25052018 - BENUE KILLINGS: ETHNIC CLEANSING OR JIHAD? Soyinka, Northern leaders tango

6—Vanguard, FRIDAY, MAY 25, 2018
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Delta
community
leaders charged
to court for
alleged fraud
U GBORHEN
community in
Sapele Local Government
Area of Delta State, at the
instance of Ugborhen
Concerned Indigenes
Worldwide, has dragged
four of its leaders to Sapele
Magistrate’s Court for
allegedly defrauding the
community of money meant
for electrification project.
According to the charge
sheet, the community
leaders were accused of
conspiracy, false pretense,
stealing and inducement by
fraudulently obtaining
N9,816,500 belonging to
the Ugborhen Community
from Seplat Oil Company,
which was meant for the
electrification of the
community, and converted
same to their private use
The case has been
adjourned till May 28, and
would be presided over by
Chief Magistrate F. E.
Esiso of the Sapele
Magistrate’s Court 1.
Boy, 18,
drowns in
Kano pond
AUWALU Ibrahim, 18,
has reportedly
drowned while taking his
bath in a pond at Kwanar
Ungogo in Kano
metropolis.
Mr. Saidu Mohammed,
spokesman of Kano State
Fire Service, who made the
disclosure in Kano, said the
incident happened on
Wednesday evening, when
the deceased went to take
his bath with his two
younger brothers due to the
hot weather in the city.
His words: “We received
a distress call on
Wednesday from one
Ashimu at 5:40p.m., that a
body was found floating on
a pond.
“On receiving the
information, we quickly
sent our rescue team and a
vehicle to the scene at about
5:52p.m.”
Mohammed said the
deceased’s two brothers
thereafter rushed home to
inform their relatives of
what happened.
“Ibrahim was rescued
unconscious and later
confirmed dead. His corpse
was handed to Sergeant
Nasiru Mohammed at
Kurna Police Division.”
The spokesman advised
members of the public to
stop bathing in ponds,
especially individuals who
cannot swim.
I don’t know what came over me, says man that defiled
By Davies Iheamnachor
PORT HARCOURT—THE 41-
year-old man, Michael Akpan
Isaiah, who defiled his four
daughters has told a magistrate’s
court sitting in Port Harcourt that
he does not know what came
over him.
Isaiah, a school gardener, is
accused of forcibly having carnal
knowledge of his four daughters,
By Abdulwahab
Abdulah & Jane
Echewodo
AFRICA’S richest woman and
Founder of Rose of Sharon
Foundation, Mrs Folorunsho
Alakija, yesterday, told a Lagos
High Court, sitting in Ikeja, how
three siblings and four others
defrauded the Foundation of N3
million.
The suspects are Vincent
Ayewah, Florence Ayewah and
Emmanuel Ayewah.
Alakija told the court, presided
over by Justice Hakeem Oshodi,
that on November 13, 2012, she
received a call from the Treasurer
of the Foundation informing her
that a cheque presented at a bank
for payment by Florence Ayewah,
a sister to Vincent Ayewah, who
works as a Clerk/Administrative
Officer of the Foundation, had an
irregular signature and was
rejected.
She said Florence Ayewah had
about 12 identity cards bearing
her picture with different names
of the Foundation’s beneficiaries.
“At the time she was caught, she
had collected money from three
banks, using the forged
who are between the ages of two
and 17.
He is said to have committed
the crime within the premises of
a private school around Borokiri
Sand Field area of Port Harcourt,
where he was given
accommodation.
When the three-count charge
was read to him, he admitted to
have committed the crime, but
told the court that he does not
know what came over him.
However, Chief Magistrate
Zinnah Alikor, who described
the act as abominable,
declined jurisdiction to hear
the matter and ordered that
the accused be remanded in
prison custody.
Alikor requested that the
Police bring the original case
file within seven days, adding
that same would be transited
to the Department of Public
Prosecutions, DPP, for advice and
then adjourned the matter sine
dine.
Meanwhile, a representative
of the Federation of
International Lawyers, FIDA,
Fortune Adanda, who held
brief for the victims, disclosed
that medical diagnosis
conducted on the four children
proved that they have all been
Africa’s richest woman, Alakija, tells court how 3 siblings, others defrauded her
IBADAN—A Naval officer,
soldiers and an ex-policeman
were among 50 suspects paraded
for robbery, kidnapping and other
crimes by Oyo State Police
Command yesterday.
Speaking with newsmen at
Police Headquarters, Eleyele,
Ibadan, the Commissioner of
Police, Mr. Abiodun Odude, said
the Naval officer was arrested
with 12 members of his gang,
who had been on the wanted list
of Special Anti-Robbery Squad,
Lagos.
He said: “Six of the suspects
were arrested in their criminal
hideout at Ilasa area, Ogbomoso.
This led to the arrest of other
members of the gang at various
locations.”
Odude further explained that
the soldier and his partners in
crime would wear military
camouflage and fatigues when
they go for operations.
Soldier's confession
One of the paraded suspects,
Private Azeez Olaide, 22, who
serves at 202 Battalion, Bama,
Maiduguri, said: “We stop
anybody driving a car and has
documents,” she said.
Alakija said cheques of the
Foundation were usually signed
by three people; she, the
Treasurer and one
other. But that
none of the
signatures
on the
cheque
was theirs.
However,
she told the
court that
Vincent
Ayewah tore
off about 10
leaflets of
t h e
cheque
book
and a copy of it was found in his
new car, which he parked far away
from the office on the day of the
incident.
She said immediately she
received the call, she went to the
office and met Vincent hurrying
out. But she stopped him and
collected his phone from him.
According to her, they observed
the appearance of a Yahoo boy.
“If the person cannot identify
himself and turns out to be a
Yahoo boy, we collect money
from him and threaten to kill him
if he refuses to cooperate with us.
“Victims of our last operation
were a guy and his girlfriend.
We kidnapped them on Oluyole-
Mobil Road and took them to KS
Motel at New Garage.
“We took turns raping the girl
and recorded it; not for
blackmailing purpose, but for
pleasure.
“We collected N145,000 from
the girl, which I transferred to
my bank account. I was the one
that supplied the other gang
members with Army uniform.”
He said his elder brother, who
during interrogation that he
had deleted some
incriminating messages he
had in his phone. But later
admitted the fraud and
apologised.
Meanwhile, she said
they went to EFCC
office to lay
complaints and
also went back
the next day to
write complete
statements.
She told
Mrs Alakija
the court that Vincent had
been involved in a criminal
act, but was reprimanded and
forgiven.
Her words: “We received
complaints from beneficiaries,
who said each time they
received their cheques, he
would run after them, saying
there was error in the cheque.
was first apprehended, took
the Police to his house where
he was arrested.
Dismissed officers
One of the suspects, an expoliceman,
Femi John,
nabbed by Iseyin Police
Division officers for
fraudulently parading himself
as a serving Police officer,
said: “I was dismissed
because I diverted 33,000
litres of fuel that I was
escorting from Apata in
Ibadan to Fiditi near Oyo,
which I sold with the truck.
“I was dismissed from the
Police force in 2012 as a
Sergeant. I continued to
parade myself as an officer
He would collect it and tell them
that once the error was corrected,
he would return it, but never did.”
During cross-exanimation, the
lawyer to the first, second, third,
fourth, fifth and seventh
defendants, Mr. Obiora Umeh,
applauded her for having a
philanthropic heart and urged her
not to be discouraged by the
alleged incident.
While responding to one of the
lawyer’s questions, Alakija said:
“Vincent was employed as a clerk.
He was given the administrative
responsibility of writing cheques.
“It was his responsibility and
that of the Projects Manager, who
he reports to, to keep cheque
books. In whose custody it was
kept at a particular point in time,
I do not know.”
Also, Alakija told the counsel to
the sixth defendant that the
defendant was involved in the
matter because he made the fake
identity cards used in
perpetrating the fraud.
Other defendants in the matter
are Onuwa David, Okoronkwo
Chikadibia, Ehizibolo George and
Chinyere Awanah.
The case was adjourned till
October 25 for continuation of trial.
Naval officer, soldiers, ex-policeman nabbed for robbery
By Ola Ajayi
The suspects
because I needed to feed myself
and my family.
“I would like to be reinstated into
the Police force. After I finished
my jail sentence, I would like to
stop this crime as I have already
learned my lesson. I wouldn’t
mind the job of a security guard
to support my family.”
On his part, Duru Daniel said:
“When I came back from prison, I
was totally deserted. Before I was
released from prison, most of my
property was seized by the
Police.
“I was introduced into a
business, but I didn’t have
sufficient cash to start the business.
I needed N200,000 to start.
”A friend I though was going to
help me, introduced me into this.”