TheNewsGuru

Tag: Murder

  • Court remands ‘Auxiliary’ over alleged murder

    Court remands ‘Auxiliary’ over alleged murder

    An Iyaganku Chief Magistrates’ Court, Ibadan, has remanded the former Chairman, Park Management System (PMS) in Oyo State, Mukaila Lamidi, (a.k.a Auxiliary) at Agodi Correctional Centre over alleged murder.

    Chief Magistrate Olabisi Ogunkanmi ordered the remand of the 63-year-old defendant due to lack of jurisdiction.

    Ogunkanmi said the remand was pending the issuance of legal advice from the state Director of Public Prosecution (DPP).

    She, thereafter, adjourned the matter till July 11, for mention.

    The defendant, who was represented by Mr Tope Olayinka, was charged with a four-count charge bordering on conspiracy, causing death and stealing.

    CSP Funke Fawole, Officer-in-Charge, Legal Department of the Police, Oyo State Command, had earlier told the court that Lamidi and others now at large allegedly conspired to commit the offences.

    Fawole said, “On June 16, 2021, at about 3.30 p.m., Lamidi and others now at large allegedly caused the death of one Azeez Rahman Abiodun, 36, by stabbing him with a knife in the chest.

    “On June 16, 2021, the defendant and others allegedly conspired and stole assorted phones valued at N150 million, property of Azeez Hammed Adebayo”.

    The offences, she said, were committed at Baba-Onilu Shopping Complex, Iwo Road area of Ibadan.

    She said the offence was contrary to Sections 383 and 316 and punishable under Sections 319, l1l, 390 (9), 324 and 516 of the Criminal Code Laws of Oyo State 2000.

  • Sad! Woman stabbed to death by mentally challenged niece

    Sad! Woman stabbed to death by mentally challenged niece

    Following the killing of a 54-Year-Old Civil Servant, Mrs Funmilayo Adelayi, by her 17-year-old niece, Wunmi Aduloju, in Akure, Ondo State capital, the Ondo Police Command has disclosed that the suspect had mental issues.

    The Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Funmilayo Odunlami-Omisanya, stated that the medical records from the psychiatric hospital where the suspect had been receiving treatment confirmed her health status.

    Wunmi stabbed the deceased in her three-bedroom bungalow along Superjet Road, Premier Estate, off Oda Road, Akure South Local Council Area of the state, with the decomposing body discovered a few days later.

    The PPRO stated that the suspect, who had since been arrested, had been taken to police medical facility for safekeeping to avoid injury to herself and others.

    She said: “The police took the remains to the mortuary, and during clean-up, a mark of violence (stabbing) was observed, while a knife was also found at the scene of the crime.

    “Preliminary investigation revealed that the deceased lived with her niece, Omowunmi Aduloju, aged 17 years, who suddenly disappeared and locked the door.

    “The stench oozing out of the house attracted the residents, who notified the deceased sister. The sister, on arrival, peered through the window and saw the body on the floor; hence, the police were informed. The corpse, in a decomposing state, was removed for preservation.”

  • Police arrest boyfriend over murder of 20-yr-old girl

    Police arrest boyfriend over murder of 20-yr-old girl

    The police have arrested one Jamiu Salihu, 29, a suspected boyfriend of a 20-year-old university admission seeker, Miss Temitope Elemide, who was killed in Odeda Local Government Area of Ogun.

    SP Omolola Odutola, the State Police Spokesman, confirmed the development to newsmen on Wednesday in Abeokuta.

    Odutola described the incident as a murder case which was reported to the police on Sunday.

    It was gathered that the victim was murdered on Sunday at her family residence at Bosero community, Olodo, in Odeda council area.

    Elemide was preparing for the next Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) before the incident.

    The police spokesperson explained that Elemide’s boyfriend had been arrested in connection with the murder.

    “There was a suspected murder report on Feb. 25, from Odeda that a lifeless body of Elemide was seen inside the room stabbed with a knife on her head and body.

    “There is one Jamiu Salihu, 29-year-old boyfriend, who is suspected to have committed the heinous crime. He was (allegedly) seen coming out from the bush on the said day of the crime,” she said.

    Odutola said one knife, two iron rods, and one android techno phone were recovered as exhibits.

    She added that the body of the victim had been deposited in the morgue.

  • Six teens face trial in court over murder that shook France

    Six teens face trial in court over murder that shook France

    Six teenagers go on trial behind closed doors on Monday in connection with the beheading of French history teacher, Samuel Paty in 2020, a murder that shocked the country.

    The teacher had shown his pupils caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad in a class on freedom of expression, angering some Muslim parents.

    Most Muslims avoid depictions of prophets, considering them blasphemous.

    A 13-year-old girl at the time allegedly told her parents that Paty had asked Muslim pupils to leave the room before showing the caricatures.

    She is facing false accusation charges after it was established that she was not in the class .

    Paty, 47, was killed outside his school in a Paris suburb by an 18-year-old assailant of Chechen origin, who was shot dead by police soon after the attack.

    The five other minors, aged between 14 and 15 at the time of the attack, would be charged with premeditated criminal conspiracy, or ambush.

    They were suspected of having pointed out Paty to the murderer or helped monitor his exit from the school.

    All six minors were referred to the children’s court and could face 2-1/2 years in prison.

    They could not be identified due to their age and entered court on Monday wearing hoodies to hide their faces.

    “He is consumed with regret and is very fearful of the confrontation with Paty’s family,” Antoine Ory, lawyer for one of the accused, said on Monday before the hearing started.

    Paty’s sister Mickaelle said in a statement through lawyer Louis Cailliez that her brother would still be alive without a “fatal association of small cowardices, big lies”.

    The hearings, due to last until Dec. 8, would be held behind closed doors.

    Eight adults were also accused and would appear before a special criminal court.

    In October,  almost two years to the day of Paty’s killing, a 20-year-old man fatally stabbed a teacher and gravely wounded two other people in an attack at a school in northern France, triggering renewed fears of jihadist violence.

    France had suffered a wave of attacks by Islamist militants in past years, including a gun rampage in 2015 in the offices of Charlie Hebdo, a satirical magazine that had published caricatures Paty showed in his class.

  • Troops nab Osama Bani Fadl suspected of k!lling Israeli father, son

    Troops nab Osama Bani Fadl suspected of k!lling Israeli father, son

    Israeli troops nabbed Osama Bani Fadl, a Palestinian wanted on suspicion of killing an Israeli father and son in a terror attack in the West Bank town of Huwara in August, the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet security agency said in a joint statement Sunday.

    Shay Silas Nigreker, 60, and his 28-year-old son Aviad Nir, residents of Ashdod, were gunned down at a carwash in the town, south of Nablus.

    The arrest came during 24 hours of intense clashes in the West Bank in which eight Palestinians were killed, according to Palestinian health officials.

    Bani Fadl was nabbed in the Jenin refugee camp during an hours-long operation. The IDF and Shin Bet said he was armed and hiding in an apartment used by local terror operatives.

    Troops were searching a home in Jenin when they found Bani Fadl hiding in an attic space, above a door hidden behind a double wall, footage released by the IDF showed. He was found hiding with an M-16 rifle, magazines, and a Hamas flag.

    The suspected terrorist’s home in Aqraba, near Nablus, was mapped out for demolition days after the shooting attack.

    Nigreker, a native of India, and son Nir, were shot dead by a terrorist who approached on foot and opened fire from close range with a handgun. The gunman then fled.

    Huwara has long been a flashpoint in the West Bank, with a main thoroughfare running through the town also being used regularly by Israelis to travel to and from settlements.

    In a separate statement, the IDF said other operations were carried out in Jenin. Clashes broke out between Israeli troops and rioters who threw explosive devices. There were also firefights between local gunmen and security forces.

    The Jenin raid was spearheaded by soldiers of the 646th Reserve Brigade. Reservists have been used in the West Bank rather than troops of the standing army, as many of Israel’s frontline soldiers are participating in the war that erupted last month against the terror group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

    The IDF said that in Jenin, troops killed five Palestinian gunmen, wounded others, and arrested 21 wanted Palestinians. It also said a drone strike was carried out against a group of armed Palestinians that had “endangered our forces.”

    The Palestinian Authority Health Ministry said that five Palestinians were killed in Jenin, and three others were killed in separate areas of the West Bank since Saturday morning. One of those killed, in al-Bireh in the central West Bank, was a teenager, the ministry said.

    Palestinian media reported that one person was killed in a drone strike on a house in the Damaj neighborhood of the Jenin refugee camp that also injured four other people. The Wafa news agency reported Sunday that another Palestinian man was shot dead during an IDF raid in the village of Yatma, south of Nablus.

    During the Jenin operation, an explosive laboratory was destroyed, the IDF said. Engineering troops also uncovered explosive devices hidden at the sides of and beneath roads. The troops also seized weapons, explosives, and other military and surveillance equipment, the IDF said.

    The Palestinian Authority’s Jenin Governorate called for a general strike on Sunday as a mark of mourning, local media reported.

    Tensions in the West Bank have been high since October 7, when Hamas led thousands of terrorists in a cross-border attack from Gaza on Israel that killed over 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Terrorists also abducted around 240 people of all ages as captives in the Gaza Strip. Israel responded with a military campaign aimed at destroying Hamas a removing if from power in Gaza.

    Since Hamas’s devastating attack on Israel and amid the ensuing war, troops have arrested some 2,000 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including more than 1,100 affiliated with Hamas. According to the Palestinian Authority health ministry, some 200 West Bank Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, and in some cases settlers.

    Jenin has been the focus of a previous large-scale raids by the military during the recent unrest.

    The IDF is preparing for a possible escalation of violence following the release of Palestinian prisoners in the exchange deal for abducted Israeli hostages that began over the weekend. A major concern is rioting in villages and cities leading to clashes with security forces as well as possible terror attacks on Israelis traveling on roads in the West Bank.

    Israa Jaabis, a Palestinian security prisoner released by Israel, is hugged as she arrives home in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukaber, early November.

    So far, 26 Israeli hostages have been released from Hamas captivity, along with 14 foreign citizens. In exchange, Israel released Palestinian women and underage prisoners held in security cases. The deal also includes a temporary lull in fighting in the Gaza Strip. More hostages are scheduled to be released in the coming days, but the arrangement will still leave most in captivity.

    The intensified violence follows more than a year of escalating raids and arrests in the West Bank and deadly Palestinian attacks on Israelis. Before the Hamas assault, 2023 already was the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank in over two decades.

  • Alleged murder of Super tv boss: Strike stalls Chidinma’s trial

    Alleged murder of Super tv boss: Strike stalls Chidinma’s trial

    The trial of an undergraduate of the University of Lagos, Chidinma Ojukwu, the alleged murder suspect of Chief Executive Officer of Super TV, Usifo Ataga, on Tuesday, could not go on, due to the absence of the defendant.

    TheNewsGuru.com, (TNG) recalls Ojukwu, a 300-level student of the Department of Mass Communication is being tried before a Lagos State High Court in Tafawa Balewa Square, on nine counts of murder, theft, and forgery.

    She was arraigned alongside her sister, Chioma Egbuchu, and one Adedapo Quadri.

    At the resumed trial on Tuesday, only the third defendant, Egbuchu, was present. Ojukwu and Quadri were not brought to court from the correctional facility.

    Inmates were not brought to court due to the industrial action by the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress.

    Justice Yetunde Adesanya said correctional facility officials had informed the court that the inmates would not be brought to court for security purposes until the strike was called off.

    Counsel for the first defendant, Mr. Onwuka Egwu, said, “Due to the NLC strike, I suggest that tomorrow’s date be vacated and a fresh clear date is given.”

    Also the second defendant’s counsel, Mr Babatunde Busari, however, said “Despite the effort given to this case by this court, the trial is still taking too long.

    “There is no trial day that I come to this court without the trial going on. I also suggest that a clear date be given to ensure that substantive justice is done to this matter.”

    He also asked the prosecution counsel, Mrs Adenike Oluwafemi, Director of Public Prosecutions to mention how many prosecution witnesses are yet to give evidence.

    The DPP told the court that apart from the ninth prosecution witness, DSP Olusegun Bamidele, who was still giving evidence under cross-examination, “there are two more witnesses”.

    Consequently, Justice Adesanya, vacated Wednesday’s date to ensure that the NLC strike would not disrupt proceedings.

    She adjourned the case till December 5 and December 7, 2023, for the continuation of trial.

    The ninth prosecution witness, DSP Bamidele, had at the last proceeding in June, narrated how he examined the body of late Ataga at the mortuary.

    The witness was cross-examined by the first defendant’s counsel, Egwu.

    The witness had told the court that he visited the mortuary two days after the deceased died to carry out his investigation.

    Bamidele narrated that the body bag was opened in his presence for observation.

    He told the court that he saw injury on the body and neck region of the deceased.

    According to him, he instructed the mortuary attendant to turn the body over and he saw marks on the side of the left ribs.

    The witness also told the court that there was an injury at the lower centre of the head, adding that It was an open injury that showed signs of stabbing.

    Ojukwu and the two others were arraigned on October 12, 2021, by the Lagos State Government.

  • The silent epidemic of femicide in Nigeria

    The silent epidemic of femicide in Nigeria

    Gender-based violence (GBV) encompasses a wide spectrum of repugnant human rights violations, encompassing sexual violence, physical violence, emotional and psychological violence, child marriage, femicide, trafficking, female genital mutilation (FGM), domestic violence, and rape.

    In Nigeria, femicide, which is the intentional killing of women or girls due to their gender, has risen significantly, causing alarm and demanding urgent action.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that this surge became more pronounced during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020 as Africa continues to grapple with high rates of women and girls being killed by intimate partners or family members.

    According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) research data published in 2021, this situation has not improved over the past decade, even in regions where overall lethal violence has decreased.

    The effects of these abuses extend beyond the victims or survivors to their families, communities, and societies at large.

    “Urgent and targeted action is needed to empower and protect women and girls, to prevent gender-based violence and save lives,” the UNODC said.

    Several high-profile cases show a chilling pattern of femicide in Nigeria where young women and girls, aged 18 to 26, fall victim to horrific murders.

    October 2023: The Tragic End of Justina Nkang (Tiffany)

    A 300-level student of the University of Port Harcourt, Justina Nkang Otuene, popularly known as ‘Tiffany,’ met a gruesome fate as her lifeless body was discovered in a residential estate in NTA Road Mgbuoba, Port Harcourt on October 25.

    Tiffany’s 25-year-old boyfriend Damian Okoligwe was apprehended by vigilantes while attempting to dispose her remains and the police were later alerted.

    September 2023: FUOYE Student’s Lifeless Body Discovered

    On September 7, the lifeless body of Atanda Modupe Deborah, a 200-level student in the Department of Nursing at the Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), who had gone missing after embarking on a night-time study session three days earlier, was

    The university’s registrar, Mufutau Ibrahim, confirmed the discovery of her corpse in a shallow grave and 10 suspects have been arrested by the police over her murder.

    September 2023: Abuja Undergraduate’s Unfortunate End

    A similar grim fate befell the missing undergraduate student of the National Open University of Nigeria, Abuja, Blessing Karami.

    Days after she was declared missing, Blessing’s lifeless body was recovered from the woods in Karmo, a suburb within the Federal Capital Territory.

    July 2023: The Tragedy of Augusta Osedion

    In another heart-wrenching incident in Oral Estate, Ikota, Ajah, Lagos, a 21-year-old undergraduate of Lead University, Augusta Osedion, met a cruel end at the hands of her lover, Benjamin.

    Their relationship took a deadly turn during a quarrel, resulting in Augusta’s fatal stabbing by her boyfriend.

    2022: The Tragic End of Bamise Ayanwole

    Bamise Ayanwole, a 22-year-old fashion designer, was abducted and found dead after boarding a bus in Lagos.

    The bus driver, who initially confessed to wrongdoing, later retracted his statement.

    2022: A Sad end for Precious Okeke

    Precious Okeke, a 24-year-old woman, was allegedly killed by her boyfriend, Ifeanyi Njoku, in a Badore estate in Ajah, Lagos.

    Njoku reportedly engaged in a gruesome act with Okeke’s corpse for ritualistic purposes, lasting six days, before the repugnant odour from his apartment raised suspicions among neighbours, prompting them to contact the estate management, leading to his arrest.

    2021: Tragic Demise of Job Seeker Hiny Umoren

    26-year-old Hiny Iniobong Umoren, a philosophy graduate, was raped and murdered while seeking a job opportunity in Akwa Ibom State.

    Her perpetrator was arrested, confessed, and received a death sentence.

    2020: Uwaila Omozuwa’s Tragic Church Assault

    Uwaila Omozuwa, a 22-year-old 100-level microbiology student at the University of Benin, fell victim to rape and assault in an Edo State church.

    Days after the brutal church assault Omozuwa passed away on 30 May, despite efforts to save her life.

    2020: Barakat Bello Raped and Murdered

    18-year-old Barakat Bello met a tragic end through rape and murder in her parents’ house in Ibadan, Oyo State.

    Barakat, described as a “nice and easy-going” girl by a family friend, was a student of the Federal College of Animal and Production Technology, Moor Plantation, Apata, Ibadan.

    While these cases have stirred public outrage and calls for justice, many of the perpetrators are either unidentified, or investigations and legal proceedings are ongoing.

    Feminist and human rights activist Ozzy Etomi, criticised the notion that women might somehow deserve such violence because they were seeking wealth.

    Etomi said: “Statistics have proven time and again that women are most likely to be killed by men in their proximity; partners, fathers, brothers, relatives etc. Yet any small thing in Nigeria its “rituals” and “organ harvesting” and the conversation is derailed to one of greed and not violence.”

    A youth-based Non-Governmental Organisation, “Big Family 360” is now employing the use of digital technology to help women fight GBV.

    Founder and Chief Executive of the NGO, Dirug Samuel, explained that the Smart Reporting and Referral (SMARTRR) technology, is a mobile application that allows survivors, social workers and service providers report and refer cases or incidents of gender based violence from their phones.

    “Presently, on our own gender based violence app, over one thousand women reported a case of gender based violence. We are trying to scale up the African community and in the next five or ten years, Big Family 360 will spread across the African continent, saving women and girls from any form of abuse, and enrolling children back to school,” Samuel said.

    UNODC also recommends that the response to gender-related killings must ensure that justice is accessible, responds to the needs of victims and survivors, and holds perpetrators accountable.

    “Such a response sends a clear message to society about the gravity of these killings and emphasizes the urgency of addressing this pressing social issue,” it stated.

  • Plateau gov, Mutfwang condemns murder of Fulani leader

    Plateau gov, Mutfwang condemns murder of Fulani leader

    Gov. Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau has condemned the murder of Ardo Adamu Gabdo, the Fulani leader of Panyam District in Mangu Local Government Area (LGA) of the state, who was killed by yet-to-be identified persons.

    Mutfwang condemned the act in a statement by his Director of Press and Public Affairs (DOPPA), Mr Gyang Bere, issued on Saturday in Jos.

    Recall that Gabdo was declared missing by security agencies on September 24.

    But his dead body was later recovered on Thursday, October 5, by troops of Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) at Boi, a border community between Plateau and Bauchi state.

    Maj.-Gen. Abdusalam Abubakar, the Commander of OPSH, recently told stakeholders from Mangu at a meeting that it had arrested three suspects in connection with the crime.

    The governor, who condoled with the immediate family of the ardo over the huge loss, promised to support security agencies to fish out those behind the crime.

    He urged community leaders and traditional rulers at all levels to support government and security agencies in their collective efforts toward a crime-free Plateau.

    ”While we commend the efforts of OPSH for recovering the body of the murdered Ardo, we want to appeal to all residents of our state to be law-abiding.

    ”All criminal acts should be reported to security agencies for swift action.

    ”We are committed to upholding the rule of law in addressing all forms of criminal activities in the state,” the governor said.

    Mutfwang promised to be fair and just to all citizens, irrespective of tribe or religious background.

    The governor further reiterated his determination to introduce policies and programmes that would foster sustainable peace, progress, and prosperity in the state.

  • Double tragedy: Pastor, brother sentenced to death for murder

    Double tragedy: Pastor, brother sentenced to death for murder

    The Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Essien Udim local government Area has sentenced one Pastor Uduak Umoren, and his brother, Emmanuel Umoren, to death for beating one Iboro Joe to death over a piece of land.

    The deceased, a 45-year-old farmer and trader who hailed from Ikot Otu in Essien Udim LGA, was beaten to death when he visited his sister-in-law in Adiasim Ikot Ekon, also in Essien Udim LGA to condole with her on the death of her husband.

    The sister-in-law had told the court that she asked the deceased to accompany her to her late husband’s farmland to assess how much she could sell it for his burial when the wife of the second convict saw them and alerted her husband that someone was trying to bury juju on their family land.

    She told the court that arriving on the farmland, the second convict started beating the deceased, while his wife also invited her son and her brother-in-law who joined in the fray, cutting the deceased with a machete and broken bottles.

    The deceased was beaten to a state of coma and dragged to his family compound close to the farm, where he gave up to the ghost after three days.

    Delivering judgment on the matter on Wednesday, the presiding judge, Justice Winifred Effiong, found the two accused guilty of murder and sentenced them to death by hanging accordingly.

    She said the “prosecution team from the State Ministry of Justice had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt, adding that the accused did intentionally kill the deceased.”

  • Police in Benue arrest 4 over murder of retired judge

    Police in Benue arrest 4 over murder of retired judge

    Police in Benue paraded four suspected killers of former President of Benue Customary Court of Appeal, retired Justice Margaret Igbetar, before newsmen on Tuesday in Makurdi.

    Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Bartholomew Onyeka, told newsmen that the suspects confessed that they killed the jurist over family inheritance.

    The decomposing body of retired Justice Igbetar was found with deep cults on her back inside her kitchen on Aug. 24.

    Onyeka said following her gruesome murder police arrested one Joseph Aondohemba, her nephew.

    “The suspect confessed to have planned and recruited other people to help him to kill his aunty and led a team of detectives to Adikpo in Kwande Local Government Area where two others were arrested.

    “The two arrested at Adikpo were Igbazenda Gbidye (63) and Dzungwenen Ukor (40).

    “These suspects admitted that Aondohemba reported to them that his father died and left a lot of property in the hands of his aunty (the deceased) and she had refused to hand the said property over to him.

    “They agreed to join him in eliminating her so he could have access to his property.

    “One Akuhwa Barnabas (32), driver to the deceased, corroborated their statements and admitted that he gave the gang access to the house and manned the gate until they finished the assassination process.’’ Onyeka said.

    The police commissioner added that the four suspects would be arraigned after the completion of investigation.

    Onyeka also told newsmen that between July and September, police in Benue arrested 85 persons in connection with kidnapping, armed robbery, culpable homicide, cultism, rape and unlawful possession of firearms.

    The police recovered 12 locally-made pistols, four AK47 riffles, four single and double barrel guns, 160 ammunitions and four cartridges, during the period, he said.

    Onyeka assured that police would soon secure the release of Benue Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr Mathew Abo, who was kidnapped recently.

    NAN