Crime
Gunmen Kidnap Five Persons In Ebonyi
#Nwifuru’s Security Aide Wants Local Vigilante Group Overhauled
Yet to be identified gunmen at about 5:10pm yesterday kidnapped five persons along the ever busy Mile 2 axis of the Ishiagu/Okigwe expressed road, Ebonyi State.
The victims were said to be returning home from Enugu Airport with an airport taxi (Sienna bus) with reg/no. KWL 941 PD before they were kidnapped at Mile 2 area, Ishiagu, and taken into the nearby bush by unknown gunmen.
A Source from the community who spoke on grounds of anonymity gave the names of the Kidnapped victims as one Ajah Chibuzo Aged 41. His wife. his 12years old daughter and the airport driver
of the vehicle.
The Source further revealed that the hoodlums while taking the victims into the bush also met a farmer in his farm and also abducted him.
He stated that the vehicle conveying the victims were abandoned at the scene of the incident, but was later recovered to Ishiagu police station.
Not fewer than 20 persons have been Kidnapped along the axis in the last 4 months with about 4 killed by the rampaging kidnappers who are suspected to be herdsmen.
The women of the community had about few months ago staged a protest which later turned violence following the continued abduction of innocent residents of the area by hoodlums.
When contacted, the Special Assistant to the Ebonyi State Governor on Internal Security, Ivo Local Government Area of the State, Hon Ike Cletus who confirmed the abduction expressed
regret that the local government has become a safe heaven for kidnappers and attributed it to the none functionality of the local Vigilante Group in the council.
Hon Cletus expressed the concern that apart from the military personnel at the express road, the vigilante group set up by the council are not functional and call for a total overhaul of the security architecture of the local government.
It is unfortunate that Ivo Local Government has become a safe heaven for kidnappers and other criminal elements. We have a none functional vigilante group in the local government. You hardly see them anywhere in the local government yet money are spent on them monthly without any fruitful result.
The security architecture of the local government especially that of the local Vigilante Group must be overhauled and make it more efficient.
He maintained that the administration of Rt. Hon Francis Nwifuru is determined to ensure the security of lives and properties of its citizens and needs the support of the Council Chairmen in whose domain the kidnappers operate freely.
Suspected gunmen have abducted several mourners escorting the remains of a Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) officer to Benue State for burial after ambushing their convoy along the Ososo–Ajaokuta axis of Kogi State.
The victims were travelling with the body of Deputy Corps Commander Augustine O. Ikwue, popularly known as “Etume Zero,” when the attackers struck, forcing the mourners and the corpse into the bush.
According to citizen journalist and activist Meddy Olotu, the kidnappers later abandoned the officer’s body, which was recovered around Ejule in Kogi State, while the abducted mourners remain in captivity.
Olotu said the kidnappers are demanding a ₦50 million ransom for the victims’ release.
Describing the incident as heartbreaking, he lamented the worsening security situation in the country, saying, “What kind of country are we living in? Even the dead cannot rest in peace.”
He called on security agencies to intensify efforts to rescue the abducted mourners and ensure those responsible are brought to justice.
The late Deputy Corps Commander Augustine O. Ikwue was scheduled to be buried on Friday in Ai-Ode, Upu Community, Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State, before the funeral procession was attacked.
Mr Gbajabiamila has been implicated in corruption scandals across borders, including in the U.S., where he was disbarred by the State Bar of Georgia.
President Bola Tinubu’s chief of staff, Femi Gbajamila, illegally cornered tens of billions of naira in oil and gas royalty from Nigeria’s thriving oil regulatory commission after citing a fake law for the president’s approval, documents seen by Peoples Gazette showed.
Weeks after Mr Tinubu took the oath of office in 2023, his chief of staff began canvassing for money, knocking on the doors of highly lucrative agencies like the Nigeria Revenue Service (formerly Federal Inland Revenue Service), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (the agency in charge of the nation’s maritime operations) and Nigeria Customs Service, sources acquainted with the matter told The Gazette.
The Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission was not left out of the financial push as Mr Gbajabiamila drafted a memo requesting that four per cent of the cost of collection (annual revenue generated from the NUPRC) be split into two parts: 2.5 per cent for its operations and routine capital expenditure, and 1.5 per cent for capital expenditure.
The language ringfencing the 1.5 per cent, equal to N54 billion, was vague, as Mr Gbajabiamila said it was for “upgrading of crude oil and gas metering and transparency systems”. What he meant by transparency systems for such a humongous amount was not immediately clear.
“Mr President has directed that the Budget Office and the Accountant General of the Federation implement the approval in paragraph 2.a. above and ring fence the 1.5 per cent which may only be utilised for upgrading crude oil and gas metering and transparency systems upon obtaining relevant approvals,” Mr Gbajabiamila stated in a memo dated July 4, 2023.
Mr Gbajabiamila justified his request by citing a section of the Petroleum Industry Act 2023 to support his directive.
“The authority to collect these fees is vested in statute—Section 24(2)(c) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) (2023). However, the specific percentage collectable is subject to presidential approval,” Mr Gbajabiamila said in the July 2023 memo.
Checks by The Gazette revealed the section contains language that does not in any way correlate with the authorisation to claim tens of billions of naira from the nation’s coffers.
“The source of the commission Fund shall be as follows–( c) cost of collection by the commission,” stated PIA 2023 Section 24 (2c) that Mr Gbajabiamila cited in a letter to the Ministry of Finance and Office of the Accountant General of the Federation to lay claim to N54 billion.
When asked for comments, the presidency defended Mr Gbajabiamila, saying he only carried out the president’s instructions, which he claimed were within the ambit of the law.
The presidency avoided commenting on the falseness of the cited law, instead insisting that the N54 billion illegally received was with the president’s say-so and that there was no “smoking gun” on the matter.
“Gbajabiamila did not commandeer any money,” Bayo Onanuga told The Gazette on Monday. “The presidential order given to the NUPRC is within the right of the Mr President as president and C-in-C.”
Further checks by The Gazette showed that even the president lacked such powers to direct NUPRC’s revenue accrual and capital expenditure appropriation.
That responsibility was assigned to the National Assembly under Section 24(1) of the PIA 2023, stating, “The commission shall maintain a fund into which money accruing to the commission shall be paid, and all expenditures of the commission shall be subject to appropriation by the National Assembly.”
The president, according to the cited law, has no business with directing how the cost of collection is shared, let alone laying claim to its 1.5 per cent.
The cost of collection, which was N98 billion in 2022, increased significantly to N145 billion following Mr Tinubu’s unification of the official and black market exchange rates.
Whether Mr Tinubu’s action constitutes an overreach of his constitutional powers remains to be seen and can only be determined by a competent court.
Mr Gbajabiamila has been implicated in corruption scandals across borders, including in the U.S., where he was disbarred by the State Bar of Georgia after allegedly stealing money from a client.
For months, Mr Gbajabiamila ignored summonses from the State Bar to answer questions regarding the theft. He subsequently stopped paying his membership fee after his client reported him to the Bar.
His actions led to a five-year suspension from the Bar in 2015 and ultimately led to outright termination in 2020 after the Bar determined it could no longer condone Mr Gbajamila’s ethical lapses.
In 2022, Mr Gbajabiamila was accused of accepting $2 million in cash bribes (as the speaker of the House of Representatives) to secure passage of the new Petroleum Industry Bill, despite protests from host communities.
In his latest financial scandal, the president’s chief of staff is battling fraud allegations and fighting to survive a N400 million bribery scandal that has engulfed his political career.
Adeniyi Adeyemi, director-general of a controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), accused Mr Gbajabiamila of collecting N400 million through a proxy and demanding an additional N200 million to secure his appointment as director.
The allegation arose after Mr Gbajabiamila released a statement on June 11 denying that the PFIPC (which appeared on pages 50 and 51 of the appropriation budget) existed and that the president was unaware of Mr Adeyemi’s appointment.
Mr Adeyemi said Mr Gbajabiamila was stung by his refusal to give him 48 per cent commission of PFIPC ‘s N27.7 billion grant and hence, sought to discredit the council and humiliate his person.
“The major rationale behind the disagreement between myself and the chief of staff is because he allegedly requested 48 per cent of the take-off grant (N27,395,510,136) from the same agency, which he denies, to which I rejected after he collected a total sum of 400 million by proxy, with a remaining balance of 200 million to secure the said appointment,” Mr Adeyemi said in a statement last month.
Mr Adeyemi said it was impossible for an agency that did not officially exist to be issued such a grant at the president and chief of staff’s directive.
He said, “If the agency does not exist, yet found its way into the Nigerian national budget, what that means is that the entire 2026 appropriation budget is a fraud and should be discarded.”
The president has ordered that the allegations be thoroughly investigated and concluded within 30 days. He said persons found culpable in the corruption would be prosecuted.
.
By Okey Maduforo Awka
An Awka Magistrate Court has remanded a blogger , Mr Ejike Ofoegbu following an Experte Order brought by the Police for his remanded.
Recall that Ejike Ofoegbu was arrested by the Police on the account of defermation and invasion of privacy through his Media platform Igbo News Magazine.
Contained in the said platform was a report on the disowning of Soludo’s son Ozo Nna and the other report that Ozo Nna had accused his father of maltreatment on his mother.
Shortly after Ejike Ofoegbu was arrested, he went on air to tender an apology to Governor Charles Soludo and the rest of the family members stating that the stories were false and unfounded adding that no such disagreements took place within the Soludo family.
Delivering his ruling the presiding Magistrate Ozekwele in Suit No M/ W 3136/ 2026 stated that the Court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the matter adding that the issue under contention is wheather the accused should be granted bail or remanded .
Ozekwele further stated that the matter should be referred to the State Attorney General for his input on the case before the matter would be entertained at the High Court.
Earlier counsel to the accused (Ofoegbu) S.A Machie in response to the Experte Order prayed the Court to consider the application for bail which the Court did not grant .
The matter was adjourned to the 27th day of July waiting for the submissions of the state Attorney General and ordered for the remand of Ejike Ofoegbu.
Also in a statement the Police Public Relations Officer SP Tochukwu Ikenga said that the arraignment of Ejike Ofoegbu followed the Command’s receipt of the suspect from the Department of State Services Awka, and the conclusion of Police investigations into a petition alleging the publication of false information capable of causing reputational harm and inciting public disaffection.
Ikenga noted that the Command will refrain from making further comments, as this may prejudice the ongoing Court proceedings.
“Furthermore, the Command advises members of the public, media practitioners, and publishers to exercise due diligence in verifying information before publication and to adhere to the ethics of responsible journalism and the provisions of extant laws governing the dissemination of information” he said.
According to a local source, the assailants stormed the community in the early hours of Sunday and unleashed terror.
Angered by the development, youths and women from the community took to major streets in Otukpo, including the palace of the Och’Idoma, to protest the killings.
As of the time of filing this report, the protesters had blocked all entrances into the ancient town, including the Enugu–Otukpo and Makurdi–Otukpo roads.
One of the protesters, who identified herself as Comfort Inalegwu, told our correspondent in a telephone interview on Sunday, “Some Fulani herdsmen, between 3:30 a.m. and 4:30 a.m. today, attacked Nobi community in Otukpo, shooting sporadically, which made residents flee.
“At least 16 people were killed this morning during the attack. I lost my sister and two of her children in the attack. The Fulani entered her house and shot them. Their corpses are now at the morgue of Otukpo General Hospital.”
Inalegwu, who said several people were also injured during the attack, threatened that women would continue to protest and ensure that elections were not held in the area unless the government stopped the incessant killings of innocent people in Idoma land.
She added that many people were still missing as of the time she spoke with our correspondent.
The Chairman of Otukpo Local Government Area, Maxwell Ogiri, could not be reached for comment as of the time of filing this report.
Meanwhile, Governor Hyacinth Alia condemned the killings, describing them as “not only a breach of peace, but also a barbaric and inhuman assault on the sanctity of life and the collective soul of the people of Benue State.”
The statement read in part, “The suspected armed herders reportedly invaded Akpachi Village in Akpa, Otukpo Local Government Area, between 3:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m. while residents were asleep. The attackers killed scores of people, while many others sustained varying degrees of injuries.
“These acts of mindless bloodshed are a direct attempt to sabotage the progress of our state.”
Alia, who expressed sadness over the attack, said, he “shares in the grief and anger of the people of Otukpo and the entire Benue South Senatorial District,” saying, ‘Your lives are precious, and I can assure you that your ancestral lands will not be surrendered to fear.’”
The governor said the people of the state had consistently demonstrated remarkable restraint and commitment to peace but warned that such restraint must never be mistaken for weakness.
While consoling the people of Otukpo, the governor said, “My government stands firmly with you, and we will not allow our communities to be turned into killing fields.”
He directed all security agencies operating in the state to liaise with their counterparts in neighbouring states and to “swing into action” with renewed vigour by intensifying surveillance and patrols across the affected communities and border areas.
He also called on security agencies to ensure the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators and to deploy additional personnel and resources to protect vulnerable communities and prevent further attacks.
While calling on Benue residents to remain vigilant, the governor urged every citizen to cooperate with the police and military by providing timely and credible intelligence, saying, “Security is a collective responsibility, and your information is a vital tool in our defence.”
Meanwhile, the spokesperson for the Benue State Police Command, DSP Udeme Edet, could not be reached as of the time of filing this report.
The Enugu State Police Command has launched a manhunt for the driver and conductor of a Mitsubishi L300 commercial bus over their alleged involvement in the assault of police officers, attempted murder, dangerous driving, and the temporary snatching of a police rifle.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Daniel Ndukwe, the incident occurred at about 1:20 p.m. on July 9, 2026, at All Saints Roundabout along Abakaliki Road, Enugu.
The police said the Command’s Control Room received reports that the driver and conductor had assaulted a traffic police officer on duty. Operatives of the Distress Response Squad (DRS) were subsequently deployed and intercepted the commercial bus.
However, the suspects allegedly refused to submit to arrest. Police said the driver initially slowed down as if to stop before suddenly accelerating in an attempt to escape, knocking down one of the operatives in the process.
According to the statement, the officer’s AK-47 rifle became entangled with the moving vehicle and was dragged away as the bus sped off.
The police said that during a pursuit, the suspects threw the rifle out of the vehicle at IMT Bus Stop along Abakaliki Road before fleeing. The weapon was immediately recovered intact with its ammunition.
Commissioner of Police, Mamman Bitrus Giwa, has ordered a comprehensive investigation and intensified efforts to arrest and prosecute the fleeing suspects.
He also urged the driver and conductor to voluntarily report to the police for investigation, warning that all lawful measures were being deployed to apprehend them.
The commissioner further appealed to members of the public to disregard what he described as misleading narratives surrounding the incident and cautioned against assaulting or obstructing police officers in the lawful discharge of their duties, stressing that such acts are criminal offences that would be dealt with in accordance with the law.
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