Crime
5 People beheaded as hostilities resume between Tivs, Cross River community

Five persons have reportedly been beheaded as reprisal killings resumed yesterday between the Tiv people of Benue State and the Ijiegu-Yache of the Yala Local Government Area of Cross River State.
Chief Jacob Uswa, Tiv leader in the community, confirmed this on Wednesday, adding that many others have been maimed.
According to him, the Yache boys beheaded theirs when they went to their farms to harvest cassava.
“On Sunday 8th October 2023, they attacked and beheaded three of our boys in their farms where they had gone to harvest cassava for fufu.
“Two others were also killed in another farm. They displayed the heads before their Yache people. The Yache boys are all over the bushes to attack us,” he said.
Augustine Adula, a youth leader in Ijiegu-Yache community, said they had to defend themselves when the Tiv militia unleashed attacks against them on their farms.
He alleged that the Tiv boys go to their farms to harvest their farm yields and attack their women and farmers.
“We have suffered incessant attacks from those Tiv settlers. They invade our community wearing military camouflages and some times they would take us by surprise through the bushes to attack us.
“As a result, our boys have stopped their businesses and schools and have taken positions in the bushes to defend our land and people, so that they can block the Tivs when they come surreptitiously,” Adula said.
According to Adula, the situation has made life very difficult for them, adding that markets and schools have not opened due to deep seated fears for their lives.
The cause of the hostilities is said to be refusal by the Tivs to continue to pay royalties on the land they settled in. This led to killings and destruction of houses on both sides last month.
But the Tivs have claimed that having settled in the community for over 100 years, they are more of Cross River than Benue State indigenes.
Both community leaders have expressed unhappiness that the numbers of security men, including soldiers sent to keep the peace between them are very few and are mostly in the town, leaving the hinterlands very porous for the killings to persist.
Earlier, the two deputy governors of both states, Peter Odey and Sam Ode of Cross River and Benue States, respectively, visited the community and appealed for cessation of hostilities while they worked towards peace.
Police PRO, Irene Ugbo said they had not received a formal report about the latest killings.
Crime
Joint Security Forces Nab 12 Kidnap Suspects, Rescue Victims in Kogi/Kwara Operation (Photos)

Twelve suspected kidnappers and one informant have been arrested in a coordinated security operation carried out across parts of Kogi and Kwara States.

This was disclosed on Tuesday by the Kogi State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Kingsley Fanwo through a press statement made available to newsmen.
He said the suspects were apprehended during a series of raids jointly executed by the Hybrid Force from the Office of the National Security Adviser and Officers and Men of the Forward Operating Base (FOB), Egbe.

The operations covered Isanlu-Esa and Okoloke in Yagba West Local Government Area of Kogi State, and Patigi, Lafiagi and Gbugbu in Kwara State.
The statement identified the suspected kidnappers as Mainasara Abubakar, Sadik Abubakar, Jude Sani, Sanda Abubakar, Lawali Usman, Tukur Shehu, Hassan Abubakar, Kabiru Surajo, Makiri Dodo, Bala Hassan, Umaru Sanda, and Ruwa Abubakar. Also arrested was Rabiu Makeri, who is believed to be an informant for the gang.

According to the statement, the security forces engaged the suspects in a fierce gun battle, during which some of the kidnappers fled, abandoning their motorcycles and kidnap victims. Several kidnapped women were successfully rescued during the confrontation.
“We want to thank the gallant officers from the Office of the National Security Adviser and our men at the FOB, Egbe for their courage and professionalism. We also commend the Kwara State Government for their cooperation, which has yielded this outstanding result,” the statement read.
“Peace has returned to Kogi West as the criminal route from Kwara into our communities has now been disrupted. There will be no hiding place for the criminals. One of the security agents who confronted the kidnappers was shot and he is currently receiving medical treatment at an undisclosed hospital in Yagba West Local Government Area of the State. The Governor of Kogi State, His Excellency Alh. Ahmed Usman Ododo has offered to cover all the costs of treatment”, he said.
The Commissioner further assured the public that the arrested suspects will face full prosecution after investigations, reaffirming the state’s zero-tolerance stance on criminality.

In a separate remark, the Executive Chairman of Yagba West LGA and ALGON Chairman for Kogi State, Hon. Tosin Olokun, expressed gratitude to Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo for providing the logistics and support that enabled the success of the operation.

“Governor Ododo promised to restore peace to Yagba West and Yagba as a whole. Today, he has backed those words with decisive action. We can now heave a sigh of relief. The people of Yagba are grateful for his leadership and the results it is delivering,” Olokun said.

The Kogi State Government emphasized its ongoing commitment to working with federal and regional partners to ensure the safety and security of all communities within the state.
Crime
JUST IN: Court Frees 24 IPOB Members After Four Years of Detention

A high court in Ebonyi State has ordered the release of 24 members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) after they were held in detention for four years.
The ruling on Thursday marks a significant development in the ongoing legal proceedings involving the group.
The 24 IPOB members were discharged and acquitted by Justice I. P. Chima of Ebonyi State High Court.
It was gathered that they were among the last batch of the IPOB detainees out of the 36 held since May 4 2020.
Meanwhile, their lawyer and human rights activist, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, confirmed their freedom in a statement titled, “Justice Delayed, But Never Denied.”
According to him, the ruling followed the preliminary objection which highlighted the brazen violation of their fundamental rights: particularly the constitutionally guaranteed protection against double jeopardy, enshrined under Section 36(9) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
Ejiofor said the sacred principle, “autrefois acquit”, stipulates that no person shall be tried again for an offence in respect of which they have previously been acquitted.
Crime
Ebonyi Police arrests sisters in Crime for brother’s kidnap
The two sisters are security agents. while Juliet Chukwu is an operative of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, Ngozi Nancy Chukwu is of the Nigeria Immigration Service.

Two sisters have been apprehended by the Enugu State Police Command for allegedly masterminding the kidnapping of their brother, Mr. Friday Chukwu.
The two sisters, Juliet Chukwu and Ngozi Nancy Chukwu, are the younger sisters of the victim, who hails from Amaeze village, Ishiagu community, in the Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
The two sisters are security agents. while Juliet Chukwu is an operative of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, Ngozi Nancy Chukwu is of the Nigeria Immigration Service.
It was gathered that through the duo’s connivance, Chukwu was kidnapped last month on the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway near the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku-Ozalla, in the Nkanu West Local Government Area, Enugu State.
And through the sisters’ prodding and subtle moves, it was claimed that the sum of N30 million was paid for their brother’s release.
Earlier, the two female security operatives orchestrated the abduction of the General Manager of China Oriental Mining Company, Dennis Igwe, in the same area on Monday.
Luck ran out of them when they were traced to a hidden hotel where they were to share the sum of N10m ransom paid for Igwe’s release, and they were arrested.
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