metro
We apprehended many soldiers involved in oil theft — Niger Delta security chief
For many years, security personnel deployed in the Niger Delta to guard oil installations and stop crude oil bunkering had turned themselves into oil bandits in collusion with some International Oil Companies, IOCs, government officials and oil bunkers.
They all blamed community folks and minor bunkers for illegally refining crude with amateur technology in the creeks.
There was nobody to speak out for the endangered communities until the Minister of State for Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, and Group Managing Director of NNPCL, Dr. Mele Kyari, under immense pressure from President Muhammadu Buhari, to stop the increasing oil theft, thought out of the box.
Sylva and Kyari had been in contact separately and mutually with the former leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, for more than a year over the worsening theft.
Their discussions convinced the duo that he could be a magic wand, but each time Tompolo’s name came up in Aso Villa, and private meetings, some top security officials pooh-poohed the idea.
It was easy for Buhari, who, in 2016, canceled a “no cure no pay” contract that Global West, a company in which Tompolo served, as a technical partner, without a lucid understanding of the surrounding intrigues, to agree with the naysayers.
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However, with each passing day in their discussions and intelligence from Tompolo on the connivance of security and industry officials without which the massive thieving would not be possible, Sylva and Kyari approached Buhari with accessible facts.
They did not find it difficult getting the buy-in of the Chief of the Defense Staff, General Lucky Irabor, who already had the instructions of the Commander-in-Chief to confront the situation head-on and bring the perpetrators to book.
Finally, a converted President approved the hiring of Tompolo, especially as the private surveillance contractors, who had been on the job, in the last few years, had done little
The trio of Irabor, Sylva, and Kyari are together, ever since, in the battle.
Tompolo’s engagement by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) triggered quite some controversy, but Sylva and Kyari were unmoved by the many distractions.
What was clear to them was that the illegal bunkering points had to be discovered and clamped; conspiring security and industry officials also had to be identified and disciplined, and the entire surveillance system overhauled for oil production to pick up once again.
Sunday Vanguard learned that some top security officials serving in Lagos and Abuja were part of the oil-bunkering consortium with their foot soldiers in the oil-rich region.
The oil cabal allegedly sponsored a campaign of calumny against Tompolo, recruiting some youths to protest against the ex-militant leader handling pipeline surveillance contracts in their areas.
It was not surprising when the former militant leader, who boasted that he knows the in-and-out of all the creeks in the Niger Delta, started making startling discoveries, less than a month, after his company, Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, TSSNL, was engaged.
Working with selected security officials, Tompolo’s men uncovered large-scale and sophisticated oil theft machinery going on in the deep swamps at Yokri, close to the Forcados Terminal.
metro
Man gets four-year jail for sexually assaulting teenager in Lagos
Man gets four-year jail for sexually assaulting teenager in Lagos
One Onyeka Ubaka has been sentenced to four years imprisonment for sexual assault and maltreatment of a 16-year-old girl in Lagos State.
He was convicted and sentenced by an Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court on Tuesday.
Justice Rahmon Oshodi convicted him after he pleaded guilty to the two amended charges brought against him by the Lagos State Government.
Ubaka was initially arraigned on January 12, 2024, and was initially charged with defilement through one-count information filed on October 26, 2023, to which he pleaded not guilty.
In the court proceedings, the prosecution counsel, B. E. Okeowo, presented a single witness, the prosecutrix, whose testimony proved particularly significant in establishing the case against the defendant. The prosecutrix who provided a testimony, identified the defendant as her boyfriend and disclosed that she was 16 years old in 2023 and that her relationship with the defendant began in her mother’s shop.
The victim testified to the court that the defendant had multiple instances of sexual intercourse with her, which resulted in pregnancy and childbirth.
“The defendant is the father of my child. He impregnated me, and the child is five months old.”
According to PUNCH, the victim, during cross-examination, gave testimony evidence that incriminate the defendant.
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In one instance, she disclosed that the defendant took her to a bar, gave her yogurt to drink, and after she drank it, she lost consciousness. She further disclosed that she woke up in a hotel room and realised that the defendant had non-consensual sex with her and told her to keep the incident a secret.
At the court proceeding on Tuesday, Justice Oshodi disclosed to the court that the prosecution counsel, B. E. Okeowo, had informed the court that the parties had entered a plea and sentence agreement dated and filed on November 25, 2024. The court then charged and convicted the defendant on the amended charge of indecent acts and sexual assault to which the defendant pleaded guilty.
Justice Ramon, in his judgment, stated that the prosecution had established beyond a reasonable doubt the charges brought against the defendant, and found the defendant guilty of indecent act and sexual assault.
“From the evidence presented by the prosecution, I am satisfied that the essential elements of indecent acts and sexual assault have been established. There is an abundance of evidence to support this conclusion. The defendant’s guilty plea further justifies his conviction for the offences contained in the amended information.
“Therefore, I find the defendant guilty and convict him under Sections 134 and 263 of the Criminal Law Supra”, he ruled.
When asked what he had to say, the defendant begged the court to temper justice with mercy.
“Temper justice with mercy so that I will take care of my responsibility,” he appealed.
It is gathered that the defendant’s father had paid the sum of N300,000 and had undertaken to sponsor the prosecutrix first degree and take full responsibility for the child until the child is eight years old.
The prosecution counsel in her final statement asked the court to convict the defendant according to the plea bargain.
“We ask that the convict be sentenced according to the plea bargain agreement starting from the day of remand, March 23, 2023, and this will pass a message to society that sexual offenders are not tolerated in our society.
“We also ask that the name of the convict be registered in the Sexual Offenders Register”, Okeowo said.
Justice Oshodi then found the defendant guilty and sentenced him to four years imprisonment.
Man gets four-year jail for sexually assaulting teenager in Lagos
metro
Lagos taskforce raids criminal hideout, arrests 53 drug peddlers
Lagos taskforce raids criminal hideout, arrests 53 drug peddlers
CSP Adetayo Akerele, Chairman of Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences Enforcement Unit, announced the arrest of 53 suspected criminals in Gowon Estate.
Akerele said this operation aimed to boost safety, security, and environmental decorum in the area.
“The agency apprehended drug peddlers, addicts; miscreants; street urchins; illegal street traders and people of shady business dealings.
“We found various illicit drugs and narcotics, including Indian hemp, codeine syrup, and colorado,” Akerele said.
The operation brings relief to residents of Gowon Estate, Ipaja, Egbeda, Idimu, and surrounding areas affected by these criminals.
“Residents have endured trauma and safety risks due to these unauthorized squatters.
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The taskforce is committed to safeguarding residents and ridding the metropolis of individuals preying on law-abiding citizens,” Akerele said.
The agency will monitor other criminal hideouts, blackspots, and abandoned properties.
“This vigilance aims to deter individuals with sinister motives.
“These arrests demonstrate our determination to maintain a safe environment.
“We will hold every individual involved in these illegal practices accountable,” Akerele said.
The 53 suspects will face charges for narcotics-related offenses.
Residents are urged to report suspicious activities through the “See Something, Say Something” initiative.
Lagos taskforce raids criminal hideout, arrests 53 drug peddlers
metro
Nigeria Customs returns 21 stolen luxury vehicles to Canada
Nigeria Customs returns 21 stolen luxury vehicles to Canada
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) yesterday returned 21 luxury vehicles worth over N1.8 billion to Canada after they were stolen and smuggled into Nigeria by a criminal syndicate.
Speaking to Newsman in Lagos, Comptroller General of Customs, Mr. Adewale Adeniyi, emphasized the seriousness of the growing trade in stolen vehicles and its impact on Nigeria’s economy and security.
According to Adeniyi, Nigeria has become a significant hub for stolen vehicles in West Africa, with syndicates exploiting the country’s ports and borders to traffic vehicles from regions such as Europe, North America, and South America.
He highlighted data from the National Bureau of Statistics indicating that only 54% of stolen vehicles were recovered between 2013 and 2015, illustrating the scale of the problem.
“This trend undermines our legitimate automotive market, strains our security infrastructure, and damages Nigeria’s international reputation,” Adeniyi said.
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He further noted that the illegal trade affects President Tinubu’s economic reforms, which aim to position Nigeria as a trusted hub for international commerce.
To combat this challenge, Adeniyi disclosed that the NCS launched Operation Hot Wheels, a collaborative initiative involving the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Canadian authorities, and international law enforcement agencies. The operation focused on intelligence sharing, surveillance, and interdiction to disrupt vehicle trafficking networks.
Adeniyi further disclosed that the operation uncovered sophisticated smuggling techniques, including false cargo declarations and containerized shipments used to conceal stolen vehicles.
During one operation, officers intercepted a container at Onne Port in Rivers State declared to contain used vehicles and spare parts. A physical examination revealed three undeclared 2021 Toyota Highlanders, two of which were confirmed stolen from Canada.
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