Category: Crime

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have intercepted a consignment of cocaine concealed in clothes hangers and sewn into dresses packed in a travellers’ luggage.

This was made known in a statement released by the NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday.

The illicit substance was discovered during a routine search by NDLEA officers at an undisclosed airport, as traffickers continue to devise new methods to beat security checks.

He wrote, “How could anyone have imagined that cocaine is buried inside the hangers holding the clothes they’re travelling with or sewn into the dress in their luggage? But that’s the reality of the desperation by the cartels as discovered by #ndlea_nigeria officers in their latest seizure.”

The windstorms that swept through Gwadabawa and Kware Local Government Areas of Sokoto State on Tuesday have claimed the lives of five residents, injured dozens, and left a trail of widespread destruction across both communities.

Officials from the Sokoto State Emergency Management Agency and the National Emergency Management Agency, who conducted a joint on-the-spot assessment, disclosed the grim aftermath during a visit to the affected areas on Saturday.

According to the assessment report, the storm affected over 1,400 homes and vital public infrastructure, including schools and other government buildings.

It was said that in Gwadabawa LGA alone, the disaster led to the destruction of 878 houses, affecting 1,306 households and displacing an estimated 7,836 individuals.

“Eleven people sustained varying degrees of injuries. Officials confirmed five fatalities in the Marabawa community, including two children aged 18 months and 3 years, who were identified as the children of one Mansur Salihu Talhi”

The assessment team in Gwadabawa, according to SEMA, included DPM Shehu Muhammad, Councillor for Gidan-Kaya Ward Hon. Siba Sodangi, community elder Adamu Abdullahi Talhi, and SEMA Desk Officer Nafi’u Bello.

“Several public structures, including parts of Government Secondary School Kware, suffered significant damage to fences and classrooms.

“A particularly hard-hit area was Kofar-Barga in Kware, where the home of a resident, Ahmad Abbas, was flattened.

“Similarly, approximately 100 houses were damaged in the 30-Quarters area of the town.”

SEMA also confirmed that documentation of all affected individuals and properties is ongoing.

The agency said, “The data will be submitted to the state and federal governments to facilitate swift humanitarian assistance for the victims”

The Commissioner of Police in Anambra State, CP Ikioye Orutugu, has visited the scene of a gunmen attack in Oko Community, near the Federal Polytechnic, Oko in Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra State.

Recall that some yet-to-identified assailants on Thursday attacked the Oko community, killing no fewer than four persons suspected to be students and injuring about seven others.

The hoodlums also kidnapped two other persons, thereby causing panic in and around the institution.

The hoodlums were said to arrive the area and started shooting unprovoked in an incident that was later attributed to be cult-related by the police authorities.

Heineken has lost operational control and withdrawn its staff from facilities in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), CNN on Saturday quoted that the Dutch brewer announced on Friday.

In March, the company had suspended operations in three eastern cities, citing safety concerns after breweries were damaged and depots raided during clashes between government forces and rebels.

On Friday, Heineken said the situation had worsened. Armed groups have taken control of its sites in Bukavu and Goma—eastern Congo’s largest cities—as well as surrounding areas.

“The conditions required to operate responsibly and safely are no longer present and as of 12th June 2025, we have lost operational control,” it said in a statement.

PUNCH Online reported on Wednesday, Congo, Rwanda, and the United States said their technical teams had initialed a draft peace agreement, which is expected to be signed next week.

Heineken’s local unit, Bralima, continues to operate in parts of the country not affected by the fighting. The company said it is monitoring developments closely.

Heineken owns four breweries in the DRC, producing its namesake beer along with local brands such as Primus. It previously said its Bukavu facilities employed about 1,000 people directly and indirectly.

“Our top priority is the safety and wellbeing of our employees,” Friday’s statement read.

Reuters also reported, “We have withdrawn all remaining staff from these sites and we have continued to support them financially.”

Nearly 14 per cent of Heineken’s total revenue comes from its Middle East and Africa operations, with Congo—home to over 100 million people—a significant market.

Before the suspension, operations in Goma, Bukavu, and Uvira represented roughly one-third of Heineken’s business in the country.

Conflict in eastern Congo has intensified in 2025, with the M23 rebel group making major territorial gains, sparking fears of broader regional instability.

Congo accuses Rwanda of backing M23 with troops and weapons—allegations Rwanda has consistently denied.

Gunmen have killed the former Peoples Democratic Party chairman of Tarka Local Government Area of Benue State, Aondoakaa Yaiyol.

Yaiyol before he was killed Friday night was the Commander of the Nigeria Hunters and Forest Security Services in the local government.

It was gathered that the deceased lost his wife last year in the same circumstance and his house burnt.

The PDP state publicity secretary, Tim Nyior confirmed the assassination of Yaiyol in a telephone call on Saturday.

Nyior said, “It’s true that the man was once PDP chairman in Tarka LGA before his current position as commander of the Nigeria Hunters and Forest Security Services in Tarka.

“Unfortunately, his wife was killed just last year,” he said.

Also confirming the incident on Saturday, the Special Adviser to governor Hyacinth Alia on Security and Internal Affairs, Chief Joseph Har described it as an ‘assasination’.

Har said, “It was an assassination of commander of the Nigeria Hunters and Forest Security Services NHFSS, Aondoakaa Yaiyol

“They came on a bike and shot him at close quarters and fled.

“After they shot the guy, they fired sporadically to scare others and then fled on a bike and they were shielded by two cars also firing sporadically to scare away people.

“Sketchy investigation shows that a criminal that attacked and killed the deceased wife and burnt the house was sent to prison. On his return both of them were chasing each other until this happened.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Udeme Edet confirmed the report and said that police were on the trail of the suspect.

“The incident is confirmed, immediately police in Tarka received the report, a team of officers was detailed to arrest him and they trailed him to his hideout but escaped before officers could reach there.

Edet assured that the suspect would soon be apprehended.

The management of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority has come under fire over an alleged attempt to cover up the theft of an impounded excavator worth about N70m by two members of staff.

PUNCH Metro gathered from insiders on Thursday that the incident, which occurred on June 10, has thrown the agency into confusion, with several staff members accusing top management of shielding one of the suspects involved.

According to insiders, who pleaded anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the case, the missing excavator had been parked at LASTMA’s headquarters for over a decade after it was reportedly impounded.

However, the incident came to light after workers resumed work following the Sallah holiday and noticed the equipment was gone.

That excavator was impounded over 10 years ago,” a source familiar with the matter told PUNCH Metro on the condition of anonymity.

The source added, “Such vehicles are only removed after proper documentation and approval. But when we returned from the Sallah break, we noticed it was no longer there.”

The source explained that preliminary findings indicated that a PSP (Private Sector Participant) operator, who owns a tow truck, presented a signed document at the agency’s gate and was granted access to remove the excavator from the premises.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has re-arraigned the Accountant General of Bauchi State, Sirajo Muhammad Jaja, alongside a bureau de change operator, Aliyu Abubakar, before the Federal High Court in Maitama, Abuja, over alleged money laundering and criminal diversion of public funds of  N1.4bn.

The duo, re-arraigned on Tuesday before Justice O.A. Egwuatu, are facing five counts of amended charges bordering on money laundering, stealing, and criminal conversion of funds belonging to the Bauchi State Government.

Abubakar is being prosecuted under the trading name of Jasfad Resources Enterprise, a purported bureau de change outfit.

Also listed as defendants but currently at large are Abubakar Muhammed Hafiz, Ari Manga, and Muhammed Aminu Bose.

EFCC alleged that the defendants and others now at large committed the offences between October 29, 2024, and December 31, 2024, in Abuja.

The commission told the court that the defendants committed the offence of money laundering by converting the sum of N1,192,234,627 of public funds belonging to the Bauchi State Government.

The anti-graft agency told the court that Jaja transferred the said sum from the Bauchi State Sub-Treasury Account domiciled in United Bank for Africa with account number 1018819396 into the account of Jasfad Resources Enterprise, domiciled in United Bank for Africa with account number 1023444660.

They were also alleged to have further laundered the sum of N296,191,000 between January 3 and March 14, 2025, through a similar channel.

According to the EFCC, the offences committed contravened Sections 18(2)(b) and are punishable under Section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

However, the defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.

Following their plea, the defence counsel, Gordy Uche (SAN), for the first defendant and Chris Uche (SAN) for the second defendant, urged the court to allow the defendants to continue on the bail earlier granted by the court.

They also requested an adjournment to enable them to properly study the amended charge.

The prosecution, led by Abba Mohammed (SAN), did not oppose the bail application.

Consequently, Justice Egwuatu granted the request, affirming that the earlier bail terms would remain in place and adjourned the matter to July 21, 2025, for commencement of trial.

Peter Obi, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, has condemned the recent mass killings in Benue State, describing the gruesome killings suspected armed herdsmen as a direct consequence of leadership failure in Nigeria.

In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday, Obi expressed heartbreak over the attacks, which claimed the lives of women, children, soldiers, and displaced persons.

 He called for an urgent national response, warning against the growing normalisation of mass killings in the country.

“My heart is heavy as I learn of yet another horrific series of killings in Benue of women, children, soldiers, and displaced persons, all senselessly slain.

According to the former Anambra State governor, the scale of the killings goes beyond isolated violence and reflects systemic governance failure.

“Over 200 lives have reportedly been extinguished in a single onslaught, homes burnt, families shattered, communities left in ruin. This is not merely violence.

“It is a failure of leadership, a stain on our collective conscience,” Obi stated.

He lamented the continued inability of governments at all levels to perform their primary duty of securing lives and property, saying each loss of life is a deep wound to the nation.

He said, ”Every life lost is a Nigerian life, each one precious, each one irreplaceable. We cannot accept the normalisation of mass killing. It is intolerable.

“The primary duty of any government, federal, state, or local is to protect lives and property.

“When it repeatedly fails, we must ask: What kind of nation are we bequeathing to our children?.”

Obi offered words of solidarity to grieving communities in Benue, assuring them that their suffering is not in vain.

“To the people of Benue, I say: your pain is our pain.

“The blood of your loved ones cries out for justice.

“The survival of our people must not be negotiable; it must be urgent, deliberate, and comprehensive action.”

He also called on authorities to move beyond mere rhetoric and take concrete, decisive steps to protect vulnerable communities.

Obi wrote,”To all relevant authorities, I say that the time has come to move beyond symbolic gestures to decisive deployment.

“Let your actions speak louder than visits or statements.

“A safe, secure Benue is not too much to ask,it is our moral duty, our national duty.”

Closing his statement, Obi said the current state of insecurity does not reflect the Nigeria that citizens deserve or aspire to live in.

“This is not the Nigeria we deserve, nor the Nigeria we aspire to.

“We must end this bloodshed. We must reclaim our humanity,” Obi added.

PUNCH Online had reported that armed herders invaded Yelwata and Daudu towns in Guma Local Government Area of the state, killing hundreds of people, including security operatives, between Friday night and Saturday morning.

A local leader, Matthew Mnyan, claimed the death toll could be as high as 200, including five security personnel.

A helicopter carrying seven passengers, the pilot included, has crashed in the northern Indian state of Uttarakh, leading to the death of all its occupants.

BBC reported that five passengers, one child, and one crew member were on board.

This happened barely three days after an India Air plane crashed into a residential area in Ahmedabad and killed more than 270 people.

Local media in India reported that the Aryan Aviation Bell 407 helicopter VT-BKA was en route from Kedarnath to Guptkashi, following a pilgrimage path through the Himalayan mountains.

The Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation said the pilot and a two-year-old child were among those killed, and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau will be investigating the crash.

The Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Department said,” At around 5:30 AM, we got the information that a helicopter, which was going from Shri Kedarnath Dham, could not be located.”

According to the State Disaster Response Force, local administration and other rescue teams have begun engaging in relief and rescue operations. The agency described the incident as “very sad news.”

Meanwhile, the toll from last Thursday’s India Air crash has continued to increase.

Rescue teams in the aviation industry have continued to search the site and debris of the ill-fated Boeing 787 aircraft.

The Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad told The Associated Press that the facility had received 270 bodies, and only the surviving passenger is still under observation for his injuries.

“He is doing very well and will be ready to be discharged anytime soon,” the facility said on Saturday.

Relatives of the victims have also commenced the submission of DNA samples to identify and claim their relatives.

The Anambra State Police Command has nabbed two suspects over alleged theft of two related minors at Okpuno-Oba, Idemili-South Local Government Area of the state.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, made this known in a statement on Saturday in Awka.

Ikenga said that on June 12, police operatives attached to Ozubulu Division rescued the children between the ages of three and five.

He said that during the operation, the operatives arrested one Daniel Onyedika, male, 19 and Nkechi Onuwa, female, 25, at Okpuno-Oba, Idemili-South LGA.

According to Ikenga, the operatives swift reaction followed a report by the mother of the victims, that one of her children came and narrated to her how an unknown person had taken away two of his siblings on their way to her shop along Nwafor Junction, Eziora, Ozubulu.

During the interrogation of the suspects, Onyedika admitted to the crime and took the operatives to Oba where he had already handed over the children to Onuwa for the continuation of their criminal plan.

The police spokesman further said that the command has expanded the investigations for the arrest of the other members of the syndicate.

He said that the case would be charged to court on the conclusion of investigations.

“This achievement showcases the command’s commitment to protecting vulnerable members of the society and tackling crimes against children,” he said.

NAN