Foreign
Nigerian mother accuses UK police over daughter’s death
What do you miss about your daughter since her death?
I miss everything about my daughter, her beautiful smile, infectious laugh, lovely personality and more than anything speaking to her and feeling so proud of the strong, confident and independent woman she had become. She was very charismatic and intelligent, with so much to give the world, and was fun to be with, she was also very kind-hearted and generous and I miss her more than words can express.
Since her dad returned to Nigeria in 2012, how did you relate with her as a mother to daughter in the UK?
My children are my world and Alanis was my only daughter who I loved unconditionally. Alanis and I were extremely close and over the years I was her confidant and supported her through the many obstacles and challenges she faced. Alanis was not someone who accepted the mundane; she was an achiever and exceptionally gifted from a very early age and became someone who knew exactly what she wanted in life. I’ve lost count of the number of times my heart has burst with pride at the ambitious, determined and highly motivated woman she was.
Could you let me know when you knew about her relationship with Ryan Leggetts?
Alanis told me on 30th May 2022, whilst she was working for KPMG and working towards completion of her professional accounting qualifications that she was introduced to Ryan Leggett via a blind date set up by her alleged best friend, Serena Gate. Gate later became an accessory to Ryan in his attempt to hide his behaviour towards Alanis to mislead and blatantly lie; not only to us but to subsequent investigation into her death.
Did you sense anything untoward during this period?
By August 1, 2022, I got a very distressed call from Alanis because he had infected her with Herpes. Alanis told me he had ruined her life. I supported her over the following weeks through numerous calls and messages and through the treatment she had to undertake. It was at this point I began to sense that she had resigned herself to being with him, he had essentially trapped her – for life. More importantly, he must have been aware that he was a carrier. From then on I was concerned that her acceptance of something like that was so out of character for her. I knew she was under immense pressure working and studying to a very high level and began to think he was an unnecessary distraction from what I knew she wanted to achieve. However, over the following months, it became increasingly obvious that something was not right but by this point, he had manipulated her into believing he was the only one who could help her; slowly but surely isolating her from her friends and family, imposing what he wanted her to do, to know where she was and what she was doing at all times. For me, as her mother, fearing that she was being controlled by this person I regularly attempted to ask if everything was ok. She appeared fearful to criticise him and over the next few months, her calls and messages gradually tailed off. Alanis appeared to be in increasing financial distress when previously she prided herself on her ability to manage and save at the same time, having no financial issues before she met Ryan, something he has since been unable to disprove or deny. In the case of someone who previously had ultimate control of her own life, it’s important to remember she was about to achieve exactly what she set out to do. As much as parents would love to believe they can protect their children it is clear that there are manipulative and controlling people who prey on their victims’ vulnerability and go to great lengths to hide their behaviour that you don’t know about. A significant reason for his behaviour was to exert control over her, eventually “helping her” to decide to leave KPMG and take a job ten minutes away from home. He stole our daughter’s life and we will not stop until we have justice for Alanis. I will always maintain that if Alanis had not met him she would not be in the mindset she was to take her own life and would be here today. Alanis had the world at her feet, highly educated and successful, popular and confident.
How did you receive her distress call?
On May 28, 2023, I received a call from Alanis saying Ryan woke her up that morning, shouting at her and insulting her and also stating he was giving her “one last chance to save the relationship” and it became obvious to her that he had broken into her phone. She told me the veins were bulging on his forehead and his face was turned bright red and he told her “Get the f*ck out of my flat b*tch!”. Alanis was kicked out with just her phone and car keys and without her passport or work ID she needed to collect money and go to work on May 30.
How would you describe your last 48 hours with her?
He finally replied to Alanis, who read the messages aloud and put him on the phone speaker several times. During the conversation, Ryan was crying and sobbing about how they could never be together again and how people would need to know why they broke up, he said she had betrayed him and his morals and principles meant the relationship was over. For want of a better term, he was milking it. This went on for hours and Alanis was devastated, terrified as she didn’t know what and how much information he had copied to himself, or who he might pass this information to, she was completely at his mercy, even agreeing to keep to their arrangement to pay back money he had given her and telling me he was expecting £600 from her May salary.
At approximately 6.20 pm on May 29, Alanis sat down to talk to me saying everything was her fault. She had hidden things from him as she was ashamed and scared to tell him and critically; that he had told her he had already told people why they broke up having copied and sent to himself private and confidential information from her phone.
Alanis told me: “It’s tough Mum to find a friendship group, I will have to move away on my own, everyone will know everything about me, and everyone will hate me”. For Alanis, the fact that she didn’t know what he was telling people or the extent of the information he stole. This fact terrified her, who would he tell, would he send information to her family? Could he tell her new employer? Would she lose her job? I tried to reassure her that I would support her 100% and that we would make a plan to sort everything out. Alanis then said around 6.45 pm that she wanted to go for a walk to clear her head, she was aware I had been cooking dinner and told me not to worry as she had her phone, refusing all my requests to go with her. She had already asked me if I would be there the next day and so I reluctantly stayed in her apartment. Alanis never came back.
What did you deduce from her conversation with Ryan while you were with her?
My worst fears were confirmed, he was utterly controlling, had preyed on her vulnerability, being under so much pressure at work and her genuinely kind nature. He was demanding money from her regularly and had even created a spreadsheet to this effect. Nothing was for free and he made it obvious that he wanted the money he said he gave her to help the situation she was in repaid. This included pressure to fund a 6 month holiday around the world that he wanted them to do.
Have you got any invitations from the police since your daughter died?
In short, no, to date, British Transport Police and Greater Manchester Police have failed to take a statement from me despite being a physical primary witness to events immediately before she took her own life. They instead chose to rely on a statement from Ryan – her ex-partner to conduct and conclude an investigation that they didn’t have the authority to do. The same conclusion was reached by GMP because they reviewed a report that BTP had no jurisdiction to conduct. This is an ongoing situation that my family and I desperately need support for to continue fighting for justice for our beloved Alanis. The allegations I made to attending officers who arrived at her apartment to inform me of her death, appear not to be recorded or followed up and should have been passed directly to Greater Manchester Police who have the authority to conduct a criminal investigation. Instead, British Transport Police chose to investigate something they should have passed to the appropriate authority such as GMP and have since persisted with their claim that there is no evidence of third-party involvement. This, in turn, has led GMP to review something that should not have been investigated by BTP which comprised only the statement given to British Transport Police about the circumstances surrounding Alanis’ death. The authorities who are paid to uphold the law and protect their citizens failed up to date to take a statement from me. We have been forced to fight for something we are entitled to which is justice as well as appropriate investigation. It is no wonder we start to ask why the police are so reticent to take appropriate steps.
As a psychologist who has worked with organisations that partner with the police on domestic abuse cases, do you feel the police are doing enough in your case as it relates to Ryan and Alanis?
I am a psychology graduate and lecturer in further education and currently support people with enduring mental health problems to integrate within the local community. I also have experience in the area of Domestic Abuse. As a former Domestic Violence worker, I worked alongside the police and other statutory agencies to support victims in our refuges and within the community. I was not aware of the extent of the abuse my daughter suffered until May 28 and truly did not expect what followed particularly since my daughter showed great interest in my work at that time and was well-versed in tactics used by perpetrators in all forms of domestic abuse.
Coercive control is central to the abuse Alanis suffered and presented as a pattern of intimidation, degradation, isolation and physical, sexual, psychological and emotional abuse.
Investigators have recovered the flight recorders from an Amazon cargo plane that crashed while attempting to land at Miami International Airport, as authorities continue efforts to recover victims and determine what caused the deadly incident.
Five people were killed and five others seriously injured when the Boeing 767-300, operated by 21 Air, overran the runway shortly before 2pm local time on Sunday.
The aircraft, which had two crew members aboard, was arriving from San Juan, Puerto Rico, on its third flight of the day when it crashed.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the plane struck airport navigational equipment before breaking through a perimeter fence and hitting two vehicles—a white Ford cleaning van carrying seven people and a Toyota Corolla with three occupants.
The aircraft eventually came to rest about 1,300 feet (394 metres) beyond the runway.
NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy said investigators were still in the fact-finding stage and warned against drawing conclusions about the cause of the crash.
She described the scene as “devastating” and said the immediate priority was recovering the victims.
“The investigation and access to the aircraft, as well as evidence, can wait,” Homendy said.
The flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder have been recovered and will be transported to NTSB headquarters for detailed analysis.
Investigators are expected to examine the aircraft’s flight history, the crew’s experience and training, radar information, aircraft performance, mechanical systems and engines.
A meteorologist will also assess weather conditions at the time of the crash.
Earlier analysis by BBC Verify indicated that an active thunderstorm was near the airport shortly before the incident, with winds reportedly gusting to about 26 knots (48km/h).
The NTSB will also investigate whether the runway should have been equipped with an Engineered Materials Arresting System (EMAS), which is designed to help stop aircraft that overrun runways.
Homendy described the issue as a key part of the investigation.
The NTSB has appealed to members of the public who may have photographs or videos of the crash to submit them to investigators.
The agency said it would issue safety recommendations at the conclusion of the investigation, with Homendy stressing the need to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
Meanwhile, two of Miami International Airport’s four runways remained closed following the crash, with passengers warned to expect further disruption.
The incident occurred during the US Labor Day holiday weekend, one of the country’s busiest travel periods, resulting in flight cancellations and disruption to aircraft and crew movements.
Amazon expressed grief over the loss of lives and said it was working closely with authorities.
21 Air, the company operating the aircraft, also expressed condolences to the victims and their families and said it was cooperating fully with the investigation.
The investigation into the crash is ongoing.
A 68-year-old British woman, Dawn Ottewell, has claimed that her 31-year-old Nigerian husband, Bright Emokpae, disappeared from their home months after moving to the United Kingdom on a spouse visa.
Ottewell, from Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, told The Sun UK that she met Emokpae, an Edo State native, on dating platforms Tinder and Plenty of Fish in 2021 while she was experiencing loneliness and depression.
According to her account, Emokpae initially introduced himself as “Brian Thomas” before later revealing that he was a fashion student from Benin City.
The relationship reportedly developed through regular video calls, after which Ottewell travelled to northern Cyprus, where Emokpae was studying on a student visa.
The couple married at a registry office in Nicosia on March 22, 2022, with two Turkish friends acting as their best man and maid of honour.
Following the wedding, Emokpae returned to Nigeria to process his UK spouse visa. About a year later, after the visa was granted, Ottewell travelled to Heathrow Airport to welcome him to Britain.
However, Ottewell said their relationship deteriorated after his arrival in the UK.
She alleged that Emokpae became increasingly distant, regularly asked her for money and refused to contribute to household expenses, while allegedly sending money to Nigeria.
Her 72-year-old brother, Rory, reportedly helped Emokpae secure a job with a local door manufacturing company.
The couple separated briefly in October 2023 but later reconciled, about six months after the separation. Ottewell said the reconciliation occurred after she received a £63,000 settlement following what she described as a botched NHS prolapse operation.
She now says she regrets taking him back.
Ottewell recalled that shortly before Christmas 2024, she went on a £2,000 Caribbean cruise with her brother. When she returned home, she allegedly discovered that Emokpae had left.
She said he has not returned since and has blocked her on social media, leaving her unable to contact him.
Ottewell believes her estranged husband may now be living in Scotland, where she suspects he runs an online clothing business.
“He’s done a runner and is refusing to sign the divorce papers because I believe he wants to cling on to his spouse visa,” she said.
The woman also expressed concern about what could happen to her estate if she dies before their marriage is legally dissolved.
“My biggest fear is that I’ll die before this is sorted out and he’ll run off with the money my three children should inherit,” she said.
Ottewell said she does not currently have a will and fears Emokpae could potentially make claims against some of her assets, including jewellery, cash and furniture.
She is now seeking assistance from Citizens Advice to help locate her estranged husband and serve him with divorce papers.
“I feel I’m being used,” Ottewell said.
She also advised people to exercise caution when entering relationships that involve international partners, saying she believed her husband had married her primarily to obtain a UK visa.
However, her claims about Emokpae’s motives have not been independently established.
A UK-based Nigerian taxi driver, Kolawole Erunkulu, 45, has been sentenced to six years in prison after falling asleep at the wheel and fatally hitting a 59-year-old man.
Erunkulu, from Bexleyheath, was driving an Audi on August 17, 2025, when he suffered a “microsleep”, causing the vehicle to leave the road and collide with Philip Dray, who had stopped in a lay-by.
Dray was getting into his Volkswagen after taking a break from driving when he was struck.
According to reports, Erunkulu had worked for about 12 hours on the day of the crash, taking only short breaks. In the three days before the fatal collision, he had driven for 53 hours, with his longest rest period being seven hours.
Footage from inside his vehicle showed Erunkulu falling asleep briefly before the Audi swerved off the road and hit Dray. The vehicle continued moving for about 10 seconds after the collision.
A microsleep is a brief episode of sleep that can last only a few seconds, during which the brain fails to properly process information.
Erunkulu pleaded guilty in June 2026 to causing death by dangerous driving.
He was sentenced to six years in prison and disqualified from driving for eight years. He will also be required to pass an extended driving test if he seeks to regain his licence.
Sentencing him, Her Honour Judge Lees said the footage demonstrated that Erunkulu was extremely tired and should have known that he was not fit to drive.
“The footage shows the defendant was extremely tired and, in my view, has continued to drive when he must have known that. He was driving commercially,” the judge said.
She added that the incident could have been prevented if Erunkulu had stopped driving and slept.
Acting Detective Inspector Rob Baldwin of the Serious Collision Investigation Unit said the case highlighted the potentially devastating consequences of driving while fatigued.
He said Erunkulu had worked long hours with insufficient rest, resulting in a “sleep debt”.
“Fatigue can seriously impair a driver’s ability to remain alert and react safely, particularly during the early hours of the morning when the natural drive to sleep is at its strongest,” Baldwin said.
He urged motorists who feel tired not to continue driving.
Dray’s family described him as “an amazing partner and man” who was dependable, caring and respectful.
His sister said Philip was a quiet man who cared deeply about others and had spent his life as a careful and conscientious driver.
“The fact that he, someone who worked every day to keep others safe, had his life taken in such a way makes this loss even more incomprehensible and tragic,” she said.
Dray’s partner described him as “a sweet, gentle, and caring man” and her “soulmate”.
She said his death had left an “enormous emotional and physical void” in her life.
“He would ring me several times a day whenever he was waiting for a client or at lunch, just to see how my day was going. I miss those calls very much,” she said.
Foreign
UK: 11 Drug Couriers Convicted Over £13.8m Cannabis Smuggling Plot Through Birmingham Airport
Eleven drug couriers have been convicted for their roles in a plot to smuggle cannabis worth an estimated £13.8 million into the United Kingdom through Birmingham Airport.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) investigated the group after Border Force officers arrested them in August 2024 and seized 460kg of cannabis concealed in 22 suitcases.
According to an NCA statement published on Wednesday, the couriers had travelled to the UK from Thailand via Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport on the same flights.
The convicted couriers were identified as Carsten Kyei, 21, from Newham, East London; Bradley Lloyd, 27, and Claire McCullough, 36, both from Wythenshawe, Greater Manchester; Lewis Ross, 35, from Bolton, Lancashire; Nathan Vitorino, 26, from Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire; Ryan Boachie, 32, from Edmonton, North London; Gideon Oluwasetemi Olumoyegun, 26, from Dagenham; Tasia Nelson, 22, from Newquay, Cornwall; Jaden Ramen, 23, from Colliers Wood, South London; Paige Crisp, 24, from Broomhall, Worcester; and Jamal Clarke, 22, from Walthamstow, London.
Birmingham Crown Court heard that each courier had two suitcases, with each suitcase containing about 20kg of cannabis.
The suitcases were reportedly so heavy that the couriers had to pay excess baggage charges at Bangkok Airport to have them placed in the aircraft hold.
The cannabis had been vacuum-packed and concealed beneath a thin layer of clothing. Eight of the suitcases also contained Apple AirTag trackers, which NCA investigators established were connected to the same Apple ID account.
Suspicion was raised after Border Force established that four passengers had travelled from Birmingham to Charles de Gaulle Airport earlier on August 9, 2024, each carrying two large suitcases.
Border Force officers subsequently fully staffed the Nothing to Declare channel and intercepted the group.
One of the couriers had also been instructed by an associate: “my man gonna be on the other side – don’t leave the airport until you see him leave.”
Kyei and Vitorino were convicted on May 26, 2026, following a three-week trial, while Ross and Lloyd changed their pleas to guilty during the trial.
Crisp, Nelson and Ramen were convicted on Wednesday, August 19, following a four-week trial.
McCullough, Boachie, Olumoyegun and Clarke had previously pleaded guilty.
Those convicted on August 19 will be sentenced on October 22, while the others will be sentenced on September 3.
NCA Senior Investigating Officer Paul Boniface said the operation involved extensive planning.
“A huge amount of planning went into this sophisticated attempt to bring hundreds of kilos of cannabis into the UK,” Boniface said.
He said the coordination of flights and luggage demonstrated “the lengths criminals will go to in order to hide their offending.”
“With thanks to Border Force, we were able confiscate these drugs and stop criminals from benefitting financially from the damage they cause,” he added.
Boniface warned people against agreeing to smuggle drugs into the UK, saying anyone who attempted to do so would face justice.
Adam Chatfield, Head of Border Force Midlands Command, said the convictions should serve as a warning to anyone considering transporting cannabis into the UK.
He said the young people involved now faced serious consequences, including criminal records that could affect their employment opportunities and future prospects.
Victoria Norman of the Crown Prosecution Service said prosecutors and investigators had pieced together evidence of a coordinated attempt to smuggle large quantities of drugs into the country.
She said the evidence resulted in six members of the group pleading guilty, while the others were convicted following trial.
An Australia-based Nigerian, Foluso Omole, is facing trial over his alleged role in a $5m fraud involving the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
Omole was arrested by operatives of the Australian Federal Police at Adelaide Airport last Friday while allegedly attempting to flee Australia.
According to the report, Omole had allegedly “cut ties” in Adelaide and was preparing to travel to Nigeria before his arrest, a court heard.
The 38-year-old appeared before the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Monday, where his bail application was refused following allegations that he had attempted to leave Australia for Nigeria.
The court heard that Omole, a dual Australian and Nigerian citizen, had “purchased a one-way ticket to Nigeria” before his arrest.
A prosecutor also told the court that Omole appeared to have “sent, over the course of his offending, significant funds back to Nigeria”, where his wife resides.
The report stated that Omole was working as an NDIS coordinator and operating two businesses that employed several staff at the time of the alleged offences.
The prosecutor reportedly told the court that Omole allegedly received information “improperly” from a woman employed by the National Disability Insurance Agency over a period of six years and “used that information to obtain benefit fraudulently”.
The woman, who has also been charged in connection with the alleged fraud, was expected to appear in court on Thursday.
However, disputing the allegation that Omole intended to flee Australia, his lawyer, Mark Twiggs, told the court that his client had informed him that he planned to travel to London on a “return ticket” purchased before any raid on the woman’s home.
“The charges are denied. He has no record at all.
“My client has good reason why he should be given bail,” Twiggs said.
Omole is yet to enter pleas to one count of dealing with proceeds of an indictable crime worth more than $1m and one count of dealing with money or property valued at more than $1m that is allegedly the proceeds of crime.
Magistrate Patrick Hill, however, refused bail, citing concerns that Omole posed a flight risk.
“Whether it was a one-way ticket to Nigeria or a return ticket to London does make a difference as to the court’s assessment of whether or not Mr Omole is a flight risk.
“For the other reasons put forward by the prosecution, in any event, I remain concerned that he is a risk of flight and the bail application is refused,” Hill said.
In April, a Nigerian couple, Luciana and Femi Akanbi, were jailed in the United Kingdom for their involvement in a similar fraud scheme.
The couple reportedly used personal data belonging to Transport for London employees to carry out a tax rebate fraud scheme that cost the public purse more than £433,000.
The fraud, which was carried out between September 2021 and January 2022, was reportedly based on sensitive information belonging to at least 40 TfL workers, including passport details, National Insurance numbers and bank records. The information was used to submit 139 fraudulent tax refund claims.
Court proceedings at Woolwich Crown Court revealed that Luciana Akanbi, 38, who worked in TfL’s human resources department, had access to the personal records of about 107 employees, which were later exploited for the scheme.
-
News5 days agoMajor Generals to Receive Up to ₦25.91m Yearly as Tinubu Approves New Military Pension Structure
-
Crime4 days agoMurder of Aiza Nwosu: Niece, 12 Suspected Cultists Arrested, Nephew at Large
-
News4 days agoAnambra Community Petitions Soludo Over Erosion Caused by Illegal Sand Mining
-
Crime5 days agoAnambra Police Deny N600,000 Bribe Demand, Explain Arrest of Suspected Cultist’s Sister
-
Politics5 days ago2027: Former Deputy Governor Resigns From APC
-
Entertainment4 days agoDavido Reveals How Dangote Drove His Mother Home
-
News2 days agoFCC Urges Enugu Youths to Prepare for Federal Job Opportunities
-
Crime4 days agoWoman Recounts Rape By Nigerian Jailed 17 Years In UK