Crime
“Spike in IPOB Attacks in Enugu Shows Mbah Isn’t Ready for Leadership”, CSO Declares
The current spike in attacks by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in Enugu since the state governor, Peter Mbah, announced an end to the Sit-at-home order in the state three weeks ago has been attributed to the lack of preparedness for leadership by the new helmsman.
According to a civil society organisation based in Enugu, the Oriental Lawyers for Justice (OLJ), the worsened security problem has seen at least eight kidnappings in the capital in the last two weeks plus the attack on the New Haven station of the Pinnacle Oil and Gas Company owned by the governor in the early hours of Wednesday last week “show that, contrary to the assertions of those who packaged him for the recent election which he nevertheless lost, Mbah is just another politician and wheeler-dealer rather than a clear-headed leader with a focus on how to get our dear state cracking in the right direction”.
Commercial drivers protested in their hundreds on Tuesday (yesterday) against the new spate of kidnappings on the Enugu–Nsukka Road, as three kidnaps were recorded on Thursday, last week, alone.
If he had prepared himself for high office, the OLJ said in a statement signed by JohnBosco Aninwede, its president, and Mrs Ifeoma Ejike, the secretary, he would have learned from the experience of Governor Chukwuma Soludo of neighbouring Anambra State who in his inaugural speech in March, 2022, announced a war against so-called freedom fighters in the bush, only to face an unprecedented rise in attacks by IPOB members throughout the state, especially in his Isuofia hometown and Aguata Local Government Area whose headquarters was bombed.
“There is no doubt that IPOB has been responsible for the attack on Mbah’s private petroleum firm, as the perpetrators came in a large number of tricycles and armed with rifles, charms, and the notorious red headband worn by the Eastern Security Network (ESN), IPOB’s military wing”, declared the OLJ.
“And everyone knows that Pinnacle is targeted because of Mbah’s moves against IPOB”.
The nongovernmental organisation said that Simeon Ekpa, a top IPOB leader based in Finland, has openly mocked Mbah for lack of legitimately because he didn’t win the Enugu governorship election.
The lawyers argued that no serious leader would announce the cancellation of the stay-at-home order which is enforced with savagery throughout the Southeast every Monday without providing enough security forces on the ground and without constituting his cabinet because tackling profound insecurity is not a one-man show.
“By the time he announced an end to the order by the nonstate actors, the new governor had appointed only the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Chidiebere Onyia, and no other person into his administration”, noted the Oriental Lawyers for Justice.
“It was after he had begun to implement the order which failed spectacularly on the first Monday that it occurred to him to consult stakeholders in the state like traders, transporters, religious leaders, traditional rulers, students, town union officers, and the rest to brief them on his plans”.
They added that Mbah was marketed beyond his knowledge and skills by his handlers who “tried to mesmerise our people with his personal wealth and his manifesto promise to increase Enugu’s economy from $4bn to $30bn within four years, even though he has never supplied information on how he plans to achieve this feat”.
The lawyers observed that though they are against IPOB for its streak of violence and such illegal acts as the curfew it imposes on the Southeast weekly, “Mbah has gone about cutting down the secessionist group to size the wrong way because of his poor poor skills as a public leader.
“If he had genuinely won the March 18 gubernatorial election, he would have acted more rationally, and not in this knee-jerk manner meant to get accepted by the Enugu people who rejected him and his Peoples Democratic Party resoundingly in the 2023 general elections.”
Crime
Homosexuality: Police nab 37-year-old man with 3 minors with 500 naira inducement
A 37-year-old man, Isah Usman of Angwan Biri, who sells honey in the Bosso Local Government Area of Niger State, has been arrested by the police for forcefully having unnatural carnal knowledge of young boys aged 13, 14 and 15 severally in his room.

The incident, which occurred on 23rd April at about 3:30 p.m., was reported to the Bosso Division, where the suspect lured the minors with 500 naira each and some honey as an inducement to commit the act with them.
Confirming the development, spokesman of the police, Superintendent Wasi’u Abiodun, in a statement said the victims were taken to Police Clinic, Minna, for a medical examination, which confirmed the allegation and indicated penetration, while the suspect also confessed to the act.

The suspect, according to the police, has been transferred to SCID Minna for further investigation, after which he will be charged to court for prosecution.
Similarly, on the 28th April at about 5:45 p.m.m, Abiodun said a report was received at GRA Division that on the same date at about 4p.m, a 14-year-old boy was seen spending money lavishly and when questioned by his Boss, who is a mechanic.
The teenager, upon interrogation, revealed that another 16-year-old usually gives him between two thousand and two thousand five hundred naira after performing unnatural sexual acts with him in an uncompleted building around Tayi village.
The suspect was said to have been immediately arrested, and an investigation is ongoing to identify other victims and possible accomplices for investigation and prosecution for unnatural offences.
The police therefore advised Parents/Guardians to monitor and protect their wards against such unnatural offences to prevent the health implications for the victims.
Crime
NDLEA, US-DEA nab Nigerian billionaire drugs baron
Properties already identified and linked to Amadi Simon as proceeds of illicit drug funds include Jovi Hotel at 1 Isiayei Street GRA Phase 1, Asaba, Delta State; Jovi Hotel and Suites at 4 Orikeze by Deeper Life Road, Agbor, Delta State; as well as Jovi Apartment at Jamieson Court Mabushi, Abuja.
A Nigerian a billionaire drug baron, Amadi Simon, had been arrested in Switzerland along with his co-conspirators: 34-year-old Jecinta Amara Ikechi, in Anambra state, and 28-year-old Blessing Ngozi Amadi, in Agbor, Delta state.
In a statement on Thursday, the NDLEA said that the arrest of the trio followed months of intelligence and investigations across multiple jurisdictions linking Amadi to the laundering of hundreds of billions of Naira in proceeds of drug and financial crimes.
In addition to the arrest of the suspects, the NDLEA, in collaboration with its international law enforcement partners, has also traced multi-billion assets linked to Amadi’s transnational criminal network in Nigeria and abroad.
“His operations in Nigeria included a complex scheme of front and shell companies; pass-throughs and delegates; and the use of numerous traditional and cryptocurrency accounts to conceal and launder illicit funds.
Properties already identified and linked to Amadi Simon as proceeds of illicit drug funds include Jovi Hotel at 1 Isiayei Street GRA Phase 1, Asaba, Delta State; Jovi Hotel and Suites at 4 Orikeze by Deeper Life Road, Agbor, Delta State; as well as Jovi Apartment at Jamieson Court Mabushi, Abuja.
“Also, several bank accounts and cryptocurrency addresses used by the cartel to conceal hundreds of billions of illicit funds have also been identified and blocked.”
The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd),expressed gratitude for the support received from the US-DEA to crack and dismantle Amadi’s transnational criminal network, adding that the US mission to Nigeria has continued to partner with the agency to combat narcotics trafficking through training in intelligence, evidence collection, case management, and tactical operations as well as the provision of critical equipment.
Crime
Gateman flees after murder of a manager with Okeyson Transport
They went to Abdullahi Dairu, and he mentioned one of his friends, claiming he went out with him. But when the wife called that same friend, he said he hadn’t seen him that day,” the source stated.
Image credit : Instagram
A gateman identified as Abdullahi Dairu has been nowhere to be found following the murder of a 67-year-old man, Chief Augustine Nwalieze, a manager with Okeyson Transport.
Chief Nwalieze’s body was discovered with deep machete wounds in his home at Ajah area of Lagos State, a development that has thrown his family and friends into mourning.
It was learned that Nwalieze was attacked Saturday morning as he prepared to go out.
Nwalieze lived with his wife, daughter, two maids, and another woman, who were upstairs at the time of the incident.
A family source said the victim’s gateman identified as Abdullahi Dairu has been nowhere to be found since the incident.
According to the source, Dairu allegedly attacked Nwalieze for yet-to-be-ascertained reasons as the victim walked downstairs to the car park, close to the store where spare parts from his cars are kept and a solar panel was stored.
“Nobody could really tell what happened. They didn’t hear the sound of any car driving off or the gate opening.
His three cars were still parked, so, they became worried about his whereabouts.
They called his phone, but he didn’t pick up,” the source said.
The source added that Dairu could not give a straight answer when questioned about his boss’ whereabouts.
They went to Abdullahi Dairu, and he mentioned one of his friends, claiming he went out with him. But when the wife called that same friend, he said he hadn’t seen him that day,” the source stated.
The case against Dairu grew stronger after he went into hiding, the source further stated.“
By the time they returned to question him again, he had disappeared. That was when they began to search the compound thoroughly.
They found his lifeless body in one of the flats downstairs.
He had machete cuts on his head, hands, and body. It was a terrible sight,” the source disclosed.
The victim was immediately rushed to hospital but efforts to revive him failed.
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