Metro

Edo: Mysterious Fire Guts Building, Leaves Owner’s Grave Building Untouched

Published

2 years ago

December 22, 2023

Rubles of the building

A mysterious early morning fire destroyed a building in Benin City leaving a grave house attached to the structure intact.

Goods worth several millions of naira kept inside shops in the building could not be savaged by youths and fire fighters who tried to put out the blazing fire.

Smoke was seen bellowing from king size refrigerators, sewing machines, generators, wraps of clothes and other merchandise as well as household property inside the affected building.

The roof and wall of the entire building apart from that of the grave house were reduced to rumbles.

Voters and NIN cards as well as other documents were said to have also been lost to the flame.

Residents of Ekiuwa Street, New Market and its environs in Second East Circular road are still struggling to unravel the mysteries of the early morning fire outbreak that destroyed the building leaving a portion that house the owner’s grave, untouched.

A visit to the area, clusters of bewildered locals were seen taking photos of the razed building with their phones as they discussed the fire in discordant opinions.

Traders at a nearby New Market expressed joy that the flame did not spread to the market as their wares in the shops would have been reduced to aches.

It was gathered that the mysterious inferno started about 1:27a.m on Sunday, December 17, 2023.

A resident said the harmattan blaze suddenly dwindled when it approached the grave house attached to the building immediately after the sitting room.

The grave house shares the same roof, ceiling and wall with that of the affected building.

Checks revealed fresh flowers and portrait of a man neatly placed on a grave inside the white painted attached house with slide glass doors.

It was also learnt that there was no electricity supply to the area at the time of the fire outbreak to suggest possible electric spark as remote cause of the fire.

Records at our disposal indicate that this is the first time an attached grave house is surviving fire outbreak in Benin City in passed decades.

Contacted, one Larry Uyi Osadiaye said his late father Mr. Moses Noguese Osadiaye, 83, owner of the building was buried in the said grave after his death on February 6, 2016.

He further stated that his eldest brother Mr. Henry Osadiaye who inherited the building was inside alone when the fire started.

Mr. Larry also stated that the cause of the fire was still unknown as the family has formally reported the Incident at Esigie police station covering the area.

Confirming the fire outbreak, the Public Relations Officer, Edo State Police Command, SP Chidi Nwabuzor said one Henry Osadiaye reported the incident.

SP Nwabuzor added that police commenced investigation into the inferno as their findings would be presented to the Commissioner of police CP Mohammed Dankwara for further action.

Metro

50-year-old Man Arrested For Alleged Murder Of Traveller

Published

4 hours ago

October 31, 2025

Editor

A 50-year-old man, Muhammad Wanzam, has been arrested by the Kebbi State Police Command for allegedly killing a traveller, Alhaji Babuga Muhammad, in Bena, Danko-Wasagu Local Government Area of the state.

According to the Command’s spokesperson, CSP Nafi’u Abubakar, the incident occurred on October 16, 2025, when the victim was travelling from Bena town to his village, Karaye in Bagega District, Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State.

The assailants reportedly blocked the road near Malakachi village, abducted the victim, and took him into a nearby forest, where he was attacked with a machete. The victim later died from his injuries.

Abubakar said police officers from the Bena Division visited the scene and took the body to the General Hospital, Bena, where he was confirmed dead.

Wanzam was later arrested in connection with the killing. During interrogation, he allegedly confessed to conspiring with an accomplice, Nuhu Bena, who is currently on the run, to commit the crime.

A search of Wanzam’s residence led to the recovery of one fabricated AK-47 rifle, a Dane gun, two live ammunition, one magazine, and the cutlass reportedly used in the attack.

The case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, Birnin Kebbi, for further investigation and to track down the fleeing suspect.

Police authorities urged residents to report suspicious activities to security agencies instead of resorting to self-help, assuring that efforts to ensure safety and order across the state are ongoing.

Metro

Police Rescue Suspected Phone Thief From Being Lynched In Delta

Published

4 hours ago

October 31, 2025

Editor

Police officers from the Sapele Division in Sapele Local Government Area of Delta State on Thursday night rescued a suspected phone thief from being lynched by some angry mob who apprehended him after he allegedly attacked one of their kinsmen around Shell Road and New Road in Sapele.

According to DAILY POST, the suspect, alongside a member of his criminal gang who fled the scene, allegedly stabbed and injured the victim, a Hausa youth, before stealing his mobile phone.

The victim raised an alarm, prompting his kinsmen and residents to come to his rescue.

The suspect was chased down and apprehended, while his accomplice escaped.

The suspected thief was beaten to a stupor until he confessed to the crime and revealed the name of one of his fleeing gang members as “Azaman.”

Metro

Another Accident On Otedola Bridge Causes Fresh Traffic Disruption In Lagos

Published

4 hours ago

October 31, 2025

Editor

Barely 24 hours after a multiple-truck crash on Kara Bridge caused major gridlock along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, another road accident occurred on Friday, involving a 14-tyre truck and a commercial bus on the Otedola Bridge, inward the Lagos Secretariat.

The incident, which led to yet another round of traffic congestion, was confirmed in a statement released on Friday by the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, through its official X handle.

According to the agency, the crash occurred when a 14-tyre tipper truck carrying granite collided with an inter-state commercial Mazda bus.

The impact forced the truck into the road barrier, spilling its contents across the roadway opposite Capital Oil, just before the Otedola Bridge section of the expressway.

The statement read: “A 14-tyre tipper conveying granite had a collision with an inter-state commercial Mazda bus. The tipper ran into the barrier and spilled its contents on the road opposite Capital Oil, just before the expressway on Otedola Bridge inward Secretariat. There is no significant effect on traffic flow at the moment.”

LASTMA officials said recovery efforts were ongoing as a tow truck was expected to arrive at the scene, while personnel remained stationed at the location to manage traffic and ensure safety.

This latest crash comes a day after another tragic multiple-truck collision on Kara Bridge, outward Lagos, claimed at least eight lives and caused a massive traffic backlog stretching through Berger and adjoining routes.