Man in prison for defiling 12 years old friend's daughter in Edo

A 65-year-old man, Friday Azala, was on Tuesday remanded in prison custody by an Egor Magistrates’ Court, for allegedly having canal knowledge of his friend’s 12-year-old daughter.

Azala was accused of defiling the girl at No. 6, Agho Street, off Textile Mill road, Benin, on April 9, 2017.

According to the prosecutor, Ben Omoruyi, the accused is a friend to the victim’s father, who is bed-ridden, and always comes to the house on the pretence of seeing his friend.

Omoruyi told the court that the accused had defiled the girl “several times before he was caught in the act.”

He also said the accused always lured the girl with N20, to have his way.

When his plea was taken, Azala, however, pleaded not guilty.

The accused said he only embraced the girl and had never had sex with her.

“I did no such thing as having canal knowledge of her, I embrace her only on five
occasions, and I also released on those occasions.

“Am only been lied against by her mother because we had a misunderstanding. We are neighbours.”

The Chief Magistrate, Igho Braimah, who ordered Azala to be remanded in prison, adjourned the case till April 19, for hearing.

Read More »

Army refuses to accept shoot out with notorious kidnapper

Authorities of the 4 Brigade Nigerian Army have denied reports that its troop of 19 Battalion had a gun duel before it arrested a suspected kidnapper, Mr. Sunday Okoro aka ‘GI’ and six others at Sapele, Delta State.

It said there was no shoot out or gun duel during the arrest of Okoro and others.

In a statement signed by spokesman of the 4 Brigade, Captain Mohammed Maidawa, it also denied that the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Monday Igbuya, mounted pressure for the release of the suspects.

According to the statement, “The Nigerian Army is replete with highly professional, loyal and dedicated officers that performed their duties diligently with great sense of responsibility and pride.

“It is therefore preposterous for anyone to allege anything untoward in the handling of the accused or the recovered abandoned vehicles and weapons. All were properly handed over the Delta State Police Command through appropriate channels for further investigation and prosecution.”

Read More »

Suspected killer of policemen, soldiers arrested

One of the suspected militants, who killed four policemen and two soldiers at Ishawo in Ikorodu, a Lagos district, has been arrested.

Endurance Ominisan alias Mighty, an Arogbo indigene of Ondo State, who was arrested during an Easter Sunday operation, however died Tuesday at a hospital as a result of the injuries he sustained.

It was gathered operatives of the Inspector General of Police’ (IGP’s) Intelligence Response Team  (IRT) trailed the kingpin to his lover’s home at 20, Joel Adebolu Street, Ibeshe in Ikorodu.

It was gathered that a Turkish made Fatih 13 pistol marked 12TF00126 with four expended and five live ammunition were recovered from him.

Their onslaught on the gang was sequel to a directive from IGP Ibrahim Idris to all police units and commands in Lagos and Ogun to get the culprits dead or alive.

According to a source, Mighty, who rented the accommodation for his lover, left the creek to hide there, after he learnt about a planned attack on the creek by security forces at the weekend.

“While other policemen were in the creek waiting for signal to carry on with the operation, IRT got information that the masterminds were fleeing the creek and one of them was at his girlfriend’s place at Ibeshe. He was followed and the house surrounded.

“Mighty escaped to the roof of the house from where he fired several shots with his pistol on the IRT teams. The team responded swiftly and fatally wounded him in his hiding place on the roof. He was eventually brought down from the roof and rushed to General Hospital Ikorodu where he later died.

“But before his death, he mentioned one America, Stone, Vika and others as his gang members, who participated in the killing of the four policemen and soldiers.

“The kingpin confessed to have masterminded the kidnaps of Iba Monarch, Turkish School Girls and many others within the zone,” said the source.”

Read More »

Southern Kaduna Crisis : Army holds town hall meeting

The Nigerian Army on Tuesday organised a town hall meeting with stakeholders in Southern Kaduna to explore ways of ending the recurring crisis in the area.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting, held in Kafanchan, was to seek alternative measures to complement the military in bringing about permanent peace to the area.

In a message to the occasion, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen Tukur Buratai assured that the ongoing special operation tagged `Harbin Kunama II,’ was to engage the people in securing the area.

He said that the residents must reslove to live in peace and harmony to stem unwarranted loss of lives and property going on in the area for years.

Represented by the Commanding Officer, 1 Division, Nigerian Army, Major Gen. Adeneyi Oyebade, the Army Chief emphasized the need for dialogue as the most civilized approach to conflict resolution.

Buratai assured the people that the military would continue to discharge its mandate of securing lives and property of all citizens.

He expressed the hope that the residents would resolve to end the cycle of violence in the area by embracing dialogue and mutual respect for one another.

Also, the state Deputy Governor, Mr Barnabas Bantex said the state government was committed to providing job opportunities for youth as panacea to the recurring civil unrest.

He expressed concern that the state government was spending huge sums of money on security instead of providing infrastructure and sustainable livelihood for the people.

Bantex advised all communities to live in peace and learn to address any security breach with civility and according to the law.

He stressed that no individual or community has the monopoly of violence hence the need to resist the temptation to perpetrate evil.

Earlier, the Director, Civil-Military Affairs, Defence Headquarters, Major Gen. Nuhu Angbazo explained that town hall meeting was to provide opportunity for stakeholders to lend their voices to ongoing efforts to end the Southern Kaduna crisis.

“The Army believes in soft power approach to creating peace among communities bedeviled by crisis,” he said.

Angbazo noted that there was no alternative to peace, adding, “the meeting was also to consolidate on the security gains so far achieved in Southern Kaduna through dialogue.”

The Director Genreal, Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution, Prof. Osita Osita observed that the tendency to undermine the cultural heritage of others remained a challenge to efforts at maintaining national cohesion.

Osita urged the people, irrespective of tribe and religion, to value the existence of one another to promote peaceful coexistence.

He challenged them to tolerate and accommodate each other to pave way for meaningful development.

NAN reports that the town hall meeting, sponsored by the Department of Civil-Military Affairs, had the topic, “The Impact and Implication of Terrorism and Ethno-Religious Crisis to National Security Architecture”.

---

Read More »