Startech Safety And Security News Blog

  The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Thursday, May 17, 2018, arraigned one Yohana Margif, a suspected serial fraudster, before Justice C. O. Agbaza of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, sitting in Jabi, Abuja, on a 7-count charge of conspiracy, forgery and fraud. His journey to the dock followed a petition by the Department of Land Administration, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, alleging that the defendant presented a title document, purported to be original Mass Housing Development Programme within the FCT, in the name of Verizon Heritage Limited, dated February 19, 2010 for confirmation in the Search Unit of Abuja Geographic Information System, AGIS. According to the petitioner, the said documents were intercepted upon presentation as they appeared to be irregular. Investigation into the matter revealed that Verizon Heritage Limited did not transfer the said title to any person or any company. The documents presented to the Depar...

The senator representing Ondo North, Ajayi Boroffice, has raised alarm over a plot to plant arms, ammunition and other illegal items on his property in Akure. Mr Boroffice, a senator of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said the plan is being orchestrated by ‘desperate politicians’ and their agents. In a press statement issued on Friday by his media aide, Kayode Fakuyi, the senator described the plot as an act of desperation while calling on security agencies to note the ‘heinous plot.’ The statement reads, “Senator Ajayi Boroffice is in possession of credible information that some desperate politicians and their agents are plotting to plant arms, ammunition and other illegal items in his property in Akure. “The plot was hatched in an attempt to robe, frame and implicate the senator in criminal matter. The target is to distract the senator from the responsibilities of lawmaking and representation of the good people of Ondo North senatorial district. The ultima...

The Nigerian Police on Friday denied reports that robbers invaded a bank in Ilorin, the capital of Kwara State. An Assistant Commissioner of Police and the head of Nigerian Police Public Complaint Rapid Response Unit (PCRRU), Abayomi Shogunle, made this known in a tweet on Friday. Some internet users had on Friday circulated reports across social media that some banks were under attack in Taiwo Isale area of the city. The reports, which had gone viral by noon, threw many people into confusion with claims that business activities had been disrupted in the affected area. But Mr Shogunle said the reports were “fake news”. He said police’s preliminary investigations revealed that a bank worker might have mistakenly activated the alarm button. “There is no ongoing bank robbery incident in Ilorin, Kwara State. Please disregard the #FakeNews in circulation,” he tweeted. “@PoliceNG_PCRRU checks reveals that a bank worker might have mistakenly activated Alarm Button. @Po...

                   The Ebola outbreak in Congo poses a greater danger to the Central African country and the region than previously assumed, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). The recent confirmation of a case in Mbandaka, a large city that straddles national and international transport routes, had increased the risk of the virus spreading further, the UN health agency said on Friday in Geneva. “WHO has, therefore, revised the assessment of public health risk to very high at the national level and high at the regional level,’’ it said in a statement. The global significance of this outbreak that has killed 14 people, so far is being discussed at a WHO emergency meeting and will be announced later on Friday. The WHO has previously said that the chance of a global outbreak is low. In Congo, the Health Ministry announced that the number of confirmed Ebola cases in ...

Nigeria, represented by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has been appointed the new Chairman of Heads of Anti-Corruption Agencies in Commonwealth Africa, comprising 19 countries. The appointment was announced at the 8th Regional Conference of the body which ended in Abuja on Friday. The group said in a communique that the members resolved to deepen collaboration on asset tracking and recovery. It expressed concern about the heavy losses that Africa was suffering as a result of illegal transfers of proceeds of corruption and crime. To effectively tackle the challenge, the body stressed the need for synergy among member countries. “African countries should strengthen cooperation and partnership in the tracing, recovery and return of assets in accordance with Article 54 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption and Article 16 of the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption.’’ The group underscored the importance of ...

TY Danjuma The Nigerian Army on Friday said allegations against it by retired its former chief, Theophilus Danjuma, that it colluded with killers Taraba and refused to protect the people were untrue. The Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai, made this known at a news conference in Abuja where he gave details of the findings of the 10-member panel the Army constituted to probe the allegations. The panel, which comprised serving and retired army personnel, representatives of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), was set up on April 10. It submitted its report of April 25. Mr Danjuma on March 24 at the convocation of Taraba State University in Jalingo, said that some troops on internal operation in Taraba colluded with killers and herdsmen who attacked communities in the state. He said the troops failed to protect the residents against the attacks. “You must rise to protect yourselves from these people; if you depend on the ...

Anti-graft detectives are closing in on Bamikole Omishore, an aide to Senate President Bukola Saraki who was recently exposed for allegedly using his wife as a ghost-worker, PREMIUM TIMES has learnt. Official confirmation and other information obtained from sources at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) indicated that Mr Omishore was under corruption investigation and might be arrested soon. “We are still investigating the matter,” Wilson Uwujaren, a spokesperson for EFCC, told PREMIUM TIMES Friday afternoon. Mr Omishore denied committing “any crime” on behalf of himself and his wife when reached for comments by PREMIUM TIMES Friday afternoon, but was silent on whether his wife, said to be based in the U.S., received undue salaries at the National Assembly. Another EFCC official told PREMIUM TIMES under anonymity that detectives are in possession of evidence that could form the basis of “an unannounced arrest” of Mr Omishore “soon”. “We now have an ov...

A former policeman has been jailed for raping a drunk woman and filming it, after which he edited the video to make it look consensual before he shared it with someone else. Leicester Crown Court heard how ex-special constable Paul Rodgers, 29, forced himself on the victim who was so drunk she thought she was having sex with a man she wanted to be her boyfriend. Afterwards the "sex addict", who visited swingers clubs, sent an edited version of the mobile phone footage to another person making it appear the sex had been consensual. But on the unedited recording of the sex attack which was played in court the victim could be heard clearly saying the other man's name. In the unedited video, Rodgers could be heard telling her "No, it's not, it's me, Paul." She replied: "No, no it's not." Rodgers denied raping and sexually assaulting the woman, claiming she consented, but he was found guilty of both charges. The rape took pla...

A Nigerian man suspected to be a member of the Black Axe cult group has been killed by unknown gunmen in South Africa. The deceased, popularly known as Romeo from Edo State was allegedly attacked by the assailants in the early hours of Thursday, in Johannesburg. His Facebook bio says that he graduated from Auchi Polytechnic.

Today, a Boeing 737 plane crashed moments after taking off from Havana's Jose Marti International Airport, killing over 100 of its 113 passengers and crew barely 24 hours after more than a third of its fleet were grounded over safety concerns. Cuba's newly sworn in president Miguel Diaz-Canel confirmed there was a 'high number of casualties' after the internal Cubana de Aviacion flight crashed into a yuca field near a high school, in the Santiago de las Vegas neighborhood, on Friday.  Just three survivors have been recovered so far - all in critical condition, according to Cuban media. Photos of the scene show fire crews attempting to put out the still smoking wreckage of the aircraft which was devastated in the crash. Debris was left scattered across the surrounding area after the explosion. Hospitals in the capital, including the General Calixto García University Hospital, are bracing themselves for the arrival of the survivors, Cuban state m...

                   The Gombe State Command of the Nigerian Police Force has discovered fake notes totalling the sum of N22 million during a ‘stop and search’ operation around Billiri local government area of the state. While reacting to the allegation against them, one of the suspects, Sani Ibrahim, confessed that he became a dealer of fake naira notes to meet his basic needs due to the economic condition of the country. He said, “It is not my wish to produce fake Naira notes. It was one Alhaji who brought me into this line of illegal business last year when the economy became tough for me and I approached him for assistance”. He further confessed that “We operate in Gombe and Nasarawa states because that is where we have people who trade in our fake currency”

                         Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal has been discharged from hospital two months after being poisoned with a nerve agent in Salisbury, England. The 66-year-old and his 33-year-old daughter, Yulia Skripal, were found slumped on a park bench in the city on 4 March. They were taken to Salisbury District Hospital's intensive care unit, where they were stabilized after being exposed to Novichok. Yulia Skripal was discharged from the hospital on 9 April and was moved to a secure location. It is not known whether Sergei Skripal has been taken to the same location as his daughter. Director of nursing Lorna Wilkinson said treating the Skripals had been "a huge and unprecedented challenge". She added: "This is an important stage in his recovery, which will now take place away from th...

                             Law enforcement officers are still searching Santa Fe High School in Texas and other locations for explosive devices after a gunman opened fire at the school on Friday morning, leaving at least 10 people dead and another 10 injured in what Gov. Greg Abbott labeled “the worst disaster to ever strike this community.” The suspect 17 year old Dimitrios Pagourtzis is in custody in connection with the shooting. Pagourtzis allegedly used a shotgun and a .38 revolver in the attack, Abbott said in an afternoon press conference. “Various kinds of explosives,” including a “CO2 device” and a Molotov cocktail, were also found in a home and a vehicle and there is potential for explosive devices in other sites being investigated” the governor said. It appears the devices were made by the shooter b...

         Ayo Ademiluyi , a lawyer and activist has demanded that all police officers involved in the May 11th raid of the Acts of the Apostles Church also known as Ori Oke, in Makoko community of Lagos State be arrested. In a chat with SaharaReporters at the church premise, the lawyer said the raid on the church was in contravention to the judgment of Justice Ikuborido of Lagos High Court of 1984. He affirmed that the raid which resulted in the death of not less than five people and several others injured was illegal. “We are well aware of the position of the Lagos State commissioner of police,  Edgal Imohimi on the issue in trying to prosecute some officers in these respect. It is on record that The Punch Newspaper of this morning had given us a report that the most senior officer involved in the killings at the place have been arrested and under detention. We want to put it on record that he is not the only high...

A commercial bus driver, who stabbed an official of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), has been sentenced to one-year imprisonment. Kenneth Anyanwu stabbed Olanrewaju Yusuf with a broken bottle following a disagreement on April 26, 2018. Yusuf, a LASTMA official, attempted to arrest Anyanwu for picking passengers at undesignated bus stops between Obanikoro and Palm Grove in Lagos, but Anyanwu resisted arrest, then he picked up a broken bottle and stabbed Yusuf in the palm. Anyanwu was sentenced by a Lagos State Mobile Court sitting in Oshodi. Magistrate F.O. Ikobayo convicted Anyanwu after he pleaded guilty to a two-count charge of assault and breach of peace. She sentenced him to one year imprisonment or a fine of N50,000. The magistrate also ordered the convict to pay N80,000 for Yusuf’s medical bills.

                                  A 42-year-old driver, who gives stranded women free rides using his boss' car only to rob the women, has been arrested with his accomplices and they confessed to the crimes. John Ololo said he and his partners drive along the streets of Lagos in search of stranded ladies. When they find such ladies, they offer them rides with the sole aim of robbing them of their phones and other valuables. Ololo also confessed that he used the money made from the robberies to augment his monthly salary. The suspect was arrested alongside his gang members, Augustine Emmanuel, 21, and Anayo Oluchuwku, 25. Ololo, the ringleader of the group is a driver in his company and, after dropping his boss at home, he goes home with the car to enable him return early to pick his boss from h...

                          An engineer, Ken Chibueze Onu has narrated how Pastor Benedict Mgdire of the Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Ministries, Georgia, United States of America (USA) branch, allegedly defrauded him of $38,000. In an interview with Newtelegraph, Onu claimed that his son, who attends the Chosen International Secondary School, was chased out of the school for not paying his fees. Onu, who is the Chief Executive Officer of Kenglobal Trade and Industry Limited, said that he was also a member of the church. He said: “I singlehandedly financed the opening of the Mbaitolu and Ikeduru branches of the church in Imo State. What is happening between Pastor Mgdire and I is quite unfortunate. My son, who is schooling in the church’s school, located at Mgbidi Oru West, Local Government Area, Imo State, was sent out of th...

  A man has been arrested for the rape of a 22-year-old corp member in Niger state, Nigeria. Ogochukwu Namanene, 25, had a crush on the 22-year-old corp member, so he pretended to be a commercial motorcycle rider (okada man) and while taking the corp member to her lodge, he stopped by a bushy area, dragged her into the bush, beat her till she was overpowered, and raped her. The corp member was serving at Janki Secondary school in Lapai LGA, Niger state. She had traveled to Lagos and on her return to Lapai from Lagos, she took Namanene's bike to her lodge, unaware that he wasn't really a commercial cyclist. Namanene told Punch Metro that he has "a soft spot" for the victim but did not know how to woo her. "I was telling her to cooperate with me that I only wanted to express my affection for her but she refused. I beat her mercilessly until she became weak. After raping her, I rode my motorcycle away not knowing that the wrath of the law would c...

The Benue state government has declared Tuesday 22nd May, 2018 as work free day to honour the departed souls  of two Catholic priests and 17 congregants that lost their lives in Mbalom, Gwer Local Government Area of the State. Recall that Fulani herdsmen last month, attacked Saint Ignatius Quasi Parish Ukpor-Mbalom community in the LGA, killing two priests and 17 worshippers. The attack happened when an early morning mass was in progress. The attackers also burnt nearly 50 houses during the attack.

A 300 Level student of the Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State was crushed to death by a truck on Wednesday morning. It was gathered that the deceased, Kofoworola Kuku fell off a commercial motorcycle conveying her to school along the expressway and was instantly crushed to death by an oncoming trailer. Friends and colleagues have taken to facebook to mourn the death of the late Health Education student. One Opeyemi wrote: "It's just been a very sad day for we Napher SD A very humble,calm, course mate, friend and sister I just believe that we love you but God loves you most my dearest Kofoworola Kuku Toheebah When we are already planning to go for our T.P by Sept Rest in perfect peace"  See more tributes below...

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) says it has destroyed Boko Haram terrorists structures in Bama, Gobara, in its ongoing “Operation Thunder Strike’’ against the insurgents in North East. The NAF’s Director of Public Relations and Information, AVM. Olatokunbo Adesanya , who confirmed this in a statement on Friday in Abuja, said the air interdiction was carried out on Tuesday. “On the second day of the ongoing operation `Thunder Strike’, the Air Task Force (ATF) operation Lafiya Dole successfully conducted air interdiction on Boko Haram Terrorists (BHT) infested location, 13 Nautical Miles North East of Bama. A Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft had previously observed significant BHT presence in the location. Accordingly, the ATF detailed a combination of fighter aircraft and helicopter gunships to attack the insurgents’ position. Overhead the location, the attack platforms took turns to unleash their ordinance on the...

•Govt, union officials meet The National Industrial Court yesterday in Abuja ordered striking members of Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU), to suspend the on-going strike and return to work from today. Justice Babatunde Adejumo gave the order after listening to the submissions of Mr Okere Nnamdi, in an ex-parte motion filed by a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO). The NGO – Incorporated Trustees of Kingdom Human Rights Foundation International – in the motion, prayed the court to order the workers to resume work and go back to negotiation table. Adejumo, who is also the President of NICN, ordered Minister of Health,  Minister of Labour and Employment, among others, to immediately set up a committee to address issues raised by the helth workers. The judge ordered that the parties should arrive at an acceptable and amicable solutions in the interest of Nigerians who are bearing the brunt of the strike. The judge also ordered that the President and Vice Presi...

There was pandemonium in the university town of Abraka, Ethiope East council area of Delta state Friday when an angry mob took over the Abraka-Agbor Road in protest of the killing of two boys by a truck. A truck, which had lost control of its brakes, rammed into two teenagers from Orhia-Abraka, whose identities could not be ascertained, when the driver of the vehicle veered off the road. The sight of the mess made of the corpses by the truck triggered the angry reaction from members of the community, who went berserk, more especially as the driver of the truck had taken to his heels, abandoning the vehicle at the scene. A community source who relayed the development to the Nation in Warri on Friday said the angry mod went after every passing vehicle along the busy expressway, attacking drivers and leaving hundreds of travelers stranded while the melee lasted. “The sight was ugly; those boys were smashed beyond recognition and to make matters worse, the driver of the...

                                The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has taken over Sea Petroleum Oil & Gas Ltd. and other assets belonging to Sen. Stella Oduah-Ogiemwonyi over an unpaid debt of about N20 billion. AMCON said the takeover followed an injunction granted by Justice M.S. Hassan of the Federal High Court, Lagos against Sea Petroleum Oil & Gas Ltd . The corporation in a statement by its Head, Corporate Communications, Mr Jude Nwauzor, on Friday said that Oduah-Ogiemwonyi had been having a running battle with AMCON over her inability to settle her huge debt of nearly N20 billion. The statement said that AMCON purchased the Eligible Bank Assets (EBAs) of Sea Petroleum & Gas from Union Bank Plc. sometime in 2012. It said that in spite of overtures and genuine efforts made by AMCON ...

The Benin Zonal of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission , EFCC, today, May16, 2018 secured the conviction of one Ebi Obaro, aka Donovan Macbeth Kelvin for offences bordering on fraudulent trick and attempting to obtain by false pretences. Obaro, in his attempt to defraud his victims through the internet, presented himself as Donovan Macbeth Kelvin in his gmail account. Upon his arraignment at the Federal High Court sitting in Beni n City, Edo State on a One count charge, Obaro pleaded guilty to the offence when the charge was read to him. In view of his plea, the prosecution counsel, Larry Aso Peters urged the court to convict and sentence the defendant accordingly. However, the defence counsel, R.E.O. Esite pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercies as the defendant was a first time offender who has has become remorseful since he was arrested. He also told the court that the defendant pleaded guilty to charge so as not to waste the time of the c...

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Thursday, May 17, 2018, arraigned one Yohana Margif, a suspected serial fraudster, before Justice C. O. Agbaza of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, sitting in Jabi, Abuja, on a 7-count charge of conspiracy, forgery and fraud. His journey to the dock followed a petition by the Department of Land Administration, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, alleging that the defendant presented a title document, purported to be original Mass Housing Development Programme within the FCT, in the name of Verizon Heritage Limited, dated February 19, 2010 for confirmation in the Search Unit of Abuja Geographic Information System, AGIS. According to the petitioner, the said documents were intercepted upon presentation as they appeared to be irregular. Investigation into the matter revealed that Verizon Heritage Limited did not transfer the said title to any person or any company. The documents presented to the Department of La...

                         The Enugu zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Wednesday May 16, 2018 arraigned one Isidore Ojukwu Nwankwo, before Justice A. M Liman of the Federal High Court Enugu, Enugu State on a six count charge of conspiracy and obtaining money under false pretences. Nwankwo defrauded prospective students of millions of naira, an offence which contrave nes Section 1(1)(a) of Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and Punishable Under Section 1(3) of the Same Act. A case of fraud, conspiracy and obtaining money by false pretences was reported to the Commission by one Ezeh Emmanuel and Nineteen other students of Enugu Polytechnic Ndeaboh, Ani-Nri LGA of Enugu State against Dr. Isidore Ojukwu Nwankwo, saying they were deceived by Isidore who told him that the school belonged to the Senat...

                                     The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on May 16, 2018 presented its eighth witness in the trial of Abba Moro, former interior minister, over his role in the ill-fated recruitment exercise into the Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS, which claimed the lives of over 20 applicants in various centres across the country. Moro, alongside one time permanent secretary in the ministry, Anastasia Dani el-Nwobia; a deputy director in the ministry, F. O Alayebami; one Mahmood Ahmadu (at large), and Drexel Tech Nigeria Limited are being prosecuted on an 11-count charge bordering on procurement fraud and money laundering. They were alleged to have defrauded a total of 675,675 Nigerian job applicants to the tune of N675,675,000 representing N1000 per applicant th...

                                 Justice Chuka A. Obiozor of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Thursday, May 17, 2018, ordered a temporary forfeiture of some properties worth N1.8bn allegedly belonging to Tuoyo Omatsuli, Executive Director, Projects, Niger Delta Development Commission, NNDC, to the Federal Government. Justice Obiozor gave the order following an ex-parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. Counsel to the applicant, Ekele Iheanacho, in the application, prayed the court for the forfeiture of these properties belonging to Omatsuli: Block 117, Plot 4, Lekki Peninsula Scheme, TPAO 992, Ikate Ancient City, Eti-Osa L.G.A, Lagos, measuring 1804.089Sqm and Plots 1-18, Block 43, TPAO 992, Ikate Ancient City, Lekki Peninsula, Eti-Osa, Lagos, measuring 10,...