
During the verbal exchanges and each one’s attempt to grab the child from the other, Aoko is said to have punched Ahveninen in the face leaving him seriously injured.
The ex-boyfriend was also punched in the head and neck, worsening his injuries, a police report said.
After subduing her ex-lover, Aoko managed to have full control of the child.
Ahveninen, who owns a construction company in Nairobi, was forced to seek medical attention at MP Shah Hospital in Nairobi, the court was told.
In her defense, Aoko said it was her ex-boyfriend who pushed and attempted to hurt her.
The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge of assault, and was released by magistrate Michael Ndichu on a cash bail of Ksh30, 000 or a bond of Ksh60, 000. Aoko is expected back in court on February 21.
The court heard that 25-year-old Aoko, who describes herself as a lawyer and student, walks around accompanied by her four bodyguards.
“On the day of the alleged assault, her bodyguards looked on as Aoko roughed up her ex-lover,” the court was told.
“Aoko drives a top-of-the-range Mercedes Benz, and lives in the leafy Kilimani suburb,” an informant told K24 Digital.
Governor of Edo State, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has ordered the arrest of John Mayaki, his former chief press secretary.
Mayaki who is a Prince from Igarra royal family, was the first Acting Chief Press Secretary to Obaseki at the inception of his administration.He however left under unclear circumstances.
Special Adviser to Governor Obaseki on Media and Strategy, Mr. Crusoe Osagie said “the Police in Edo state weekend contacted the family of John Mayaki in Akoko-Edo local government area, through High Chief J.M. Akpeji, the Otu of Igarra, to submit their son to the police custody failing which the nonagenarian would be arrested.
“The Otu told journalists that one police officer who identified himself as DSP Moses Nkombe, called my line to demand that I submit my son to their custody on the orders of the state Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki but unfortunately, I am unable to get hold of my son, as he was still out of the country in pursuit of education.”
A source in the palace of the Otu of Igarra who spoke on condition of anonymity, further added that “the police officer went ahead to send John Mayaki’s phone number to his father, telling him to reach his son with the number and compel him to return to the state, threatening to arrest the frail old man if he fails to engineer his son’s return to the country.”
However, a source close to Mayaki, however said: “in the morning hours of 7th February 2020, precisely by 10:44 am, a policeman, DSP Moses Nkombe, from State CID, Benin City, with the phone number—08034684673—contacted my brother, ordering his presence at the station over an undisclosed petition from the Governor.
“Prior to this action, the said officer had already called my father, High Chief J.M. Akpeji, the Otu of Igarra, coercing him to provide John Mayaki and/or find a way to compel him to submit himself to their custody.”
The statement from from Osagie added that “the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Mr. Taiwo Akerele has instituted a case against Mayaki at the State High Court demanding the sum of N100 million while the Governor and his Executive Assistant, Mr. T.J. Nwadie, were reported to have sent a pre-action notice to Mayaki, involving a whopping sum of N500 million.
“Both court actions may not be unconnected with the series of publications embarked upon by the journalist after excusing himself from the Government of Mr Godwin Obaseki as his Chief Press Secretary.”
Scores of gunmen suspected to be members of the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) have attacked Gurmana, old Gurmana, and Ashirika communities in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State, in central Nigeria.
The armed men stormed the communities at about 10:00 am on Saturday, some on bikes and some on feet, shooting sporadically into the air, Channels TV reported.
Witnesses said the attack started in Gurmana where they reportedly killed two persons and injured four others before moving to old Gurmana where they rustled more than 200 cows.
The Senator representing Niger East, Sani Musa confirmed he had received reports of the attacks.
