74yrs Old Monarch Remanded For Murder Over Oil Well

Michael Osioni, a 74 years old traditional chief and six others have been remanded in prison custody

by an Ozoro Magistrate Court in Isoko North Council Area of Delta State, over their involvement in the abduction and murder of a retired school Principal, Mr. Frederick Dick Ogbo.

According to a member of the deceased family, the men were charged to court after police investigations revealed that they were involved in the abduction and murder of late Frederick on July 7, 2011.

Upon the arrest and interrogation of members of the syndicate, they confessed to the police that they were hired by some family members of the late Principal to abduct and kill him over documents relating to a family land containing oil wells presently being operated by an oil company.

Speaking further, the source said, the statements of the gang members led to the arrest and detention of the traditional chief and some members of the family. He however added that other members of the family involved in the dastardly act are still at large.

The names of the six men were given as: Sunday Otuedor, Peter Ogude (aka Galaxy), Efe Okoro, Oghale Osioni, Michael Akpoeni and Oke Okwebe.

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Gunmen kill policeman, kidnap expatriate in Warri

Gunmen Friday, in Warri, Warri South LocalGovernment Area of Delta State, shot dead a mobile policeman and kidnapped an expatriate after the latter withdrew an undisclosed amount of money from a bankin Warri.

The hoodlums also took away the rifle of the policeman,who was left in a pool of his blood inside a white Hiace bus. He was believed to be on escort duty.

The armed men, who had killed up to three policemenin the last two months in Warri axis of the state carried out Friday’s attackabout 48 hours after the Delta State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mamman Tsafe,who relocated to Warri, early in the week, to map out fresh strategies on howto combat them, left the oil city for Asaba, the state capital.

Delta state police spokesman, Mr. Charles Muka,confirmed the incident when contacted by Saturday Vanguard, saying the policewere in search of the bandits, while it was gathered that the Delta WaterwaysSecurity Committee, DWSC, Warri, has also activated its intelligence networkfor information on the hoodlums.

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How I fed 2 abducted teenage girls, by suspected kidnapper

Asaba- A self – acclaimed musician, aged 22, yesterday, admitted that he fed two teenage girls kidnapped sometime in November last year in Asaba, Delta State, while another member of the gang confessed to receiving N57,000 as his share of the ransom to buy Christmas dresses.”

They made the confessions while being paraded at the State Security Service, SSS, state headquarters.

SSS state director, F. O. Oghre-Ikanone, told newsmen that pursuant to continuous efforts by Delta State command of the Service to address problems of kidnapping in the state, operatives of the command arrested three more suspects, implicated in the kidnap of two teenage girls, Blessing Ogugua and Fidelia Onoiche, on November 25, 2011.”

He said the January 16 arrest brings to six, the number of arrested members of the gang who operated from Nwaobodo Street, Off Dennis Osadebe Road, Asaba.

The arrested musician, commonly called Lezy, said I collected N56,000 as my share of the money. I was in charge of feeding the girls. I fed them for three days with rice. I regret everything that happened.”

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Police are working hard to rescue kidnapped NYSC members in Rivers

The Police Command in Rivers says it is working hard to rescue the two National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members kidnapped on January 15 in the state.

The command’s Spokesman, Mr Ben Ugwuegbulam, told newsmen in Port Harcourt on Tuesday that several police units were on coordinated trail of the kidnappers.

Ugwuegbulam said that the corps members were kidnapped at an undisclosed location in Etche, Headquarters of Etche Local Government Area.

He said that everything was being done to ensure a successful rescue of the victims and arrest of the kidnappers.

But a source at the state NYSC Secretariat, who wanted to remain anonymous, however, said the management was yet to receive “a full report” on the incident.

“We are expecting it from the officer-in-charge of the local government council, probably later today,” the source said.

NAN reports that several NYSC members had been kidnapped in the state in the past two years.

Five female and a male corps members were kidnapped in Omuma, Omuma Local Government Area in September 2010.

Another set of six, most of them females, were also kidnapped in June 2011.

The command had successfully rescued all the victims, including a six-month-old baby and arrested the suspects.

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Woman nabbed over kidnap of traditional ruler’s wife

A housewife has been arrested in Delta State for allegedly aiding her husband, who was the suspected gang leader in the kidnap of the wife of a traditional ruler in Bayelsa State.

Delta State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mamman Tsafe, in an interview with newsmen in Asaba yesterday, lamented the use of sophisticated weapons by bandits, saying that his men recovered a total of 140 military rifles and 2,956 live ammunitions while the command lost 21 officers last year.

He said: “On December 23, 2011, at about 1945 hours, four armed men kidnapped one Fine Keredei, female, wife of HRH Decca Keredei of Amatu Kingdom in Bayelsa State at her shop on Udu Road, Onwian Aladja. The kidnappers demanded N20 million and later settled for N5 million.

“However, on December 27, 2011, at about 1030 hours, anti-crime patrol team in Effurun Division, acting on information, stormed a kidnap hideout at Ayomara Street and the hoodlums on sighting the team took to their heels, scaling the fence.

“The team chased the suspects and arrested one of them (names withheld), wife of the gang leader now at large in whose house the kidnapped woman was kept.”

Mr Tsafe, said the arrested housewife led the team to the room where the victim was rescued unhurt and also confessed to preventing the victim from escaping on Christmas eve.

He added that a total of 555 suspects were arrested in the state over kidnap cases, 447 charged to court while 55 convictions were secured last year.

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JTF soldier, 24 others paraded for kidnaping

IT was a show of shame yesterday when a soldier attached to the Joint Task Force, JTF, in the Niger Delta, was among twenty four others paraded by the Rivers state Police Command over alleged involvement in kidnapping and other related crimes.

According to the state Police boss, the soldier and his five member gang had made attempts to abduct a business man in the state before their arrest.

Continuing, the state Police Commissioner, Mr Aba said among the twenty four paraded, six were fraudsters who connived with their accomplice in some of the telecommunication industries to defraud unsuspecting members of the public.

According to the Police boss, they got GSM numbers of senior citizens through their syndicate group in the communication sector and send threat messages to them for money. And out of fear, most of the senior citizens gave in to the threat and parted with huge sums of money.

The Police Commissioner said investigation was in top gear to arrest their accomplice in the communication industry.

Continuing, Mr Aba said others paraded specialised in car snatching and sale of the stolen vehicles. Among this group was a lady. He explained that luck ran out on them following a tip off the Police acted on.

The Police boss further assured residents of the state of a hitch free Christmas celebration. He said over 6,000 police men had been deployed to provide security in all the nooks and crannies of the state just as he enjoined residents to go about their celebration peacefully.

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8 women and a man arraigned for kidnapping in owerri

Nine people, including eight women and a man, allegedly caught kidnapping little children in Imo State were yesterday brought to an Owerri High Court.

however, NEWSMEN learnt that the matter could not be heard because of the swearing-in of the President, Customary Court of Appeal, Hon. Justice Pius Ifeanyi Okpara.

A team of fierce-looking policemen brought the suspected kidnappers to court under very tight security and drove them back after waiting for about 45 minutes in the court premises.

Some mothers of the stolen children were seen clutching their children and beaming with smiles as they told the story of their ordeals to whoever cared to listen.

Speaking to NEWSMEN in the court premises, Rev. Fr. Emma Nnochiri, the Assistant Parish Priest of Saint Mulumba’s Catholic Church, Owerri, from where three children were stolen after a Sunday mass, said he was happy that two of the three children kidnapped from the parish have been recovered by the police.

“We were filled with joy when we heard that some of the stolen children had been recovered by the police. Our joy will be complete when all the stolen children are re-united with their parents”, Rev. Fr. Nnochiri said.

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