metro
Trial begins in alleged rape, murder of 300 level female UNILORIN student
The trial within trial in the case of alleged rape and murder of the 300 level student of the University of Ilorin, Olajide Omowumi Blessing, commenced on Tuesday in an Ilorin High Court amid claims and counter-claims by the defence counsels and prosecuting operative of the Department of State Security, DSS.
The trial judge, Justice lbrahim Yusuf, had on Monday adjourned till Tuesday for the commencement of trial within trial in the case.
Barrister Shina Ibiyemi, defence counsel for the first defendant, Abdulazeez Ismail, accused the DSS of using an electronic device and horsewhip on the defendant to extract confessional statements from him under duress.
Reacting, the DSS operative, Femi Babalola, swiftly denied the allegation as false, explaining that the defendants volunteered their confessional statements without any intimidation.
He said, ” At no point in time, did any operative of the department manhandled any of the suspects in order to extract confessional statements from them,” adding that ” torture and harassment are against the law.”
Babalola, said that, ” It was Abdulazeez who volunteered the statement verbally and was asked to write it under cautionary law which he obliged without torture whatsoever.
” He said Abdulazeez claimed that he is not fluent in English, hence he asked the operative to rather write the statement for him, which was afterwards read to him word for word, and was affirmed by him that it is exactly what he said, then signed and dated the document,” Babalola added.
On his part, Barrister Jimoh Lawal, counsel for the 4th and 5th defendants, Abdulkareem Shuaib and Abdulkareem Rasheed, respectively, also accused the DSS of using a taser, an electronic device on the 5th defendant, Rasheed in a bid to extract a statement from him, which Babalola also denied.
The defence counsel, further alleged that the mother of the two brothers was prevented from seeing her children which the DSS operative again dismissed, maintaining that the mother did not come to the DSS office.
Another defence counsel, Barrister Saka Ishola, like other defence counsels, also alleged that his client, Ajala Timileyin’s face was swollen in the video evidence tagged exhibit 61b, which the DSS officer affirmed.
Barrister Lukman Bello said the 6th defendant, Abdullateef Abdulrahman requested access to a lawyer but was allegedly rebuffed, therefore denying him the right to an attorney at that moment.
The DSS operative, Babalola, again denied the allegation, claiming that the DSS operatives asked if he had a legal representative but answered ‘no’.
Barrister Bello, further alleged that the statement credited to the 8th defendant, Akande Oladoja, was not written by him.
Babalola, rejected the claim, asserting that he volunteered to write it by himself since he could write properly.
Defence counsel to Daud Bashir, the 7th defendant, Barrister Imam Ayegbami, claimed that his client stated that he was not aware that the Samsung phone was a stolen item until he got to the DSS office, a fact that was missing in the statement presented by the prosecution.
The trial judge adjourned the case till September 23rd and 24th, 2021 for further hearing.
Late Blessing was allegedly raped and murdered at the off-campus residence of her elder sister in the Tanke area of Ilorin.
Eight suspects are facing trial in the case being handled by the DSS.
Daily Post
metro
Two men land in Ibadan court for allegedly stealing two loaves of bread
Two men land in Ibadan court for allegedly stealing two loaves of bread
Two men, Ebenezer Olusesi, 31, and Ibrahim Adeniyi, 41 were on Monday arraigned before an Ibadan Chief Magistrates’ Court for allegedly stealing two loaves of bread worth N2,600.
The two men, employees of a popular supermarket in Ibadan, reportedly stole the bread from their employer.
Olusesi, a baker and Adeniyi, a security guard, pleaded not guilty to theft.
The prosecution counsel, David Adepoju, told the court that the defendants conspired to commit the offence.
Adepoju said the defendants on April 28 stole two loaves of bread, property of FoodCo Company, Ring Road, Ibadan, represented by Friday Achibong.
He said the offence contravened section 390 (a) and 516 of the Criminal Code Laws of Oyo State 2000.
The Chief Magistrate, Mrs Olabisi Ogunkanmi, admitted the defendants to bail in the sum of N50,000 each with two sureties each in like .
Ogunkanmi said one of the sureties must be a relation while the second sureties must present tax evidence for two year.
She adjourned the case until August 15 for hearing.
metro
Missing Delta varsity female student found dead, two suspects arrested
Missing Delta varsity female student found dead, two suspects arrested
Two suspects are in the custody of the Edo State Police Command in connection with the disappearance and death of a 200-level undergraduate of Delta State University of Science and Technology, Agbor, Miss Faith Omodon.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the inhabitants of Iru Egbede community in Orhionmwon Local Government Area of Edo State had, on March 30, reported the sudden disappearance of their daughter who was studying Business Administration at DELSU.
The father of the missing girl, Edward Omodon, had told our correspondent that his daughter was last seen on March 30, after she left home for the farm on a motorcycle. He said the incident occurred when the community was holding their national conference.
“We usually have the Iru National Conference at this time of the year. We were seated inside the community hall when we heard loud wailing outside that my daughter was missing. She had left for the farm earlier that morning with a motorcycle, taking her breakfast in a flask with her,” he said.
However, our correspondent gathered on Sunday that the community’s vigilante group arrested and handed over two suspects in connection with the disappearance.
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Speaking with PUNCH Metro on the incident, on Sunday, the National Youth Chairman of Iru- Egbede, Donald Isioma, disclosed that the suspects were arrested on Saturday afternoon.
He said the two were arrested when the phone of the deceased was tracked and traced to the suspects.
Isioma added, “The police have recovered the phone from the suspects and the motorbike Omodon rode to the farm on the day she went missing.
“One of the suspects who is a member of the community has confessed that they had killed the girl while being interrogated at the Okpaihe Police Station before the case was transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Benin.”
When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Chidi Nwabuzor, said information concerning the arrest had yet to reach him but promised to get back as soon as he contacted men of the SCID. He had yet to do that as of the time of filing this report on Sunday evening.
Missing Delta varsity female student found dead, two suspects arrested
metro
NAF airstrikes kill scores of terrorists in Borno, Niger enclaves
NAF airstrikes kill scores of terrorists in Borno, Niger enclaves
The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Sunday said the air components of Operations Hadin Kai and Whirl Punch in the North East and North Central killed many terrorists in airstrikes in Borno and Niger.
The Director, Public Relations and Information, NAF, AVM Edward Gabkwet, disclosed this in a statement.
Gabkwet said the air components had continued to obliterate terrorists and destroy their structures, equipment and mobility, thereby limiting their ability to attack ground troops and innocent Nigerians at will.
He said that in the North East, the air interdiction was on May 3 authorized and conducted over Chinene, a location tucked inside the Mandara Mountain.
He said terrorists had been observed to be emanating from various locations and assembling ostensibly for a meeting.
According to him, seven gun trucks were also observed parked under trees within the same location.
Gabkwet said the aircraft bombarded the assembly area and tree coverings and destroyed their weapons and mobility.
He said that the Battle Damage Assessment revealed that the strikes were successful as several terrorists were neutralised and logistics destroyed.
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He said similar airstrikes were conducted same day by the air component of Operation Whirl Punch in a pre-emptive air strikes over terrorists hibernating at Allawa village, near Shiroro town in Niger.
The NAF spokesman said the mission was conducted following credible intelligence which revealed the migration of terrorists into the village after the mass exit of locals for fear of their safety.
He said the terrorists had, on May 1, stormed the deserted Allawa community in Shiroro Local Government Area and torched the Central Primary School.
“In the evening of the same day, another group of terrorists also arrived at the location, wielding AK-47/49 rifles after invading Galapai village in Galadima Kogo District of Shiroro.
“Accordingly, to prevent further occupation as well as pursue the terrorists from the location, the air component scrambled a formation of its platforms to attack the location.
“On arrival at the location, several terrorists were sighted and engaged effectively.
“Furthermore, following credible intelligence as well as detailed aerial observation, which confirmed the presence of their cache of arms hidden inside Allawa Forest, the air component further carried out air strikes at the location,” he said.
Gabkwet also said that the NAF carried out air strikes North of Arugbana and Temakiri in the Niger Delta, where illegal refining sites were observed and destroyed.
He said through this action, the capabilities of oil thieves to continually sabotage and destroy oil pipelines were minimised.
NAF airstrikes kill scores of terrorists in Borno, Niger enclaves
(NAN)
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