An Investigative Police Officer (IPO) Inspector Abe Leonard on Thursday testified before an Ikeja Sexual offences and Domestic Violence Court against Dr. Olufemi Olaleye in the case of alleged defilement of his 16-year-old wife’s niece.

Mr Olaleye, the Medical Director of Cancer Care Foundation, is facing a two-count charge of defilement and sexual assault by penetration.

He, however, pleaded not guilty.Mr Leonard, the sixth prosecution witness, told the court he served at Anthony Police Station while being led in evidence by the state counsel, Babajide Boye.

The witness told the court that the victim was 17 years old at the time the case wasn’t reported by the wife of the defendant, Aderemi Olaleye.

He said the case was reported at the station on November 29, 2021, about 11:00 p.m. He said a case of indecent treatment of a child was reported and the DPP of the station, DSP Patricia Amadi deployed a team of policemen to the house of the defendant.

“About two hours later, the defendant and his lawyer came into the station.“The DPP called both parties to the office where she interviewed them and she also sent for a statement form which was brought in by Sgt. Modupe Phillips,” he said.

The witness further informed the court that he transferred the case to the Gender Unit in Ikeja after he discovered that it was a case of indecent treatment of a child and defilement.

He added that the survivor told him that the defendant allegedly engaged her in sexual activities sometimes in 2019.

“I visited the scene of the incident but I did not get access to the house. I advised the parties to go to the gender unit in Ikeja because the Anthony Division has less power to investigate such cases.

“The survivor told me that the defendant had sex with her sometime in 2019 but the defendant denied it, adding that the survivor is like a daughter to him.

“However, the wife of the defendant, told me that the survivor confessed to her before coming to the station.The statements of the witness and statement of the defendant’s wife were admitted into evidence.

While under cross-examination by the defence counsel, Babatunde Ogala (SAN), the witness confined to the court that the complainant did not submit the survivor for medical examination while at Anthony Police Station but he was aware that a medical examination was conducted at the gender section.

The witness added that he could not gain access to the house because the defendant’s wife was not at home and that the defendant was with them at the station.

“Mrs Olaleye was not at home to give access to the house and her husband was with us at the station.

“I can not remember the date I visited the house and on the second occasion I tried to go, I put a call to her but her number was not going through,” he said.

He maintained that the case was transferred to gender section because the station (Anthony) had limited power to investigate the case.

A medical doctor, Oyebimpe Akinbunmi, had on January 4 told the court how the defendant allegedly defiled the survivor.

The agency also reports that the survivor had on December 21, 2021, reportedly testified against the defendant in a closed hearing which was in line with the 1999 Constitution and the Administration of Criminal Justice Act as amended.

The wife of the defendant, Mrs Aderemi Fagbemi-Olaleye, on December 19, told the court that her husband was diagnosed with sex addiction.

Justice Ramon Oshodi adjourned the case until Feb.10 for continuation of trial.

A Provincial Court in Winnipeg, Canada has sentenced a Nigerian man to two years of house arrest for forging bank records and other documents to help would-be immigrants safely enter the country.

Chinenye Alozie, a 35-year-old father-of-four pleaded guilty to acting as an unauthorized immigration consultant and to misrepresenting or withholding facts in immigration applications, offenses under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

The court heard the crimes related to Alozie’s dealings with more than 60 foreigners, most of them students, between 2014 and 2019, Canada Today reports.

He caught the attention of the Canadian Border Services Agency in late 2018 after reports that he had advertised his services to overseas students online.

At a hearing on Tuesday, Jan. 24, QC Matthew Sinclair told Judge Stacy Cawley that Alozie is not a licensed immigration consultant or attorney.

“He is not authorized to represent persons with regard to their applications,” he said.

According to Sinclair, a look at Alozie’s bank records revealed deposits of $90,000 in 2016 and $120,000 in 2017 from people believed to be foreigners.

An investigation by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada found that 52 deposits came from people applying to Canada as temporary students, workers or visitors.

Records provided to Border Protection Agency showed that between 2014 and 2018, Alozie used his personal credit cards to pay the government fees of 61 immigration applicants.

A June 2019 search of Alozie’s home uncovered evidence that he helped 20 clients create false bank statements for their immigration applications and “helped invent fictional storylines or personal stories to increase the likelihood that (her) application is approved,” Sinclair said.

Five of Alozie’s clients were allowed into Canada for their fraudulent immigration applications, Sinclair said. Alozie was also ordered to pay $29,000 fine.

The Delta State Police Command has arrested four members of a fraud syndicate in Ogwashi-Uku town.

The suspects were arrested by operatives of Decoy Squad led by ASP Julius Robinson based on credible intelligence.

Spokesperson of the command, DSP Bright Edafe, in a statement on Wednesday, January 25, 2023, said the suspects specialize in defrauding victims including POS operators and filling stations.

The police also recovered one tricycle and fifteen different bank ATM cards from the suspects.

“On the 22/01/2023 at about 0800hrs, operatives of Decoy Squad led by ASP Julius Robinson acting on a credible intelligence on a syndicate who specializes in defrauding unsuspecting victims of their hard earned money, the operatives stormed Ogwashi-Uku town and arrested the following suspects; (1) Allison Louis ‘m’ 27yrs a native of Numan LGA of Adamawa state, (2) Sunday David ‘m’ 22yrs a native of Oturkpo Benue state, (3) Peter Akagbai ‘m’ 20yrs from Umuokwe Quarters of Ogwashi-Uku and (4) Chibuzor Elumeze ‘m’ 23yrs from Ogbenta-Obi Quarters in Ogwashi-Uku.

Exhibit recovered from the syndicate includes one (1) tricycle, fifteen (15) different bank ATM cards,”

“During the course of the investigation, the suspects confessed to a series of fraud committed within Ogwashi-uku and Asaba metropolis with POS operators and filling stations as their major victims.

“The suspects stated that they go to filling stations, POS operators and super markets, purchase items and also make withdrawals with the ATM cards and then call their banks and give a false complaint that the transaction was not successful.

“The banks without due investigation will then wrongly debit the victims and credit the accounts of the suspects.

They have so far defrauded their various victims several millions of naira. Investigation is ongoing.”

The Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Okon Effiong, has ordered the immediate arrest of vigilante groups carrying firearms in any part of the state.

This came as some vigilantes were seen especially in the Diobu area of Port Harcourt brandishing arms, including pump action rifles with various frightening uniforms.

The situation had raised concerns in the metropolis, with many residents saying they hadn’t seen the local security outfit in such attires during the day.

Speaking on the development, the spokesperson for the state police command, Grace Iringe-Koko, said the vigilantes were not licensed to carry arms.

Iringe-Koko, a Superintendent of Police, in a short message sent to newsmen said the CP has given a stern warning to the local security outfits not to carry arms.

According to her, the CP also said vigilantes had no power to arrest people and keep them in detention.

To this effect, she said the CP has directed all Divisional Police Officers to arrest any vigilante seen with arms within their jurisdiction.

The statement read;

“They (vigilantes) are not licensed to bear arms. The CP has directed DPOs to arrest anyone seen with arms within their jurisdiction.

“Also, they do not have powers to detain or keep anyone in custody.”

Effiong had in December issued a seven-day window for unauthorised persons, especially cultists, to submit weapons in their possession or risk arrest.

The federal government has issued a new directive following the rising cases of COVID-19 in countries around the world.

Travellers arriving Nigeria will now be required to provide evidence of COVID vaccination.

Geoffrey Okatubo, Director of Port Health Services, who made the announcement on Monday, January 23, further revealed they’ve heightened surveillance at points of entry following the reported surge in the cases of COVID in countries like China, Japan, and the United States.

He said;

“Port health services has resumed checks of passengers’ vaccination status and will provide traffic data on inbound passengers from all over the world.

“All international travellers arriving Nigeria are now to provide evidence of vaccination at point of entry and it was agreed that unvaccinated passengers arriving from other countries may have to be vaccinated at the airport.

“The minister of health also recently approved that port health services should meet with other stakeholders such as the NCDC, and the ministry of aviation over the use of rapid diagnostic testing at points of entry.”

The Ministry of Health says it is unaware of the alleged deadly flu that is reportedly spreading in China and some other countries, and had claimed the lives of some persons including Nigerians.

There have been reports passed around on social media that the deadly flu is sweeping across China and that the flu has killed some persons including Nigerians.

However, while speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Monday, January 23, the Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, said neither the World Health Organisation (WHO) nor the US Centre for Disease Control (US-CDC) has contacted the Federal Ministry of Health regarding the reported deadly flu spreading in China.

He said the Federal government cannot authenticate the veracity of the claims surrounding alleged presence of the deadly flu.

He added that neither Chinese Embassy in Nigeria has contacted the Federal Ministry of Health on any disease outbreak as against the practice of formal notification of any of such public health issue from China.

In his words;

“We can’t verify the case of the reported deadly flu now. However, we are on the lookout for anything of public health concern because it’s our duty to protect the health of our people.

However, we have referred the matter to Director General of Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and Port Health Services so they can be at alert.Sincerely speaking, the messages on social media about the deadly flu in China is odd and strange to us.

The ideal situation is that whenever there’s such an outbreak of any flu or deadly disease anywhere, we hear it first from WHO.

But up till now, WHO has not contacted us with any information about the flu neither has the Chinese embassy communicated to us on that matter.

Usually, the Chinese embassy in Nigeria will send an official to communicate to us in case of any such thing but that has not been done.

So, we are wondering about the authenticity of the report going around in the social and some conventional media. However, we are yet to get any confirmation from the right organisations.

Evidently, this is the season where people generate stories, true or false, and throw it into the media space to cause unnecessary reactions, positive or negative, among the people.

Nevertheless, we are monitoring the situation and we take seriously, everything we hear and see.

But in summary, any outbreak of such would be diagnosed by WHO and they would send necessary advisory and other relevant information regarding such outbreak. So, we should disregard this report and take it with a big ‘pinch of salt”

A 59-year-old security guard Bamiduro Adewulo has been stoned to death by his ‘Personal Assistant’ Fumilayo Asojo while settling a dispute over an N700 debt.

Adewulo who sustained injuries after being stoned while settling a dispute between Asojo and another man over N700, was rushed to the hospital where he died two days later.

Brother of the deceased, Adewole told the police that Asojo struck a stone on his boss’ head after he appealed to him to let go.

He said;

“I did not believe it until I saw Duro’s lifeless body at the mortuary.“The accused was known all over the town to be the Personal Assistant to the deceased.”

Asojo who has now been arraigned on one count bordering on murder, committed the offence on December 28, 2022, at Ute in Owo Local Government area of Ondo State.

Presiding Magistrate, R.O Yakubu, did not take the plea of the defendant over the offence which contravened sections 319 and 355 of the Criminal Code Law, Cap 37 Vol. II Laws of Ondo State, 2006.

Shortly after remanding the defendant at Olokuta Correctional Centre, pending advice from the DPP, Yakubu adjourned the case till March 19 for mention.