Category: Crime

The trial of a motorcyclist rider, Dahiru Ayuba, and five others before a Lagos State High Court sitting at the Tafawa Balewa Square, over the murder of a 37-year-old sound engineer, David Imoh, has commenced.

Imoh was allegedly murdered by Okada riders after an altercation on May 12, 2022, over N100.

Ayuba and others, Susan Moses, Chigozie Anthony, Christopher Dauda, Joseph Tella and Sunday Azi, are standing trial on six counts before Justice I. O. Harrison.

They were arraigned in July on six counts of conspiracy, murder, attempted murder and grievous harm, preferred against them by the Lagos State Government.

The defendants committed the alleged offences at the NITEL Junction, Admiralty Way, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos State.

During the arraignment, the Director of Public Prosecutions, Dr Babajide Martins, said the defendants “unlawfully killed David Imoh, aged 37, by beating him severely and setting him ablaze.”

The prosecutor also told the court that the defendants attempted to murder on Frank Olatunji and Philip Balogun, a keyboardist, by beating them to a pulp.

At the resumed hearing of the case on Wednesday, the DPP called Balogun.

Balogun, who is the first prosecution witness, narrated to Justice Harrison how he was mobbed by the six defendants alongside Olatunji and the late Imoh.

He said he sustained injuries on the head and ear and was in the hospital for five days at the FMA, Yaba, and Ever Care Hospital.

The witness said he was still receiving eye treatment at Ikeja.

He told the judge that it was the second defendant that was responsible for assaulting them.

Balogun said the third defendant (Moses), was the person who pointed out where the deceased was hiding in a bar.

The case was adjourned till November 29 for the continuation of trial.

The incident happened around 1pm on October 12 when Ogundele’s boss, Obi Emmanuel, sent him to deposit the money into a business account.

It was gathered that on getting to the bank, Ogundele joined a queue for depositors.

However, a man, who came out of the bulk room, instructed him to fill out three tellers, after which he collected the money from him and went back to the bulk room.

The victim said he later discovered that the suspect was a fraudster.

He said, “Last week, my boss sent me to deposit N350,000 at the Aiyetoro branch of Wema Bank and when I got there, customers were many outside the bank.

“A man suddenly came out of the bank and told the security men that they should let those of us who wanted to deposit huge sums of money into the bank.

“After I entered, the same man came to me and asked how much I wanted to deposit and when I told him, thinking he was a bank official, he gave me three tellers and told me to fill in the details.

“I was waiting for the signed copies from the bulk room and when it was taking too long, I raised the alarm.”

The bank’s closed circuit television camera captured the suspect’s face, but the bank denied he was a worker.

The case was reported at the Aiyetoro Police Station by Nojeem’s boss, who told our correspondent that the bank and the police were foot-dragging on the matter.

Emmanuel said, “Since we reported the case to the police, both the bank and the police have not done much to ensure I get my money. I am just a small businessman and that money means a lot to me.

“We later learnt that this kind of a thing has been happening recently in that bank.”

The bank’s branch manager, Sharafadeen Awayeti, confirmed the incident, but claimed Ogundele might have been hypnotised.

He said, “First, the man in question wore native attire and aside from Fridays, we don’t wear native clothes to work.

“Also, this is not the boy’s first time of depositing money for his boss in our bank, so we feel that he may have been hypnotised by the criminal who made away with the money.

“We gave all necessary assistance to the police when they came here to investigate and since investigation is ongoing on the matter, let’s wait for them to conclude their work.”

A financial expert, Dolapo Olayemi, said banks must ensure that their workers could be easily identified by customers, as such frauds had become rampant inside banking halls.

The defendant, who was arraigned on one count of murder, was dragged before Justice Yetunde Adesanya.

The defendant and the deceased, Paul Assigno, were arguing over an issue which degenerated into a scuffle, as Pius stoned the victim to death.

When the case was called for arraignment, the Lagos State prosecutor, Olayemi Shofolu, announced his appearance, while Alexander Oshogba appeared for the defendant.

Shofolu told the court that the incident happened on December 3, 2018, at No. 93, Falolu Street in the Surulere area of Lagos State.

He said Pius killed Assigno by hitting his chest with a stone.

According to the prosecutor, the offence is contrary to Section 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.

However, the defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Following his plea, Shofolu asked the court for a trial date.

Justice Adesanya adjourned the case till January 24 for the commencement of trial and remanded the defendant in prison.

A Lagos High Court sitting at the Tafawa Balewa Square, on Tuesday, continued the trial of Chidinma Ojukwu, who was alleged to have killed the Chief Executive Officer of Super Tv, Usifo Ataga.

Ojukwu, an undergraduate of the University of Lagos, Akoka, was arraigned alongside Adedapo Quadri and Chioma Egbuchu on October, 12, 2021, on nine counts over the alleged murder of Ataga.

The court resumed watching the recorded video footage showing the confessional statement of Ojukwu before Justice Yetunde Adesanya.

In the video, she said she did not know who killed the deceased as she had gone out on the day of the incident.

She said she saw Ataga on the floor when she came back, and immediately packed her property and left because she was scared.

On the last adjourned date on October 11, 2022, the video recording was played, showing the lifeless body of Ataga.

A part of the video had also shown Ojukwu’s confession where she said she killed the deceased on her own.

In the video played on Tuesday, Ojukwu was asked why she denied knowing the deceased during interrogation.

She said she did not deny knowing him but that she did not kill him.

Ojukwu said, “I don’t know who came in after I left the room. When I came back, I saw him bleeding. I had to leave because I was scared, I did not kill him, I don’t know who killed him.”

She said she couldn’t call for help when she saw him in a pool of blood because she was scared, noting that she also picked the deceased’s two iPhones and Macbook, which were among her things before she left.

The prosecutor, Yusuf Sule, called the ninth witness, DSP Olusegun Bamidele, who explained how the hand-written statement of the first defendant was taken and how other defendants were arrested.

Bamidele said, “She started writing by herself, but because her handwriting wasn’t eligible, I told her that she should ensure that her writing was legible or write in capital letters. It was at that point that she said I should write for her and she confessed to killing the deceased.

“She also mentioned how she killed Michael Usifo Ataga and went away with the knife, phones and Macbook laptop. We took the first defendant to Computer Village with her laptop and we located the phone hub.”

Bamidele said one Yomi confirmed that there was a transaction between his colleague and Ojukwu over the laptop.

He said, “That was how the Macbook was recovered and Ojukwu confessed that she was the one who sold the laptop to them. We studied her call logs and noticed that there was a frequent call log between June 15, 17, 18 and 21, which led to the arrest of the 2nd defendant. He threw away his phone through the window and also attempted to jump through the window before he was arrested.”

The witness said four other phones were recovered from the second defendant, who explained how he met Ojukwu.

Bamidele also said the second defendant disclosed how Ojukwu had asked him to procure Loud smoke and Rophynol for her a number of times which he delivered to Lekki.

The witness said the third defendant was arrested through the help of the foster father of Chidinma, Onoh Ojukwu, and their uncle, Obi, alongside their mother.

The case was adjourned till October 20, for continuation of trial.

The police in Anambra are trying to unravel the mystery surrounding the death of a medical doctor, Dr Okpe Casmir Ikechukwu.

The deceased was murdered and dumped in his car on Wednesday, October 12, 2022.

He was found dead in his Toyota car at Ichi Girls secondary school bus stop in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State.

The lifeless body of the deceased was reportedly discovered by a passer-by who made a video of it and posted online.

The video showed Dr Okpe’s Identity Card and the vehicle plate number DX 138 LSD.

The Identity Card with staff number, NAUTH/RES/199/97 showed that the deceased was a Supernumerary Resident doctor at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, DSP Tochukwu Ikenga who confirmed the incident said: “A lot of mysteries are yet to be unraveled concerning the suspected murder case.”

He called on the eyewitness to help the police investigations in the case.

Source: News Express

A Priest with Catholic Archdiocese of Onitsha, Rev. Fr. Joseph Igweagu, has been kidnapped in Anambra State.

Rev. Fr. Igweagu who is the Parish Priest in charge of St Joseph’s Parish Abata Nsugbe, Anambra East Local Government Area of the state was said to have been abducted on Wednesday October 12, 2022 while returning to his house after celebrating a Funeral Vigil Mass at Umunnachi in Njikoka Council area if the state.A statement by Catholic Archdiocese of Onitsha, titled: ‘An urgent call for sincere prayer for Kidnap of Rev. Fr Joseph Igweagu, signed by the Archdiocesan Chancellor of Catholics Archdiocese of Onitsha’.

Fr. Prudentius Emeja Aroh, who announced the kidnap of the priest however was silent on whether his abductors have called to demand for ransom.

The Catholic Archdiocese of Onitsha statement read, “It is with shock but strong faith in the love and protection of God that we announce to the Priests, religious, lay faithful of Onitsha Archdiocese and all men and women of goodwill, the abduction of our Priest Rev. Fr. Joseph Igweagu, the Parish Priest of St Joseph Parish Abata Nsugbe.

“Rev. Fr. Joseph was kidnapped while returning to his house after celebrating a funeral Vigil Mass at Umunnachi on Wednesday evening 12th October 2022. We solicit for sincere prayer for his unconditional release from the hands of his abductors. The Archdiocese of Onitsha is doing everything possible to secure his freedom.

“While pray for the conversion of his abductors, we call on our Mother Mary, to intercede on his behalf so that he will be quickly released unhurt”