Startech Safety And Security News Blog

The Oyo State Police Command said that 26 people died in the early morning ghastly motor accident, which occurred at the Ibadan end of the Lagos/Ibadan Expressway. The Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Kunle Ajisebutu confirmed the accident and said that 11 others including three children sustained severe injuries. Ajisebutu said that eyewitnesses reported that two commercial buses had a head-on-collision with the vehicles immediately bursting into flames claiming 26 lives. “Corpses of the dead have been deposited at Adeoyo General Hospital, Yemetu, while the injured were taken to the Ibadan Central Hospital, and the University College Hospital, (UCH) Ibadan for medical attention. “Police investigation has begun. “The victims were evacuated by a combined team of police men from the Toll Gate Police Division and men of the FRSC. “The Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Odude visited the scene immediately,” he said. Mr Deji Bobade, the Public Relations Officer...

The Islamic terror group, Boko Haram has released another batch of more than 80 of the Chibok schoolgirls who were abducted in mid-April 2014. A top military source just broke the news to Saharareporters. According to the source, the release of the 80 abducted school girls came after further negotiations between the Islamist group and the Muhammadu Buhari administration. The source said he was not in a position to disclose the terms of the agreement that led to today’s mass release of the Chibok school girls. Our source revealed that that the 82 girls who just regained their freedom are currently in Banki town in Borno state awaiting airlift to an unknown destination. The source added that once the girls are secured in a new location they would be debriefed, undergo psycological and medical tests and then be reunited with their families.

Justice E. A. Obile of the Federal High Court, Warri Division, Delta State, on Tuesday, April 25, 2017 struck out the last of the three cases instituted by a former Niger Delta militant leader, Government Ekpemupolo (also known as Tompolo) and others against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. In the suit, FHC/WR/CS/172/2015, the applicants among other reliefs prayed the court for an order restraining EFCC from declaring Keston Pondi, a director in Tompolo’s company wanted and also for an order nullifying letters of invitation extended to Pondi by the anti-graft agency. The applicants further prayed the court to order EFCC to direct all enquiries regarding the matter being investigated by the agency in writing to Pondi, while he is to provide written responses. The case was, however, struck out for lack of diligent prosecution by the applicants. This is because the case was abandoned after a sister case with similar facts involving Tompolo (Suit No: FHC/WR/CS/171/2015...

Ifeanyi Ubah, the chairman of Capital Oil and Gas Limited has been arrested by the Department of State Services. The agency revealed the arrest today in a statement by spokesman, Tony Opuiyo. Opuiyo said Ubah was arrested on Friday in connection with the theft of petrol kept by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, in his tank farm in Lagos. The product was valued at over N11 billion. The agency said Ubah’s action amounted to economic sabotage, with “capacity to negatively impact on national economy”. Opuiyo gave additional reasons for Ubah’s arrest. He said he has further engaged in other activities inimical to national security and public order. In furtherance of his gimmicks to undermine the government and people of Nigeria, he has incited members of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD), a critical player in the downstream sub-sector of the Petroleum Industry, to refuse/stop the lifting of products. “This is part of his plans to curry their sentiments and c...

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Wednesday, May 3, 2017, arraigned one Eucharia Ekezie before Justice Olasumbo Olajumoke Goodluck of the Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Maitama, Abuja, on a ten-count charge of conspiracy and obtaining by false pretence. Ekezie, in connivance with one Hamid Bakoji (now at large), allegedly defrauded over seventy job applicants to the tune of N3.920million under the pretext that the money would be used to facilitate employments for them in various federal government establishments including Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria Communication Commission, Federal Inland Revenue Service and National Assembly. The offence contravenes Section 8 (a) and 1 (1) (a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006. One of the counts reads: “That you, Mrs. Eucharia Ekezie and Hamid Bakoji (now at large), sometime between the 15/10/2012 and 06/12/12 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the High Court of the Federa...

Some Automated Teller Machine (ATM) users in Lagos have got a rough deal with suspected fraudsters, who luck around the booths to dispose them of their money. They have perfected the act of plying their nefarious trade, usually at the weekends. They forcibly dispossess ATM users of their cards on Friday evenings and make away with the Personal Identification Number (PIN) codes to make withdrawals elsewhere.  This is because banking are usually shut down for the weekend and complaints about stolen cards or ATM deactivation will not be possible until Monday. According to information gathered, robbers approach their targets with smile while carrying out transaction on the ATM. They display their guns and point to their colleagues standing in case you try the alarm or call for people's attention.  A victim, who was robbed recently while narrating her ordeal said “there criminal snatched my three ATM cards and forced me to release my PIN. The sum of N680,000 withdrawn betw...

Children in Northeast Nigeria continue to be brutalized as a result of Boko Haram’s insurgency in the region and the ensuing conflict, a UN report released on Thursday has said. The ‘Report of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict in Nigeria’, documented the impact on children of the severe deterioration of the security and humanitarian situation in the country between January 2013 and December 2016. Virginia Gamba, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, in a press release from her office, described the report as a ‘first-of-its-kind’. “With tactics including widespread recruitment and use, abductions, sexual violence, attacks on schools and the increasing use of children in so-called ‘suicide’ attacks, Boko Haram has inflicted unspeakable horror upon the children of Nigeria’s north-east and neighbouring countries.” The Secretary-General’s report detailed grave violations committed by Boko Haram during the period. ...

A 58-year old mother-of-seven, Mrs. Joy Raji, was Thursday sentenced to six years imprisonment by a Benin City High Court, for human trafficking. The convict who pleaded not guilty to the three-count charge bordering on deceitful inducement to move from any place, receiving a person to be used for forced labour and slave dealings, was arraigned in January 2016. She was accused of trafficking an 18-year -old girl (name withheld), who worked as an artist designer in Benin City, before she was trafficked to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, for exploitative purposes. The prosecution told the court that the offences contravened the provisions of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Law Enforcement and Administration Act, 2013, as amended. During the trial, the Prosecution called three witnesses and tendered exhibits, including a slave uniform passport, travel tickets and bank teller to prove its case. The accused was said to have collaborated with her brother, Evans Aghahowa (now a...

A 50-year-old photographer died yesterday in the Challenge area of Ibadan. He was reportedly tortured by some men of the Oyo State Special Anti-Robbery Squad at their Dugbe Headquarters. According to family sources, friends and neighbours, the man was arrested on Friday, April 21, 2017 alongside four others during a raid at a spot for allegedly smoking Indian hemp. One of his co-suspects told me on tape that on getting to SARS detection facility at Dugbe, they got daily vicious beatings from the policemen who used what they claimed looked like hockey sticks and other iron materials to torture many detainees. It is now believed that this man died from the torture due to internal bleeding. My investigation further revealed that each of the other suspects' relations and friends had to pay nothing less than 30,000 naira to get bailed after days without food. It learnt that the deceased could not get to his family nor friends because his phone was seized and having reali...

Three suspected female suicide bombers were killed while attempting to attack a military outpost near Muna garage at the outskirt of Maiduguri in Borno State, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has said. Malam Abdulkadir Ibrahim, NEMA North-East Information Officer, said in a statement issued in Maiduguri that the incident occurred on Wednesday. “On Wednesday at 10.05p.m., three suspected female teenage suicide bombers attempted to attack military outpost popularly known as “Gontanamo” along Muna garage. “They were sighted trying to gain access to the premises and were shot by the security agents on guard leading to the detonation of their concealed explosives.” “All the three of them were killed in the explosion. “A security personnel was also injured,” Ibrahim said. The Information Officer said that the remains of the bombers had been evacuated by aids workers. “The corpses were evacuated to Borno Specialist Hospital by NEMA and officials of the State Eme...

Controlling Your Anger Anger is a normal emotion, but it is important to keep your feelings in check to prevent a situation from escalating. Follow these seven tips that I have put together, for keeping your cool when it really matters: 1. Admit that you're angry: You can properly deal with your feelings once you are able to identify them. 2. Deal with it: Stop what you are doing, take some deep breaths, and count to 10. 3. Don't brush it off: Getting angry is normal. Ignoring your feelings will only make things worse in the long run. 4. Identify and understand the cause: Try to figure out the exact reason you are angry. Often people have an outburst about something when they are actually upset about something different altogether. 5. Walk away: This pro-active step allows you to have the power to change a situation. 6. Get a new perspective: Attempting to understand the other person's perspective in an argument might help you keep your temper down. 7. Vent to yo...

The Chairman, Onelga Oil and Gas Well Heads Landlord Families of Rivers State, Chikobi Alali was on Wednesday arraigned at a Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt by the Economic and Financial Crimes commission, EFCC, on a 16 count- charge bordering on conspiracy and tampering with oil pipelines.  Alali, a community leader overseeing the activities of the Nigerian Agip Oil Company in his neighbourhood, was arrested by men and officers of Operation Delta Safe on 18 March, 2017 in Igbogene, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State for tampering with oil pipelines’ well heads and disruption of crude oil flow.  He was transferred to the EFCC for further investigations and prosecution. In the course of investigations, he admitted to have conspired with others now at large to tamper with oil pipeline, well heads operated by NAOC at different times and locations namely; Idu and Mbede both in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area, Rivers State.  Also, Alale allegedly admitted to the offe...

The Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu’s palace is on fire, PM News reports. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained while officials of the Lagos State Fire Service are battling to put out the fire. Thick smoke was seen enveloping the atmosphere from inside the palace at Iga Idugaran on Lagos Island. Fire service officials were seen battling to put out the fire as thick smoke continued to emanate from the building. It was gathered that the fire started at about  3.00 pm. As the fire raged on, Akiolu was said to have been relocated from the palace to a safe place. The inferno in the palace is coming few days after the monarch was said to have shunned the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi at a public function.

The Joint Military Task Force deployed to the Niger Delta said on Monday that its troops had killed a suspected militant leader in a shoot-out with the bandits in Ondo state. Spokesman of the Joint Task Force, Maj. Abubakar Abudullahi, who disclosed this in a statement issued in Yenagoa, said that a soldier was killed and three others injured during the shoot-out on Sunday night. He said that the JTF remained committed to its mandate of securing oil facilities and checking criminality and maintaining peace in the Niger Delta region. “Troops of Operation DELTA SAFE in a special operation repelled an attack on troops’ location around Ajakpa community, in the creeks of southern Ondo state on Sunday night. “The attack was led by one notorious gang leader, Ossy Ibori with a hideout at Ajakpa in Ese-Odo Local Government Area of Ondo State. “The leader was gunned down during the gun duel, along with some of his gang members. “His body was identified by the locals in the area. W...