Bayelsa poll: Police arrest suspects during clash

The Bayelsa Police Command said on Saturday that normalcy had been restored in Oporoma, headquarters of Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state.

The Public Relations Officer of the command, Mr Asinim Butswat, an ASP, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Yenagoa.

Butswat said the command had received report of a clash by rival groups which disrupted the electoral process in the area.

He said one person was injured during the clash, while the police arrested some suspects in the process.

“ We have made some arrests and normalcy has been restored in the area. Security reinforcement was sent to Oporoma and we can say that the electoral process had commenced there,“ he said.


He said information available to the police showed that no life was lost during the clash.
He also said that accreditation had commenced in some parts of the area.
“ We are recording success in other local government areas such as Brass, Nembe, Sagbama, Kolokuma/Opokuma and Yenagoa,’’ the police spokesman said.
He said the governorship election in these areas had been peaceful while security agents were on high alert to check any breach of the law.

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10 arrested as okada riders, Police clash in Lagos

Ten persons have been arrested in connection with the crisis that erupted Wednesday night between commercial motorcyclists and policemen  in Ajao area of Lagos.
Unconfirmed report had it that two policemen were killed by rampaging hoodlums who hijacked the situation. But the Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni, stated that the command did not lose any of its men.
A Police Armoured Personnel Carrier, APC, stationed at Canoe bridge linking Ajao with Ejigbo was also allegedly  burnt by the commercial motorcyclists, said to be protesting seizure of their bikes by officials of  Lagos State Task Force.

Report had it that officials of the task force were out to enforce the restriction of commercial  motorcyclists, popularly known as okada, around the axis.
However, on reaching Ilamose Estate at Oke-Afa, some okada operators reportedly  made  access into  Ajao Estate difficult.
In the process, the officials were said to have impounded some of the motorbikes. However, some motorcyclists around Canoe who sighted them, concluded they were coming for them as well, an assumption that  sparked off a violent protest yesterday.
When Vanguard arrived the scene, shattered  windscreens littered everywhere, as well as charred remains of the police vehicle.
Some heady motorcyclists who resumed work yesterday morning, had their motorbikes seized by members of the task force.  Some armed policemen and soldiers were sighted at the scene, while others were on vehicular patrol.
An eye witness who simply gave his name as Jola, described  Wednesday night’s incident as theatre of was war.
Chairman of tricycle operators in Ajao Estate, Mr  Ambimbola, said: ‘’This is not the first time we are experiencing such an incident. Such has happened before.

“But yesterday’s incident was  a very bad occurrence . We  believe that these people (Fulani men) are struggling to feed themselves but this does not give them the audacity to fight with  policemen or even burn their vehicle.”
Police attack Vanguard’s reporter
Immediately after the interview, while one of Vanguard’s reporters, Lucky Nwanekwu, was taking shots of the scene, a policeman shoved him aside and battered him, asking why he was  taking shots of the scene. All entreaties on the policeman who claimed to be from Area ‘D‘ Mushin Command, failed as two of his colleagues joined in  beating the reporter.
Thereafter,  they seized his mobile phone and whisked him away in their van, to Mushin. They  attempted to throw him inside the cell, boasting that nobody could stop the move. It, however, took the intervention of a senior police officer who reprimanded them, for Nwanekwu who had blood shot eye and marks of violence on his chest and ribs, to be released.

At time of writing this report, he was being treated at Vanguard’s clinic.
However,  an angry CP Owoseni, apologised on the excesses of his men , assuring that the command would look into the matter, with a view to finding out the circumstances that surrounded the attack on the reporter.

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Police arraign 3 teenagers over alleged gang rape of 13-year-old girl

Three teenagers, Elijah Adebowale, Suleiman Balogun and Shefiu Adam, were on Thursday charged before a Yaba Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos over the alleged gang rape of a 13-year-old girl.
Adebowale (15), Balogun (16) and Adam (14), who all resides at the Iju area of Lagos, are being tried on a two-count charge of conspiracy and unlawful carnal knowledge of a minor.
The Prosecutor, Insp. Rita Momah, told the court that the teenagers and three others, now at large, committed the offences on Oct. 5, in an uncompleted building at Olopade St., Iju-Ishaga, Lagos.
Momah said that the accused all conspired to lure the 13-year-old to the building, where the six of them took turns with her.
She explained that the accused persons spotted the 13-year-old coming out of a church and sent her to get drinks for them.
According to Momah, the accused offered the 13-year-old a bottle of assorted drink that was already spiked and each of them all had carnal knowledge of her.
The prosecution submitted that the offences contravened Sections 409 and 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011. The accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charge levelled against them.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Section 137 prescribes life imprisonment for anyone found guilty of child rape.
The judge, Mr F.A Adeeyo, granted the accused bail in the sum of N300, 000 each, with two sureties in like sum and adjourned the case to Dec. 7, for continuation of hearing.

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Imo police uncover killers of Rev. Fr. Dennis Osuagwu

Imo State Police Command says it has smashed the killer gang that murdered a Catholic priest, Rev. Fr. Dennis Osuagwu.
According to a press statement made available to Vanguard, yesterday, by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Mr. Andrew Enwerem, the police stormed the hide-out of the hoodlums after getting a credible tip-off.
“Following a credible tip-off  from a concerned citizen, operatives of the Imo State Police Command on October 25, 2015, stormed the hide-out of a notorious kidnap gang that killed Rev. Fr. Dennis Osuagwu of Imo State Polytechnic, Umuagwo, Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area of the state,” the PPRO said.
While recalling that the hapless Catholic priest and Polytechnic lecturer was murdered August 15, 2015, Mr. Enwerem also disclosed that one Musa Isah, who also bears Yahaya Ibrahim, aka IBB, was the dreaded gang leader.

“One Musa Isah, who also bears Yahaya Ibrahim, alias IBB, was the leader of the four-man gang. He was arrested with gunshot wounds he sustained during the  operation,”

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Police nab 5 suspected assassins in Imo

Imo State police command yesterday nabbed five armed men suspected to be hired assassins in Aladinma Layout of Owerri municipality. Similarly, the command has successfully rescued the three medical doctors, who were kidnapped by hoodlums, while on their way to Isu Local Government Area of the state for a free medical treatment. The current success stories may be connected with the riot act read by the Commissioner of Police, CP, Mr. Taiwo Lakanu, that his command was fully poised to make the state very uncomfortable for criminals. Vanguard investigations revealed that luck ran out on the armed hoodlums when a crack team of eagle-eyed policemen swung into action soon after getting a credible tip-off and foiled their plan.
It was also gathered that the armed gangsters were on the verge of taking off for their operation when the police men arrived and rounded them up. A reliable source within the command told Vanguard that the target of the hoodlums was a high profile personality living in the area. Although the source resisted all attempts to name the personality, he, however, revealed that the two ideas on the hoodlums’ table were to either kidnap or outrightly eliminate the fellow. Continuing, the source further revealed that assorted dangerous weapons, including guns, were recovered from the armed gang.
“The police recovered varying dangerous weapons, including firearms, from the hoodlums. They have been taken away for serious questioning,” the source concluded. All efforts made to reach the mobile line of the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Mr. Andrew Enwerem, a deputy superintendent of police, DSP, at press time failed, as the network provider announced that his line could not be reached.

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