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The Nigerian Navy has impounded three barges conveying petroleum products suspected to be crude oil and refined Automative Gas Oil and arrested seven persons at Tunu Community Creek in the Ekeremor Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

Commander, NNS SOROH, Nanmar Lakan, disclosed at the weekend that his command received an intelligent report on the activities of oil thieves going on in the area.

Lakan said the seven suspects, who were on board the barges at the time of arrest, claimed to be security men working under the leadership of Tunu, but were being kept in custody pending the conclusion of investigations.

He stated that Shell Petroleum Development Company, which operates in the area, had complained of the loss of 25 per cent daily production to oil thieves.

Lakan said on receiving the intelligence his men carried out both air and water surveillance in the area and their efforts paid off with the arrest of the suspected oil thieves.

According to him, two of the barges each has capacity of 637,000 litres while the third could contain 700,000 litres.

Lakan added that investigation was ongoing to ascertain the owners of the barges and where the products were meant to be discharged.

He warned those who indulge in such illegal activities of oil theft to desist from the illegal business as the Nigerian Navy would not allow them to find peace.

Source: Punch

Some farmers were injured in a clash between farmers and cattle herders in the Hayin Kogi forest in Birninkudu Local Government Area of  Jigawa.

This is contained in a statement issued by the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Lawan Shiisu on Monday.

“Report at the command’s disposal revealed that at 1700HRS, farmers at the Hayin Kogi Forest were attacked by herders resident of Waza Fulani settlements of Birninkudu LGA while clearing bushes in preparation for wet season farming.

“As a result, some of the farmers escaped and abandoned their tricycles, phones and farm implements,” he said.

The PPRO added that upon receipt of the report, police from the neighbouring Police Division, surrounding the forest were immediately mobilised to the scene.

He said that a 42-year-old man and four others who sustained injuries had been taken to the Dutse General Hospital where they received treatment and have since been discharged.

“The belongings of the farmers were recovered and handed over to them,” Shiisu said.

He explained that efforts are being intensified to arrest the fleeing suspects, while the case is being investigated.

”Normalcy has since been restored in the area. The Commissioner of Police, Ahmadu Abdullahi, organised a stakeholders’ meeting and ordered the arrest of the culprits.

”The CP has directed the Area Commander in charge of Birninku and Divisional Police Officers in charge of Birninkudu and Kiyawa to hold a stakeholders’ meeting to douse tension and avert a breach of peace in the area,” he said.

Source: Punch

The Nasarawa State Police Command has arrested a suspected criminal who had been disturbing the peace of the residents in the Karu Local Government Area of the state.

This was contained in a press statement signed by the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ramhan Nansel, in Lafia on Sunday.

According to Nansel, the suspect, a 26-year-old resident of Aso Pada, was arrested by police operatives of the Mararaba ‘A’ Division during a stop-and-search operation at Kabayi in the Karu LGA.

He explained that one locally fabricated Barretta pistol and one live ammunition were recovered from the suspect as an exhibit.

He said the suspect had made useful statements, adding that efforts to trail and arrest other members of the syndicate were ongoing.

Nansel said, “On 25/5/2024 at about 02:00hrs, acting based on credible information about the movement of an armed robbery suspect responsible for a series of armed robbery activities in Kabayi, Aso Pada and Mararaba General Area of Karu LGA, police operatives attached to Mararaba ‘A’ Division created a stop and search point at Kabayi to get the criminal arrested.

“The effort paid off when the suspect named David Samuel ‘M’ 26 years of Aso Pada was sighted by the eagle-eyed operatives and was arrested, where one locally fabricated Barretta pistol and one live ammunition were recovered from him as exhibits.

“The suspect has made useful statements and efforts to trail and arrest other members of the syndicate are ongoing.”

According to the PPRO, the state Commissioner of Police, Umar Shehu Nadada, had ordered that the 26-year-old suspect should be charged to court for prosecution upon the conclusion of an investigation into the matter.

Source: Punch

Kenyan President William Ruto vowed Thursday that his country’s upcoming deployment to Haiti will seek to crush gangs that have ravaged the Western Hemisphere’s poorest country.

Ruto was speaking on a state visit to Washington alongside President Joe Biden, who saluted Kenya’s willingness to assist and promised that the United States would provide intelligence and equipment in hopes of stabilising its troubled southern neighbour.

“Gangs and criminals do not have status. They have no religion,” Ruto told a White House news conference.

He vowed that the international mission would “deal with them firmly, decisively, within the perimeters of the law.”

Kenya and the other nations set to deploy to Haiti aim to “secure that country and to break the back of the gangs and the criminals that have visited untold suffering in that country,” Ruto said.

Asked if the Kenyan deployment can succeed in defeating gangs that have plunged Haiti into near anarchy, Biden said, “Yes.”

“This is a crisis. It’s able to be dealt with,” Biden said, praising Kenya’s “first-rate capability.”

The Biden administration had searched extensively for a country to take the lead but had ruled out sending in US forces, who have a long history of intervention in Haiti.

“We’re in a situation where we want to do all we can without us looking like America, once again, is stepping over and deciding this is what must be done,” Biden said.

“Haitians are looking for help, as well as the folks in the Caribbean are looking for help,” Biden said.

Ruto said that the deployment was a decision by Kenya, not the United States, as his country wanted to advance “peace and stability as a responsible global citizen.”

Biden in 2021 withdrew the last US troops from Afghanistan, ending America’s longest war, and has promised to avoid putting US forces at risk overseas.

Source: Channels

An election rally in northern Mexico descended into tragedy after a gust of wind sent the stage careening into the crowd on Wednesday night, killing at least nine people, including a child, authorities said.

At least 50 other people were injured in the accident, some seriously, according to Nuevo Leon Governor Samuel Garcia.

Footage of the incident showed a chaotic scramble as people screamed and tried to leap away from the collapsing structure while the lights and a giant screen toppled onto the area where presidential candidate Jorge Alvarez Maynez and members of his Citizens’ Movement party were standing.

“I regret to report that so far the number of people killed in the accident stands at eight adults and one minor,” Governor Garcia wrote on social media platform X, adding that at least three people were undergoing surgery.

Speaking to the press from the scene of the accident in the town of San Pedro Garza Garcia, he described the accident as “a tragedy.”

Presidential longshot Maynez, who escaped without serious injury, said the stage collapsed after a strong gust of wind.

“I am fine and in communication with the authorities” over what happened, the 38-year-old wrote on X, adding that the priority was to take care of the victims.

Medical teams carted bodies on orange stretchers into waiting vans as soldiers roamed a field littered with debris and muddied campaign posters.

Rally attendee Jose Juan said he saw the structure come crashing down.

“It hit me on the head and I fainted. The rest was pure hysteria, pure panic,” he told broadcaster Televisa.

Citizen’s Movement member Javier Gonzalez-Alcantara told Televisa that first responders had to pull people trapped underneath the collapsed pavilion.

“All the people who were under the stage were rescued and the injured were taken to the hospitals,” he said.

Mexico’s meteorological service had warned of heavy rain, wind gusts of up to 70 kilometers (43 miles) per hour and possible tornadoes in Nuevo Leon and other northern states on Wednesday night.

Governor Garcia urged people to avoid going outside because of the storms.

The event was the closing campaign rally for Citizens’ Movement candidate for mayor of San Pedro Garza Garcia, Lorenia Canavati.

Candidates for the centrist party at the senate and local level also participated.

Presidential hopeful Maynez, who suspended his upcoming campaign events to remain in San Pedro Garza Garcia, said that he would stay at the scene until the last injured person was taken to the hospital.

Some members of his team were receiving medical treatment, he said, without specifying their injuries.

In a post on social media, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador offered his sympathies and said he was “sending a hug” to the family members and friends of the victims.

The other two presidential candidates also expressed solidarity with those affected.

Frontrunner Claudia Sheinbaum said that she was canceling a rally planned for Thursday in Monterrey, and expressed “solidarity with the family and friends of the victims.”

Main opposition presidential candidate Xochitl Galvez offered “condolences and prayers” to the families of those killed and “wishes for a speedy recovery to all the injured.”

On June 2, Mexicans will vote for a new president as well as members of Congress, several state governors and local officials.

According to the polls, Maynez lags behind both Sheinbaum and Galvez, trailing at a distant third just weeks before the election.

The lead-up to election day has been marred by violence, with more than two dozen politicians killed since the electoral process began last September, according to research group Data Civica.

Source: Channels

A pupil of the Landmark International School, Mgbakwu in Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra State, Henry Okonkwo, who was reportedly beaten to a coma by a teacher has died.

It was gathered that the boy gave up the ghost in the early hours of Wednesday.

The PUNCH had reported that a 30-year-old teacher at the school, Faith Nwonye, was arrested for allegedly beating the eight-year-old pupil into a coma, on Monday.

Nwoye had earlier been invited by the Commissioner for Education, Prof. Ngozi Chuma-Udeh, to explain what led to the brutalisation of the child on Monday, May 20, 2024.

Chuma-Udeh had expressed sadness over the development, lamenting that the chances of the victim’s survival currently in admission to a hospital are 20 per cent, according to the medical doctor.

She said the school was running illegally describing the development as a crime running an illegal school in the state as well as beating a child, the commissioner warned that perpetrators were doing so at their peril.

The teacher was invited alongside the school’s Proprietor in which the incident happened, Mrs Promise Ilo.

The development led to the temporary shutting down of the school while an investigation was said to have begun.

The teacher who admitted flogging the child, however, stated that the flogging was not as severe as the picture was painted.

The matter was handed over to the police for investigation, while the child was in the intensive care unit of the hospital, from where he later gave up the ghost in the early hours of Wednesday.

Taking to her verified Facebook wall on Thursday, the commissioner lamented the death of the boy, saying he was a boy like any other, with hopes and aspirations.

She wrote, “He was a boy like any other, with hopes and aspirations. He went to school for a better future but met a gruesome death at the hands of the people who were supposed to help him achieve his life ambition.

“A quack teacher in an illegal school bludgeoned him to death. We mourn a life nipped in the bud! We mourn Henry Chukwuemeka Okonkwo! We mourn and we seek justice.”

Source: Punch

Troops have arrested a suspected kidnapper in Oyo State as part of efforts to get rid of criminal activities in the country.

The army in a Friday statement said the suspect was apprehended in a stop-and-search operation along the Igboho-Igbeti Road in Igbeti Local Government Area of the South-Western state.

“The troops intercepted a suspected kidnapper, Usman Mohammed Aliyu, who was found in possession of four hundred thousand naira (N400,000.00),” the statement read.

“During further investigation, Aliyu confessed to being involved in cattle rustling and kidnapping. The suspects will be handed over to appropriate prosecuting agencies after investigations.”

Elsewhere, troops acted on credible intelligence and raided a suspected kidnappers’ hideout in Ajegunle Mpape in the Bwari area council of Abuja, the nation’s capital.

During the raid, troops nabbed “an informant suspect named Ashiru Mohammed with two female accomplices, Raham Abubakar and Sadiya Mohammed.”

“The suspects were found in possession of one Beretta pistol, one pistol magazine, and 21 rounds of 9mm ammunition. The troops also recovered five ATM cards from different banks, two mobile phones, and suspected illicit drugs. The suspects are currently helping in further investigations,” the statement read

See the full statement below:

TROOPS CONDUCT ANTI-KIDNAP OPERATIONS, ARREST SUSPECTED  INFORMANTS, NOTORIOUS KIDNAPPER IN ABUJA, OYO

In a recent Anti-Kidnap operations based on credible intelligence, troops of the Nigerian Army deployed for internal security duties made significant strides in combating Kidnap activities in the Federal Capital Territory and Oyo State.
In the Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory, troops on  Thursday 23 May 2024, raided a suspected kidnappers’ hideout in Ajegunle Mpape, targeting a notorious informant known for harbouring kidnappers. During the operation, the troops apprehended an informant  suspect named  Ashiru Mohammed with two female accomplices, Raham Abubakar and Sadiya Mohammed. The suspects were found in possession of one Beretta pistol, one pistol magazine and 21 rounds of 9mm ammunition. The troops also recovered five ATM cards from different banks, two mobile phones  and suspected  illicit drugs. The suspects are currently helping in further investigations.
In a related development, troops acting on an alert about a kidnap syndicate operating around Sepeteri in the Shaki general area, of Oyo State conducted  a stop-and-search operation along the Igboho-Igbeti Road in Igbeti Local Government Area.The troops intercepted a suspected kidnapper, Usman Mohammed Aliyu,  who was found in possession of four hundred thousand naira (N400,000.00). During further investigation, Aliyu confessed to being involved in cattle rustling and kidnapping. The suspects will e handed over to appropriate prosecuting agencies after investigations.
These coordinated operations are indicative of Nigerian Army’s commitment to maintaining security and combating criminal activities in synergy with other security agencies across the country. The arrests and seizures are expected to significantly disrupt the operations of kidnap syndicates and other criminal networks in the affected areas.

Source: Channels

The Delta State government, in its determination to reduce crime rates in the state, has banned commercial motorcycles, popularly known as Okada.

Apart from Asaba, the state capital, other areas where the ban is effective include Oshimili South and North, Sapele, Ika, and Uvwie local government areas.

Briefing journalists on Thursday after the weekly state executive meeting in Asaba, the Secretary to the State Government, Dr Kingsley Emu, said the objective of the ban was to prevent security challenges in the state.

Emu, who noted that the law has been in existence since 2012 but has not been implemented, said: “It is to save lives and property. People have been raped. They vandalise transformers and cables and make residents restless.”

According to him, anyone who violates the ban will be arrested, his motorcycle will be seized and destroyed and he will be made to face a mobile court.

While threatening to deal ruthlessly with violators, he said the move was not to victimise other tribes or encourage division. The ban, according to him, was deliberately extended to cover other areas and does not affect transport unions.

“There are security men on ground to effect violation. Even Oshimili South and North local government areas have come out with their by-laws to ban scrap metal scavengers,” Dr Emu said.

Source: Daily Post

Six Boko Haram members, including a terrorist commander, have surrendered to troops of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF).

The insurgents gave up their terrorist activities and handed themselves over to the military on Thursday, May 23.

Disclosing this in a statement on Friday, the MNJTF’s Chief Military Public Information Officer Lieutenant Colonel Abubakar Abdullahi, identified the terrorist commander as Adamu Mohammed.

He also listed other terrorists as Isah Ali, 18 years old; Hassan Modu, 18 years old; Nasir Idris, 23 years old escort for the Commander of Jubillaram Usman Rash; Abba Aji, 21 years old and Abubakar Isah, 20 years old.

“The terrorists escaped from the ISWAP faction hideout in Jubillaram, situated in Southern Lake Chad. Adamu, 22 years old, had participated in numerous terrorist attacks and roamed around Kangarwa, Alagarno, Doro Naira, and Dogon Chikwu in Kukawa Local Government Area, Borno State, Nigeria,” the statement read.

“During their surrender, they handed over 11 rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition and one warhead of anti-aircraft rounds. The surrendered fighters are currently undergoing investigation.”

According to the MNJTF spokesman, over 100 terrorists have renounced terrorism since the commencement of Operation Lake Sanity II aimed at flushing out insurgents in the region.

He specifically said since April 23 this year, 119 insurgents have surrendered calling on other insurgents to embrace peace and lay down their arms.

“This brings the total number of terrorists who have surrendered since the commencement of Operation Lake Sanity ll on 23 April 2024 to 119.

“The MNJTF appeals to other terrorists to follow suit, lay down their arms, and embrace peace. We reaffirm our commitment to ensuring a secure environment in the Lake Chad Basin region,” Abdullahi said.

Source: Channels

Katsina State Police Command has arrested a four-man gang specialized in swapping Point-of-Sale (POS) machines to steal from unsuspecting victims.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, ASP Abubakar Aliyu Sadiq, paraded the suspects during a press briefing held at the Command’s headquarter on Thursday.

He noted that the arrest was made on May 12, 2024, following a tip-off from the public.

He identified the suspects as Abdulhakeem Haruna (20), Habibu Kabir (28), Aminu Abubakar (27), and Abubakar Bishir (25).

The suspects, who are all residents of Katsina, were alleged to have swindled five business owners of a total sum of N4.763 million.

According to the PPRO, during their operation, the gang reportedly swapped the victims’ POS machines with identical-looking fakes and used them to illegally withdraw money from the victims’ accounts.

The police recovered four POS machines believed to be part of their loot, the spokesman said, adding that the suspects had confessed to the crime and that investigation was ongoing.

Katsina State Commissioner of Police, CP Aliyu Abubakar Musa, commended the officers involved in the operation and urged the public to be vigilant.

He advised residents to report any suspicious activities to the police for prompt action.

The Commissioner also assured the public of the command’s commitment to apprehending criminals and protecting citizens from their activities.

Source: Daily Post