Police recover arms, vehicles in Anambra after raid on criminal hideouts

The Anambra State Police Command says it has raided a criminal hide out in Lilu, Mbosi in Isseke, Ihiala Local Government Area of the state.

In a statement on Saturday, the spokesman for the state police, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, said the raid was following security intelligence gathered over time, adding it’s joint security forces carried out the operation.

Ikenga said three unexploded improvised explosives, two abandoned vehicles, some explosives materials like copper wires, fuel and other dangerous materials were recovered during the raid.

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The statement read, “Following the security intelligence gathered over time, the Joint Security Forces in a planned and coordinated operation busted a criminal camp in Lilu, Mbosi and Isseke areas of Ihiala LGA, recovered three unexploded improvised explosives, two abandoned vehicles, some explosives materials like copper wires, fuel and other dangerous materials.

“The Commissioner of Police, CP Nnaghe Itam, while charging the operatives to sustain the tempo of the operations assured the good people of the state, the commitment of the Police and other security agencies to continue to dominate and deny the criminal elements the space they enjoy to commit havoc in the State.

“The joint operations are still ongoing and further development shall be communicated.”

Some yet-to-be-identified assailants on Monday attacked the Umunze Police Station in Orumba South Local Government Area of the state.

Police recover arms, vehicles in Anambra after raid on criminal hideouts

Man arrested in Rivers for abusing victims lured from dating apps

A 38-year-old man, Belema Ibama, who allegedly lured women through online dating platforms and s3xually abused them, has been arrested by the Rivers State Police Command.

Ibama, a father of four girls, reportedly posed as “Mr. Anderson,” a British engineer working on an offshore oil rig, to lure his victims to hotels where he would drug, rape, and rob them.

The suspect’s arrest came after over 20 women filed reports with the police, accusing a man using the alias “Engineer Anderson” of sexual assault after inviting them on dates. According to police investigations, Ibama had been engaging in this criminal activity since 2019 and had previously been remanded in prison for six months in 2021, only to be discharged due to a lack of witnesses.

Further investigations revealed that Ibama had been arrested by the Delta State Police Command in 2020 on similar charges but had jumped bail and fled to Port Harcourt. After returning from prison in 2022, he resumed his life of crime in November 2023, allegedly targeting more than 20 women before his arrest in May 2024.

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One of his victims recounted how she met Ibama on the dating app Tinder, and during their first in-person meeting at a hotel in Port Harcourt, he drugged her drink, causing her to lose consciousness. She later woke up to find that her valuables, including an iPhone and cash, had been stolen. This led her to report the matter to the police, which set off the investigation that ultimately led to Ibama’s arrest.

At the time of his arrest, police found pills suspected to be Tramadol and Rohypnol, along with 15 mobile phones, four women’s watches, and two handbags, believed to belong to his victims. Ibama confessed to using dating apps like Bumble and Tinder to target his victims under aliases such as “Engineer Val Anderson” or “Mr. Anderson.”

Ibama also revealed his tactic for obtaining victims’ ATM pins, explaining that he would ask them to pay for food or drinks with their cards while he secretly memorized their pin numbers. Once they were unconscious, he would assault them and use their ATM cards to withdraw money.

The suspect also admitted to selling stolen items at mobile phone stores. He is currently in police custody, and further investigations are ongoing.

Man arrested in Rivers for abusing victims lured from dating apps

Benue IDP: Group sues FG over humanitarian crisis

A leading human rights organization in Nigeria, Lawyers Alert, has initiated a legal action against the Federal Government and the Attorney-General of the Federation, at the Federal High Court, Makurdi, Benue, over the ongoing humanitarian crisis affecting internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Benue State.

The lawsuit seeks to address the Benue State IDP Crisis with a specific focus on the government’s failure to provide adequate security and facilitate the return of displaced citizens to their ancestral homes.

The Director in charge of Legal Department at Lawyers Alert, Barrister Bamidele Jacobs, said the objective was to ensure that the fundamental rights of the effected vulnerable groups are upheld.

He said, “The lawsuit is grounded in several provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999, as amended) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, both of which guarantee the right to life, dignity, personal liberty, and security.

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“The lawsuit highlights the legal obligations of the Federal Government of Nigeria to protect the lives and property of its citizens, particularly the IDPs in Benue State as enshrined in Sections 33(1), 34(1), 35(1), and 14(2)(b) of the Nigerian Constitution, which guarantee the rights to life, human dignity, and personal liberty.

“In addition, Articles 4, 5, 6, 16, 22, and 24 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights mandate that the government must provide security and ensure the best attainable state of physical and mental health for all its citizens, including displaced persons.

“The lawsuit underscores the deplorable living conditions in the camps, including overcrowding, lack of sanitation, insufficient security, and exposure to diseases, which have disproportionately affected women and children.

Jacobs lamented that reports of sexual violence and rape in the camps have exacerbated the situation and further eroding the dignity and safety of the displaced persons. He called on Federal Government to take necessary actions to address the humanitarian crisis at the Benue IDP camp.

He said Lawyers Alert in its suit is seeking a court declaration that the Nigerian government is bound by law to ensure the security of IDPs and return them to their homes.