The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has burst a syndicate that specialised in importing cakes, biscuits and other confections (baked with drugs) for the rich in Lagos State, arresting the leader— Samuel Ebenezer.
NDLEA recorded the breakthrough when its operatives raided some drug spots in Agege, Ikorodu, Lekki, Okokomaiko and other parts of the state; dismantled major drug syndicates, arrested suspects and seized large quantities of hard drugs.
According to NDLEA, “One of the drug syndicates burst during the raids is coordinated by one Samuel Ebenezer in Lekki.
“His cartel imports special sophisticated drugs baked in cakes, biscuits and cookies from the United States and sells to the rich and affluent people in Lekki and Lagos Island.”
During the raids, a total of 90 suspects including an Indian were arrested, while over 614 kg of various types of drugs were seized.
According to the Lagos State Commander of the Agency, Mr. Ralph Igwenagu, “the breakdown of the seizures is as follows:
“Cannabis Sativa 577.020 kg; Cocaine 0.183kg, Heroine 0.003 kg, Tramadol 36.202kg (7,697) tablets, Rohypnol 0.208kg (646) tablets, Diazapam 0.462kg (2066) tablets, Exol-5 0.52kg (316) tablets, making a total of 614.396kg of different types of hard drugs seized.”
Gunmen on Tuesday attacked a bullion van at Ubulu-Okiti along the Benin/Asaba expressway, Aniocha North Local Government Area, Delta State with one lady feared dead.
The gunmen numbering about 10, Vanguard gathered came out of a bush on citing the bullion van, shooting sporadically until the bullion van and the escorts stopped.
A dependable source, who lamented that the gunmen succeeded in a robbery of the bullion van, said a female passenger of a bus was killed by a stray bullet from the gun of the armed robbers.
The source who pleaded anonymity, could not however confirm how much the gunmen made away with, adding that the robbery attack caused a serious traffic grid on the ever-busy expressway.
Lamenting that motorists, passengers and villagers closed to the scene of the robbery, scampered for safety, the source said it took a while for those who ran into the bush to come out even when the robbers were gone.
Contacted, the Acting Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO in the State Police Command, Mr Bright Edafe confirmed the bullion attack.
Edafe however said he was not aware of a female passenger was killed.
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) panel has ordered the police to release the corpse of Ms Ifeoma Abugu, who was allegedly murdered by operatives of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Abuja.
Recall that Abugu a graduate of the Institute of Management and Technology, Enugu State was arrested on September 10 when SARS operatives stormed the residence of her fiancé, Adam Ugwunwa, in Wumba village, Lokogoma.
Unfortunately, Abugu who recently concluded her National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) died the next day in police custody.
Following the development, an NHRC panel was set up to investigate the alleged violations of rights by SARS and other police units.
However, the Chairman of the panel, Rtd Justice Suleiman Galadima, on Wednesday ordered that the deceased corpse be released for a proper burial.
Earlier, Dr Ahmed Abimiku, Chief Pathologist of the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Abuja, said the police alleged that she died of a cocaine overdose.
Abimiku said he conducted a urine test to ascertain the truth and it was negative.
He further revealed that he also conducted a vaginal swab and discovered that she was sexually assaulted.
Abimiku told the panel that the deceased possible cause of death is lack of oxygen.
Delivering Judgement, Galadima ordered that the deceased corpse be released after Ifeanyi Mamah, complainant’s counsel applied for the release of the corpse to the relatives of Abugu.
Six men who reportedly kidnapped and tortured a man to death in Lessel community, Ushongo LGA of Benue state have been arrested.
According to reports, the unnamed man was killed over a missing goat after an oracle pointed him out as the culprit.
The suspects were arrested on Tuesday, February 23, 2021.
A certain Ordue Akume, who is the youngest sibling of the deceased, was alleged to have reported the disappearance of his goat to the community youths.
During the investigation, they decided to consult an oracle, who revealed to them that it was the deceased that stole the goat.
When queried about the missing goat, the deceased, however, denied the allegation.
In a bid to ensure that he admitted and returned the said goat, the suspects persisted with all forms of torture despite pleas by neighbours and passers-by to halt the torture.
When it dawned on them that the deceased may likely not survive the grievous torture, they moved and dumped him at a private clinic where he passed away.
Bayern Munich winger, Jamal Musiala, has confirmed his decision to play for Germany on the international stage.
Musiala previously starred for England’s under 21 but was eligible to play for Nigeria.
The 17-year-old was born in Stuttgart to a German mother and British-Nigerian father.
He moved to England at seven, where he played for the Chelsea academy.
Musiala then moved back to Germany to join Bayern Munich in July 2019.
The teenager played two games for Germany’s U16 side in 2018.
He has now told The Athletic: “What is best for my future? Where do I have more chances to play?
“In the end, I just listened to the feeling that over a long period of time kept telling me that it was the right decision to play for Germany, the land I was born in. Still, it wasn’t an easy decision for me.”
Tiger Woods suffered serious injuries to both legs as his car flew off the road and flipped several times on Tuesday near Los Angeles in a crash he was “very fortunate” to survive, law enforcement officials who found the US golf legend said.
Woods underwent surgery to repair “significant orthopaedic injuries” to his lower right leg and ankle, which included the insertion of a rod into his tibia and the use of “a combination of screws and pins” to stabilize his foot and ankle, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center chief medical officer Anish Mahajan said in a statement released on the golfer’s Twitter account late Tuesday.
“He is currently awake, responsive, and recovering in his hospital room,” the Twitter statement read, adding there would be no further updates, and thanking first responders and well-wishers.
Woods did not appear to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol during the early-morning incident, said Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva.
No other vehicles or passengers were involved in the crash, which occurred on a steep stretch of road known as an accident “hotspot,” where Woods was travelling at “a greater speed than normal,” said the sheriff.
“I will say that it’s very fortunate that Mr. Woods was able to come out of this alive,” said deputy Carlos Gonzalez, the first officer to arrive at the scene.
Gonzalez found Woods trapped in his vehicle but conscious, appearing “calm and lucid” and able to identify himself to the deputy as “Tiger.”
“It is my understanding that he had serious injuries to both legs,” said Los Angeles County fire chief Daryl Osby, describing Woods’ condition as “stable.”
Firefighters and paramedics extricated Woods from the wreckage of his SUV and transported him with a neck collar and backboard to a local hospital via road.
The 45-year-old, one of the most successful golfers of all time, has won 15 major championships.
He recently underwent his fifth back surgery, and said he was uncertain if he would be able to complete his latest injury comeback in time to play at April’s Masters.
“On behalf of the PGA Tour and our players, Tiger is in our prayers and will have our full support as he recovers,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said in a statement.
General Overseer of the Omega Fire Ministries International, Apostle Johnson Suleman, has expressed regrets over his statement in a viral video stating ‘he prayed for COVID-19 not to end.’
Apostle Suleman, in the viral video which attracted a widespread backlash, also said he bought his third private jet during the pandemic.
Responding to the widespread criticisms while preaching to a congregation, he regretted saying the statement adding that it was said in error.
In the now viral video obtained by The Nation, he said: “There is a video trending about me, it was posted by a pastor. It was a programme I had in Abuja. I was trying to explain something about COVID-19, when they showed me the video, I discovered it slipped out of my mouth. There is no pastor that will not pray for COVID-19 to end.
“I was trying to explain what happened around COVID, how families were staying together, how families were united and how people made money during that process and that was what I was trying to buttress.
“That of COVID, I regretted the way it came out. I was telling them my wife was so happy that I was at home, not that we were happy that we were dying. That is insensitive. When I saw the video, I went down on my knees and said holy spirit I cannot say this.”
He said the video was edited in some parts. He however wondered why people were angry over his claim of having three private jets saying he has done other philanthropic gestures like building federal roads, building houses for widows, buying transformers, paying graduates salaries.
Speaking on his claim of having three private jets, he said: “If you are angry, I mentioned three jets, you go just die. That’s the truth".
“Then you are angry I mentioned jets, you never vex. If you cannot commend me then you cannot condemn me.
“God will only be angry with me if I take offering and tithe to buy a plane. But if I have avenues of God blessing me, what’s your business? Is your money missing?”
Kaduna state Governor Nasir El Rufai on Tuesday launched the State Social Protection Policy, lamenting that, Nigeria has the highest number of poor people among the countries of the world.
He however said that, his government will establish a Social Protection Agency to ensure that all social protection programmes are delivered in an integrated, inclusive and sustainable manner that optimizes resource utilization and achieves high impact.
El Rufai said, that social register must be used in programmes designed to assist the poor people, while Nigeria must drop the idea of giving slots of assistance programmes to the rich and powerful.
According to El Rufai, “Nigeria is going through trying times. We have the largest number of poor people than any country in the world. Yet, whenever a programme is designed to help the poor and vulnerable, we resort to a slot mentality in which important people are allocated slots instead of targeting those poor and vulnerable that deserve it. This is unfortunate. We must move away from slot mentality and use our social register to offer targeted support to those that truly need it.
“I appeal to all my colleagues, the political elites to please drop this slot mentality and use the social register, so that, programmes targeting the vulnerable actually go to the poor and vulnerable. When we think of the poor and vulnerable, we must all remember that, the welfare of each one of us is bound up in the welfare of all of us.”
Speaking on the Social Protection Agency, El Rufai said, “the agency will utilize an Integrated Social Protection Management Information System, which will serve as a data repository to ensure that the poorest of the poor are prioritized in programme planning and benefits.
“This will also ensure the effective monitoring and evaluation of programme impacts on targeted poor and vulnerable residents of the State,’’ he added.
Singer Banky W who welcomed a baby boy with his actress wife few weeks ago made an analysis of the baby’s name, while hinting on his new song premiering on February 26th.
He wrote;
“Please read in full: His name is Hazaiah Olusegun "Champ" Wellington
(we call him Zaiah, pronounced Zah-Yah, or Champ)
Hazaiah means God sees/God has seen in Hebrew. Olusegun means God has given victory in Yoruba. It captures our testimony regarding the journey towards his arrival; Zaiah is truly an answer to our prayers.
God had the Final Say. And I don't know what you're praying or hoping for... but I do know that God is still in the business of answering prayers, and if you can trust Him, and place your faith in the Giver, not in your preferred timing of His gift, nothing is impossible. If He could do this for us, please believe He can do anything for you.
The "Final Say" song & video premieres on Friday Feb 26th. The song was written by myself and @maytronomy, and produced by @cobhamsasuquo. The video was directed by @theoladayo and it stars my sunshine, @adesuaetomi, looking FIIIINE AS WINE while 6 months pregnant with Zaiah...who was born in January and turned out to be just as beautiful as his Momma is 😍😍😩😩❤❤Our hearts are full. Our joy knows no bounds. And I pray that in these incredibly tough, dark and challenging times, our story, this song and video will put a smile on your face, a pep in your step and a glimmer of hope in your heart. Subscribe now, and tune in on Friday#FinalSay #FinalSayVideo #NewMusic #NewVideo #FinalSayByBankyW #TheBankStatementsAlbum on the way #WeMove #MamaZ #PapaZ #MamaZaiah #PapaZaiah”
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has appealed his suspension by social media giant Facebook, both on Facebook and Instagram.
Trump lodged the appeal with Facebook Oversight Board, co-chaired by former Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt.
But, his appeal will not be considered, until about 10 weeks time.
Trump was suspended indefinitely by Facebook in January, following his serial breaching of the platform’s rules. Twitter banned him permanently.
He was then posting falsehoods that he won the 3 November 2020 election by a landslide, whereas the truth was that he lost by a landslide.
Some of the posts also supported the insurrectionists who stormed the U.S. Capitol on 6 January, for which he was impeached by the House of Representatives.
“We can confirm that a user statement has been received in the case before the Oversight Board concerning President Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts,” a spokesperson for the Oversight Board said in a statement.
‘We have decided that we are going to take this case,’ Thorning-Schmidt said on Tuesday in an interview with UK’s Channel Four.
‘It’s a very high profile case but that is exactly why the Oversight Board was created in the first place.’
She added that they are inviting public feedback on the case for them to look at and they have ‘already received public comments in the thousands and thousands’.
‘One thing I think is quite good about how we deal with these things is not only does Facebook have a statement about why they did what they did. The user can also put in their statement about their opinion,’ she said.
‘A third thing that can happen is that we are open for public comments about this particular case. We’ve already received public comments in the thousands and thousands.’
Facebook announced in January that it asked the Oversight Board to review its decision to suspend Trump on Jan. 7, the day after a group of the president’s supporters stormed the Capitol.
The Trump ban is the most consequential case yet for the Oversight Board, carrying far-reaching political implications for the nation.
Facebook’s Oversight Board launched last year to review the toughest calls the company makes. It is supposed to function as an independent entity but gets financial backing and technical support from Facebook.
The Oversight Board has 90 days to make a decision, but a ruling is expected more quickly. Its decision is binding and cannot be overruled by CEO Mark Zuckerberg or any other Facebook executive.
It was a sensational dramatic piece with Mr Freeman Godwin, an appointee of Cross River governor, Ben Ayade who has threatened to commit suicide over non -payment of salary after his appointment.
Godwin, whose designation is not known as at the time of this report, is heard in a video made available by Phylo Modlin, screaming “When it is time for work, they will use you and dump you, at the end of the day, nothing happen; I will die for this government.”
The Obudu- born man further lamented that he was on his own doing his business, but they called him to give him an appointment which he had to borrow money to do documentation, yet no payment, adding that his wife delivered a baby through cesarean section, popularly called CS.
His facebook timeline suggest he has been struggling with a lot of issues since the beginning of 2021.
Reacting to the issue, Mr Christian Ita, the Media Assistant to Governor Ayade, said that Godwin’s issue was just an administrative matter.
“Governor Ayade has about 6,000 aides. If 5,999 are being paid regularly, must the case of one person be a major issue? He was employed in November 2020 and we are in February. I think he went to the Auditor -General’s Office and the issue is purely administrative”, Ita added.
A High Court sitting in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, has discharged and acquitted one Chukwudi Omeh, who has been standing trial since 2013 over the death of his fiancee.
Omeh a trader of engine oil at Okwo Ngbo market, Ohaukwu Local Government Area of the state, was accused in 2012 of killing his pregnant fiancee, Chinagorom Agama, on April 12, 2012, at Okposhi Eheku Ngbo area of the state.
Delivering his judgment, the trial judge, Justice Vincent Nwanchor, said the defendant was discharged and acquitted for the inability of the prosecution to prove his charges beyond reasonable doubts after eight years.
The judge, after the judgment, advised Omeh to be grateful to God for granting him freedom by being a dedicated Christian.
The prosecuting counsel for the state, Lilian Okorie, thanked the judge and faulted the police for not doing appropriate investigations on the matter.
The defendant’s counsel, Cletus Egem-Nwokposi and Chioma Odera Udeh, thanked the court for being the last hope of the common man.
The discharged engine oil trader’s joy knew no bounds for regaining his freedom after eight years behind bars in Abakaliki Correctional Centre and prayed for peaceful repose of the soul of his fiancee.
It will be recalled that the deceased was a student of Ebonyi State College of Education, Ikwo and a fiancee to the accused.
Her corpse and bag were discovered at Alisaoko forest, while her private parts were missing. She was three months pregnant before her death as Chukwudi Omeh was sponsoring her in school
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has recorded 571 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 153,187.
The NCDC disclosed this on its official Twitter handle on Tuesday.
Nigeria also recorded 12 COVID-19 deaths, raising the total fatality in the country to 1,874.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Benin Zonal Office on Tuesday, February 23, 2021, arraigned Gajah Omayulele Lovely before Justice G. O. Imadegbelo of the Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City.
Lovely was arraigned on a two-count charge of conspiracy to pervert justice and failure to produce a suspect (Richman Pere) for whom he stood as surety.
One of the counts reads: “that you Gajah Omayulele Lovely on or about the 9th January 2021 whilst standing as surety to a suspect, one Richman Pere (at large) aided and abated his escape by refusing to produce him for arraignment before the Federal High Court, Benin and failing to cooperate with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in bringing him to custody and thereby committed an offence”.
The defendant pleaded ‘not guilty’ to the charge, prompting the prosecution counsel, Ibrahim Mohammed to ask the court for a trial date and to remand the defendant in prison custody.
Attempt by the defence counsel, Marta Imafu to move her application for bail was opposed by the prosecution counsel.
Justice Imadegbelo ordered that the defendant be remanded at the Correctional Centre and adjourned till March 17 for trial.
Kim Kardashian has reportedly told her seven-year-old daughter North West about her impending divorce from Kanye.
The 40-year-old Keeping Up With The Kardashians star reportedly filed for divorce from her rapper husband, 43, on Friday and North apparently "knows what's going on".
The reality star is thought to have made the decision to tell her eldest child "alone" so that she could "understand" what was happening between her parents.
Kim and Kanye have been living separate lives for months, with the rapper holed up in his $14 million ranch in Wyoming while Kim continues to live with their kids in the $40 million Calabasas mansion that they own.
A source told Hollywood Life that North is understanding "as much as she can" about the situation.
The source continued: "Kim sat her down alone to tell her, but not the younger ones.
"Kim and Kanye been living like this for so long. The last year has been exactly like this where they’ve been living separate lives both physically and emotionally, so whether there has been paperwork or not, they have not been living in a conventional marital situation."
The current situation will mean that there "won’t be a change for the children at all," according to the source.
For North and her siblings Saint, five, Chicago, three, and Psalm, one, the source said: "Things are not going to change much. The life they have right now. It feels like they’ve been divorced since last summer."
Tiger Woods has been taken to hospital with serious injuries to both legs after a car accident, with a Los Angeles police officer saying the golfer is “very fortunate” to have survived.
Carlos Gonzalez, the first LA county deputy to respond to the scene, added that Woods was “calm and lucid” despite being trapped inside his vehicle. Woods was removed from the crash by firefighters, and his vehicle suffered “major damage”.
Woods was transported to the nearby Harbor-UCLA Medical Center by ambulance and underwent surgery for “multiple leg injuries” after the incident early on Tuesday morning. Later reports said that Woods had suffered compound fractures. His injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.
The LA county sheriff’s department had earlier reported a “single vehicle roll-over collision on the border of Rolling Hills Estates and Rancho Palos Verdes” at 7.12am local time on Tuesday. Photos of the crash site showed Woods’s badly damaged SUV at the bottom of an embankment in hilly terrain.
Woods had been driving a 2021 Genesis GV80 northbound on Hawthorne Boulevard when he drove over the center median, into the southbound lanes, struck a tree and rolled the vehicle several times, said Alex Villanueva, the Los Angeles county sheriff, at a press conference Tuesday afternoon.
The crash is still under investigation. Gonzalez noted that this “specific stretch of roadway is one of our trouble spots”. Deputies have often caught motorists speeding here, sometimes at up to 80 miles per hour, which would be nearly double the locally reported speed limit. Gonzalez said Woods was responsive and coherent when he arrived on scene, and was able to tell him his name.
Though his injuries were visible, Woods appeared to be in shock and unconcerned with them, Gonzalez said. “I’ve been doing this for a while. I’ve seen fatal traffic collisions,” the deputy added. “It was very fortunate that Mr Woods was able to come out of this alive.”
Woods was the only person in the vehicle at the time of the accident and was conscious when deputies arrived on scene. While the cause of the crash has not yet been determined, Villanueva said Woods’ vehicle was “going at a relatively greater speed than normal”. When asked if Woods was under the influence at the time of the crash, Villanueva said there was “no evidence of impairment at this point in time.”
Malawi authorities have issued a new arrest warrant for controversial millionaire Prophet Shepherd Bushiri and his wife Prophetess Mary Bushiri of the Enlightened Christian Gathering.
This comes after Prophet’s children Raphaela and Israella, cousin Esther Bushiri and mother-in-law Magdalena Zgambo were barred at Kamuzu International Airport by the police from flying out to Kenya to access medical assistance
Following the incident, the police stormed his place residence to effect the arrest but could not find the self-proclaimed prophet and his wife.
National Police spokesperson James Kadadzera confirmed the new warrant of arrest that was issued to fugitive Prophet Bushiri and his wife to Malawitalk.
Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services spokesperson Martin Gongolo said that the police stopped Bushiri’s family from traveling because they were suspecting that Bushiri was fleeing the country and wanted to dispatch his children away first.
Meanwhile, Bushiri’s lawyer Wapona Kita said he was going to court to challenge the arrest warrant and seek the court’s relief. He claims the police stormed Bushiri’s place of residence on Sunday with a warrant of arrest for the prophet Bushiri but could not find him as he had gone for prayers at the mountain.
Controversial Prophet Bushiri and his wife are wanted in South Africa on money laundering, theft, and fraud charges.
The fugitive pair skipped bail in South Africa and returned to their native country Malawi, claiming they fled because their lives were in danger and they would not have a fair trial.
Efforts to extradite Bushiri and his wife from Malawi to South Africa proved futile last year. They are extradition hearing was however set for the 8th of March 2021.
Nollywood actress, Nkechi Blessing Sunday has slammed a fan who shared a photo of her arm with her name tattooed on her arm.
The new trend in Nigeria currently is fans tattooing the names of their favourite celebrities on some part of their bodies to gain attention or anything in kind from them.
Sharing the photo on her Instagram page, Nkechi Blessing wrote;
“Na the new trend be this? Aunty Oyinda I just hope those ain’t permanent tattoos..Cus OYO Le wa oooo🙏 me sef Dey find who to draw wey go dash me small thing..I love you ooo but you ain’t getting more than this very post👌 I no Dey claim wetin I no be..IRE ooooo❤️”.
