Crime
28 Years Old Man Arrested For Hate Speech Against Igbo
The Osun State Police Command has taken into custody Kehinde Adekusibe, a 28-year-old individual who used his Twitter page to incite hate against the Igbo ethnic group.
Muyiwa Adejobi, the Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), confirmed the arrest on Friday morning.
The arrest of Adekusibe, who was located in Ilesa, Osun State, comes as a result of his violation of the social media policy regarding hate speech.
Adekusibe had tweeted “Let’s kill all the Igbos. Let’s flush them out of Yoruba lands. I hate these people with passion. They are violent people. They are the worst. They hate us. Let’s hate them without holding back.”
The police emphasized that this tweet violated the social media policy on hate speech, and it was published on the suspect’s Twitter handle on May 18.
Upon receiving information about the offensive tweet, the police promptly deployed detectives from the Cyber Crime Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department in Osogbo, the capital of Osun State.
Their diligent efforts resulted in the arrest of the suspect at Ilesa, where he had sought refuge and concealed himself.
The police said “The suspect has confessed to the crime, and he will be charged to court after completion of the investigation,”
Mr Adejobi, a chief superintendent of police, wrote “Thanks to Osun State Police Command for its painstaking efforts on this singular case. Kudos. Ire o.”
During the 2023 general elections, tensions escalated between Yoruba and Igbo communities in several South-western states, notably Lagos.
The clashes between these two ethnic groups stemmed from the perceived backing of the Igbo population for Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), over his All Progressives Congress (APC) counterpart, Bola Tinubu, who is currently serving as Nigeria’s president.
While Mr Obi, the LP candidate, hails from Anambra State, an Igbo-speaking part of the South-east, Mr Tinubu is of Yoruba extraction.
Some thugs attacked some Igbos in Lagos, which has a predominantly Yoruba population and destroyed their properties for allegedly voting for Mr Obi during the election.
Despite Mr. Obi not emerging as the winner of the presidential election, he was declared the victor in Lagos State, where Mr. Tinubu, the former APC candidate, had previously served as governor from 1999 to 2007.
Following the election, Mr. Obi, along with others, lodged a petition with the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja, challenging Mr. Tinubu’s victory.
As Mr. Tinubu’s inauguration as president drew nearer in May, speculations arose concerning unnamed political elites allegedly plotting to impede the inauguration and establish an “interim government” once then-President Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure ended on May 29.
Those behind the alleged scheme purportedly argued that Mr. Tinubu should not be sworn in as president until the court case challenging his election victory was resolved.
These speculations exacerbated the tensions between the Igbo and Yoruba communities, with accusations levied against certain Igbo individuals who were believed to have supported Mr. Obi’s unsuccessful presidential bid and were supposedly involved in the plot.
In Adamawa State, police have apprehended 23-year-old Rachel Geoffrey for allegedly burning the hands of two children belonging to her co-wife.
Rachel, a resident of the Federal Housing Estate in Girei local government area, is accused of inflicting severe injuries on 7-year-old Genesis Geoffrey and 3-year-old Ijadai Geoffrey.
Reports indicate that the children’s mother has separated from their father, who is Rachel’s husband.
Rachel was reported to have cooked rice and set it aside for her husband, the father of the victims, before leaving the house.
When the hungry children ate the food meant for their father, Rachel became enraged.
In her anger, she tied the children’s hands with a handkerchief to restrain them, then set their hands on fire, causing severe injuries.
The state’s Commissioner of Police, CP Dankombo Morris, called on the public, particularly parents, to meet their responsibilities in caring for their children.
He also promised that the case would be prosecuted thoroughly.
Former Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, along with his daughter and two others, have been slated for arraignment today (thursday) by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
They face charges related to an alleged N2.7 billion fraud linked to the failed Nigerian Air project.
The proceedings are set to unfold before Justice Sylvanus Oriji at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja.
The charges, based on court documents, accuse Sirika of granting undue advantage to certain entities in Abuja between April 2022 and March 2023.
The anti-graft agency has accused Sirika of misusing his authority by awarding a N1.3 billion consultancy contract for the Nigerian Air Start-up to Tianero Nigeria Limited.
This alleged action is said to contravene Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
In a separate charge, the EFCC alleges that on or around August 18, 2022, in Abuja, Sirika utilized on or about August 18, 2022 ia, Sirika “did use your position to confer unfair advantage upon Al Buraq Global Investment Limited, whose alter ego, Fatima Hadi Sirika and Jalal Sule Hamma are your daughter and son-in-law respectively, by using your position to influence the award to them, the contract for the Apron Extension at Katsina Airport for the sum of N1.498,300,750.00.”
The anti-graft agency asserted that Sirika’s actions amounted to a violation of Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, rendering him liable to punishment under the same section.
In count three, the EFCC accused Sirika of criminal breach of trust “while serving as the Minister of Aviation and in his capacity as a public officer” on or around August 18, 2022, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of the court.
In late April, the former aviation minister was taken into custody by the anti-graft agency and interrogated for several days.
Zamfara State is in the grip of fear and mourning following a series of vicious attacks by bandits, resulting in the deaths of eight individuals and the abduction of a branch manager of Taj Bank in Mandir Laura.
In a daring raid, approximately fifteen armed bandits stormed the manager’s residence in Rijiyar Gabas, seizing him and vanishing into the night.
Meanwhile, Faru Town in Maradun local government area witnessed a bloodbath as bandits struck, leaving eight residents dead.
Eyewitnesses recount the terror as the attackers besieged the town, instilling fear and chaos before retreating with captives into the surrounding forests.
The incidents have prompted widespread outrage and renewed calls for urgent action to stem the tide of violence plaguing Zamfara State.
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