Category Nigeria News

Police authorities in Ebonyi State have rescued a kidnap victim and arrested three suspects operating in the Ezzangbo axis of Ohaukwu Local Government Area.

This is contained in a statement released on Sunday by the Ebonyi Police Command spokesperson, Joshua Ukandu.

Ukandu stated that on November 13, 2025, a kidnapping syndicate terrorising the Ezzangbo axis in Ohaukwu Local Government Area, abducted one Obasi ThankGod, tied him up, and abandoned him inside a hotel toilet while demanding a ransom of Five Million Naira (₦5,000,000).

READ ALSO: Two Reported Dead As Suspected Gunmen Attack Ebonyi Community

Through diligent intelligence gathering, operatives of the Command traced the hideout of the kidnappers, successfully rescued the victim, and arrested three suspects, namely: Uchenna Ogbozuru, Ebuka Ejiogu, and Chizoba Idenyi Ogwa.

The police spokesperson stated that the suspects are currently in custody and will be charged in court following an investigation.

In a similar operation, operatives of the Command, while on routine patrol along the Ehamufu-Nkalagu Road, immediately reacted to a critical situation upon hearing the sporadic gunshots and distress screams

The officers swiftly moved to the location in response to gunshots and screams. They found one Ali Solomon, struggling with three gunmen who were attempting to dispossess him of his motorcycle. The hoodlums opened fire and fled upon seeing the police, leading to a gun battle.

Ukandu noted that the police successfully killed one of the three armed robbers and recovered one AK-47 rifle loaded with ten rounds of ammunition.

Following the development, the Commissioner of Police, Ebonyi State, Adaku Uche-Anya, reiterated the Command’s unwavering commitment to protecting the lives and property of all residents and ensuring that criminal elements have no hiding place within the State.

One person has died with six others injured in an early Sunday auto crash in the Ikorodu area of Lagos. 

The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department, Adebayo Taofiq, said the accident occurred around Majidun, inward Ogolonto, directly opposite MRS Filling Station.

Taofiq said, “The brutal impact resulted in the instantaneous death of an adult female passenger, while five female occupants and one male sustained severe and life-threatening injuries.

“While all five injured casualties were rushed to nearby Benic Special Hospital, the remains of the deceased were immediately transferred into the custody of security personnel who conveyed them to the General Hospital, Ikorodu, for urgent formal documentation.”

READ ALSO: [PHOTOS] Two-Storey Building Collapses In Lagos

He said the accident involved a Volkswagen commercial bus bearing registration number EPE 494 XM and a stationary tipper truck.

“Preliminary inquiries have established that the ill-fated commercial bus, chartered to convey passengers to a scheduled programme in Ogijo, experienced an abrupt brake failure,” Taofiq said in a statement.

“The driver, who was reportedly travelling at a perilously excessive speed, consequently lost control and forcefully collided with a tipper truck positioned at the roadside for diesel purchase.”

Although the truck driver had attempted to abscond following the accident, LASTMA operatives apprehended him as well as the commercial bus driver.

“Both individuals were thereafter handed over to officers of the Ipakodo Police Division for comprehensive investigation,” he said.

“To re-establish order and ensure seamless vehicular movement toward Ikorodu Garage, LASTMA personnel efficiently removed the mangled remains of both vehicles from the roadway.”

In the wake of the accident, the General Manager of LASTMA, Olalekan Bakare-Oki, conveyed profound grief over the harrowing incident and extended his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family.

Britain’s interior minister on Sunday defended plans to drastically reduce protections for refugees and end automatic benefits for asylum seekers, insisting that irregular migration was “tearing our country apart”.

The measures, modelled on Denmark’s strict asylum system, aim to stop thousands of migrants from arriving in England from northern France on small boats — crossings that are fuelling support for the anti-immigrant Reform UK party.

But the proposals were criticised as “harsh and unnecessary” by the Refugee Council charity and are likely to be opposed by left-wing lawmakers within Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s embattled Labour government, which is trying to counter the hard right.

“I really reject this idea that dealing with this problem is somehow engaging in far-right talking points,” Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood told BBC television.

“This is a moral mission for me, because I can see illegal migration is tearing our country apart; it is dividing communities.”

Presently, those given refugee status have it for five years, after which they can apply for indefinite leave to remain and eventually citizenship.

But Mahmood’s ministry, the Home Office, said it would cut the length of refugee status to 30 months.

That protection will be “regularly reviewed”, and refugees will be forced to return to their home countries once they are deemed safe, it added.

The ministry said it also intended to make people granted asylum wait 20 years before applying to be allowed to live in the United Kingdom indefinitely.

It also announced that it would create “new safe and legal routes for genuine refugees” through “capped work and study routes”.

Asylum claims in Britain are at a record high, with around 111,000 applications made in the year to June 2025, according to official figures.

The Home Office called the new proposals, which Mahmood will lay out in parliament on Monday, the “largest overhaul of asylum policy in modern times”.

It said the reforms would make it less attractive for irregular migrants to come to Britain and make it easier to remove those already in the country.

Benefits Crackdown

A statutory legal duty to provide support to asylum seekers, introduced in a 2005 law, would also be revoked, the Home Office said.

That means housing and weekly financial allowances would no longer be guaranteed for asylum seekers.

It would be “discretionary”, meaning the government could deny assistance to any asylum seeker who could work or support themselves but did not, or those who committed crimes.

Starmer, elected in July 2024, is under pressure to stop migrants crossing the Channel, something that also troubled his Conservative predecessors.

More than 39,000 people, many fleeing conflict, have arrived this year following such journeys — more than for the whole of 2024 but lower than the record set in 2022.

Reform, led by firebrand Nigel Farage, has been ahead of Labour by double-digit margins in opinion polls for most of this year.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot welcomed the proposals, saying asylum seekers risk their lives crossing the Channel because the conditions they get in Britain “are more permissive”.

“We told the UK it was necessary to align certain conditions they give arriving immigrants with European standards,” he said.

However, Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, urged the government to reconsider, saying the plans “will not deter” crossings.

“They should ensure that refugees who work hard and contribute to Britain can build secure, settled lives and give back to their communities,” he said.

Labour is taking inspiration from Denmark’s coalition government — led by the centre-left Social Democrats — which has implemented some of the strictest migration policies in Europe.

Senior British officials recently visited the Scandinavian country, where successful asylum claims are at a 40-year low.

Refugees in Denmark are entitled to a one-year renewable residency permit and are encouraged to return as soon as authorities deem their countries safe.

Family reunions are also subject to strict requirements, including a minimum age for both parents, language tests and guarantees of funds.

The plans will likely face opposition from Labour’s more left-wing lawmakers, fearing that the party is losing voters to progressive alternatives such as the Greens.

A 12-year-old girl identified as Nabilat has died after falling into a well at Ikoyi Community, Irewolede area of Ilorin West Local Government Area, Kwara State.

‎‎It was gathered that the tragic incident occurred around 10:35 am on Saturday when the victim reportedly went to fetch water but slipped and fell into the well.

‎‎The Kwara State Fire Service, in a statement by its Head of Media and Publicity, Hassan Hakeem Adekunle, on Sunday said the service was alerted through a telephone call by a resident, one Mayowa, who witnessed the incident.

‎‎Firefighters were immediately deployed to the scene and successfully recovered the girl’s body, which was subsequently handed over to a family member.

READ ALSO: NDLEA Destroys 25,381.495kg Of Cocaine, Cannabis, Tramadol In Kebbi

‎‎“According to the report, the victim went to fetch water and in the process, one of her legs slipped off the ground, which made her tumble into the well,” the statement read.

‎‎The Director of the Kwara State Fire Service, Prince Falade John Olumuyiwa, expressed sadness over the incident and cautioned parents and guardians against sending underage children to fetch water from domestic wells.

‎‎He warned that such negligence continues to expose minors to avoidable dangers.

‎‎“The general public must be more careful in their day-to-day activities, and parents should desist from sending underage children to fetch water in domestic wells,” he said.

‎‎The incident has once again raised concerns about safety precautions around domestic wells, which remain common in several Ilorin communities due to irregular water supply in the dry season.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Kebbi State Command, has destroyed 25,381.495 kilogrammes of seized drug exhibits worth billions of naira in street value.

The exercise, carried out on Saturday in the Kola area of Birnin Kebbi, involved 0.027kg of cocaine, 16,951.105kg of cannabis sativa, 0.0036kg of methamphetamine, 336.978kg of Akuskura (THC) and 8,093.381kg of tramadol, all totalling 25,381.495kg.

Deputy Director in charge of General Operations at the NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja, Muhammed Usman, who represented the agency’s Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), said the Federal High Court in Birnin Kebbi granted the order for the public destruction in line with Section 3, Subsection 1 of the NDLEA Act.

He said, “This occasion signifies a major achievement in our ongoing efforts to curb substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking in the country.”

READ ALSO: NDLEA Arrests Wanted Suspect, Recovers Large Drug Shipment, Forex In Lagos

Marwa added that the destruction of the confiscated drugs stands as clear evidence of the agency’s commitment to building a drug-free society, noting that it sends a strong warning to those involved in illicit drug activities.

He warned that the menace of illegal drugs continues to devastate lives, tear families apart, and weaken the fabric of Nigerian society.

“The impact of drug abuse and trafficking goes far beyond the substances themselves. It has contributed to serious crimes, including armed robbery, kidnapping and banditry across the nation,” he said.

Earlier, the Kebbi State NDLEA Commander, Rabiu Abdullahi Sokoto, said the strategic location of the state has unfortunately made it a transit route for drug traffickers.

One suspect has been arrested in connection with a loud explosion in Owo area of Ondo State.

Residents and passersby were thrown into panic on Saturday after a loud explosion occurred near a commercial bank in Owo Local Government Area of Ondo State.

The sound reportedly sent people scampering for safety as thick smoke briefly rose from the scene, forcing traders to flee and nearby shop owners to hastily shut their doors.

However, the Ondo State Police Command in a statement on Sunday said the police authorities have commenced investigation into the incident.

The Command’s spokesperson, Olusola Ayanlade, attributed the explosion to a banger, identifying the arrested suspect as Ayoola Daniel Ojumu from Owo.

READ ALSO: No Christian Genocide In Nigeria, AGF Insists

“One Ayoola Daniel Ojumu of Owo has been arrested in connection with the incident and has confessed to his role. His accomplice, who reportedly set off the banger, remains at large, and efforts are ongoing to apprehend them,” he stated.

He said the Command would not tolerate any breach of security in any part of the state, as the yuletide season approaches.

“Members of the public in Ondo State, particularly parents and guardians, are advised to prevail over their wards before, during, and after the festive period. The Police Command will take decisive action against any attempts to disrupt peace and public safety,” the police spokesman said.

He appealed to all law abiding residents of the state to calm and be vigilant and not hesitate to report any security breach to the police.