Crime

Saturday, 19 November 2022 05:38

‘Grass cutting fraud’: Court frees Babachir Lawal

A high court in the federal capital territory (FCT), has discharged and acquitted Babachir Lawal, former secretary to the government of the federation (SGF), over allegations of money laundering. Lawal was standing criminal prosecution alongside Hamidu David Lawal, his younger brother; Sulaiman Abubakar; Apeh John Monday and two companies, Rholavision Engineering Ltd and Josmon Technologies Ltd. They were re-arraigned on a 10-count charge bordering on diversion of funds, criminal conspiracy, and official corruption to the tune of N544 million. In a judgment delivered on Friday, the court held that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) failed woefully to establish…

Thursday, 17 November 2022 06:53

At least 12 killed in Plateau after gunmen attack villagers

Gunmen have killed at least 12 people in an attack on a village in the northern Nigerian state of Plateau, residents and the state governor said on Wednesday, the latest deadly incident fuelled by growing pressure on land resources in the country. Violence between farmers and pastoralists has become increasingly common in recent years as population growth leads to an expansion of the area dedicated to farming, leaving less land available for open grazing by nomads' herds of cattle. A local resident, Bernard Matur, said the gunmen attacked Maikatako village, in Plateau state, on Monday evening, killing at least 12…

Tuesday, 15 November 2022 06:56

FG arraigns 16 foreigners in court over oil theft

A Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has arraigned 16 foreigners for offences bordering on conspiracy, stealing, attempt to deal in crude oil and false pretences. The foreign nationals were caught onboard a vessel, MT Heroic Idun. According to the charges, the foreigners had, in August 2022, at the Akpo Oilfield in Rivers State, conspired among themselves and committed maritime offences. The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges said to contravene Section 10 of the Suppression of Piracy and Other Maritime Offences Act 2019. After listening to the application of the prosecutors on the amended charges,…

Tuesday, 15 November 2022 06:55

Locals scoff at Military’s bounty of N95m placed on 19 terrorists declared wanted

Some residents of Zamfara State on Monday expressed doubt that any progress would be made with the declaration of some terror kingpins in the state wanted by the military. They wondered why it took the military so long before declaring the terror kingpins wanted or even making a frantic effort to capture them alive. The Defence Headquarters had, earlier yesterday, released names and identities of 19 terrorists’ commanders who had been wrecking havocs in Northeast, Northwest and Northcentral. The Military High Command said it would give N5m to any Nigerian who had information on how the terrorists could be captured,…

Monday, 14 November 2022 06:26

Nigeria remains safe haven for terrorism financing, ‘dirty money’, money laundering - Report

Another damning report released last week confirms the Nigerian government’s institutional weakness and unfocused response to ‘hot money’, and terrorism, and its funding. In its latest global ranking on money laundering and terror financing risks, the Basel Institute of Governance, an international non-profit, Nigeria ranked 17th out of 128 countries, placing it firmly in the ranks of countries with “high risks of ML/TF” and susceptible to greater risks of environmental crime. Assailed by diverse terrorist groups across the country, the Federal Government should urgently strengthen and enforce anti-money laundering mechanisms and resolutely crush terrorism, the report says. It is another…

Sunday, 13 November 2022 06:09

ISWAP bans Naira as currency for payment of taxes and levies imposed on residents of occupied Nigerian territories

Shura Council of the Islamic State of the West African Province(ISWAP) has banned naira as a means of transaction for the illegal tax it collects from peasant farmers and fishermen. This is as a result of the Nigerian government’s move to redesign and reissue higher denominations of its currency. According to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), N200, N500, and N1000 notes will be reissued by December and by January 31, 2023, the old notes will cease to be legal tender. It was gathered that this move threw the ISWAP population in the Tumbus of Lake Chad into confusion. According…

Saturday, 12 November 2022 05:44

FG files 7-count amended terrorism charge against Nnamdi Kanu

Federal government has filed an amended seven-count terrorism charge against Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). Kanu has been in detention since he was brought back from Kenya on June 19, 2021. The IPOB leader was subsequently re-arraigned on an amended 15-count charge. On April 8, the trial court struck out eight of the 15 counts in the charge. The remaining seven counts were later quashed by the court of appeal on October 13. Delivering judgment in the appeal, a three-member panel of the appellate court led by Hanatu Sankey held that the federal government flouted…

Friday, 11 November 2022 06:46

INEC says 65,000 uncollected PVCs destroyed as hoodlums attack Ogun, Osun offices

Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says critical election materials were destroyed in the attack at the commission’s local government office in Ogun. The commission’s office was gutted by fire in the early hours of Thursday after suspected hoodlums torched the facility. Festus Okoye, INEC’s commission for information and voter education, said over 65,000 uncollected PVCs were destroyed in the fire. “The resident electoral commissioner (REC) for Ogun state, Niyi Ijalaiye, reported that our office in Abeokuta South local government area was attacked and set ablaze,” he said in a statement. “The incident occurred around 1.15am when some unidentified persons overpowered…

Friday, 11 November 2022 06:44

Commuters mull abandoning Lagos-Ibadan expressway as gunmen attack now daily occurrence

Commuters and motorists taking the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway have expressed concern over the continuous kidnap attacks on the road. They lamented that plying the road either in the day or at night had become dangerous. The road users raised the alarm following attacks by suspected gunmen in military camouflage on travellers in the last two days. Some passengers were reportedly shot during the attack, while men of the Ogun State Police Command were said to have arrived at the scene after the incident. Our correspondent gathered that the gunmen also attacked motorists on Wednesday. It was learnt that many people turned…

Friday, 11 November 2022 06:40

‘Pig butchering’ is a new scam on the net. This is how it works

The threat posed by online scams has increased significantly in recent years. There are now more ways than ever before to find yourself the victim of online fraud. One of the more sophisticated examples is known as pig butchering. Pig butchering is part romance scam and part investment scam. It combines the fake relationship of the former with the fake promises of wealth associated with the latter. For many victims, it is an expensive and painful process. So what exactly is pig butchering, and how can you avoid falling victim to it? What Is Pig Butchering? Pig butchering is a…

More...

Thursday, 10 November 2022 06:06

Police foil another kidnap attempt by gunmen on Lagos-Ibadan expressway

Men of the Ogun State Police Command on Tuesday battled suspected kidnappers during an attack on commuters travelling on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. According to eyewitness accounts, gunmen, dressed in military camouflage, attempted to abduct passengers in an 18-seater bus. The vehicle was reportedly heading for Lagos from Ibadan, Oyo State, when the incident happened. Our correspondent learnt that the gunmen stormed the road from a bush before the Sagamu Interchange and started shooting at the bus. The passengers and the driver were said to have scampered for safety, as some hid under the bus. However, the intervention of policemen in…

Wednesday, 09 November 2022 06:52

EFCC appeals conviction of chairman to prison for contempt of court

Abdulrasheed Bawa, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), says he has appealed the verdict ordering his remand. Bawa said this on Tuesday while fielding questions from journalists in Abuja. “We have appealed against it already so we will allow the natural course of the law to take its effect,” he said. An Abuja high court ordered the remand of the EFCC boss over failure of the anti-graft agency to comply with an earlier order of the court. Chizoba Oji, the presiding judge, ordered the inspector-general of police (IGP) to ensure that Bawa is committed to prison for…

Wednesday, 09 November 2022 06:48

Gunmen release 5 sisters of same mother after parents paid N72m ransom

Gunmen have freed five sisters abducted six months ago from their boarding school in Zamfara state after their parents paid ransom money to secure their release, police and relatives said. The bandits kidnapped 11 schoolgirls, including the sisters, from a secondary school in Zamfara in March and later released six of them. The sisters were detained because the kidnappers found out their father had previously worked as a senior government official in the state. Kidnapping has become endemic as roving gangs of armed men abduct people from schools, hospitals, roads and farms and demand ransom money from their relatives. Hadiza…

Wednesday, 09 November 2022 06:47

Catholic priest kidnapped in Kaduna, diocese says

A catholic priest was kidnapped from his home in Kaduna state, the local Roman Catholic diocese said in a statement on Tuesday, in the first such reported abduction of a clergyman in the state since July. Armed gangs are rife across northern Nigeria where they rob or kidnap for ransom, and violence has been increasing, where thinly stretched security forces often fail to stop the attacks. Christian Okewu Emmanuel, chancellor for Kaduna Catholic diocese, said Abraham Kunat, a parish priest in Idon Gida village, was abducted from a home he was staying in another town, after leaving his parish due…

Page 32 of 77

Crime

More...

Search

Most Read

Editorial

News

Business

Politics

Opinion

Features

Strangely

Crime

Wars

SCIENCE & TECH

SPECIAL REPORTS

Sports

VIDEOS