Metro
Gunmen Kidnap Taraba Monarch, Wives, Children
Published
2 years agoon
By
Editor
Heavily armed men suspected to be kidnappers have again kidnapped a traditional ruler in Taraba State.
The traditional ruler, Sani Suleiman Duna, was kidnapped around 1 am on Friday alongside his two wives and six children.
The gunmen were said to have taken over the monarch’s palace after they had successfully scared the community’s residents with sporadic gunshots.
A palace guard, who craved anonymity, confirmed the incident to our correspondent.
Aligning his weight to that of the palace guard, a resident of the community who gave his name as Usmanu said, “our sleep was disrupted by the gunshots that were being fired in the air by the hoodlums who invaded our community.”
He also pleaded with both the state and federal governments to fashion out ways that would permanently put to rest the security situation bedevilling the local government and the state at large.
READ ALSO: I Found Human Skulls In Gutter – Suspect
At the time of filing this report, the kidnappers had not reached out to the family to demand ransom.
Also confirming the abduction of the monarch and his family members, the state command Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Usman Abdullahi, said, “the traditional ruler and his two wives as well as his six children, were all abducted this morning in Mutum-Biyu by unknown gunmen.”
The command, he vowed, would leave no stone unturned in rescuing the monarch and his entire family members that were kidnapped.
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Metro
GTBank Loses Bid To Reclaim MKO Son’s Lagos Mansion
Published
5 hours agoon
June 20, 2025By
Editor
The Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, has overturned a 2013 judgment of the Federal High Court, which allowed Guaranty Trust Bank Plc to foreclose on a N30bn 44-room mansion in Ikoyi, Lagos, belonging to Alhaji Agboola Abiola, son of the late business mogul and politician, Chief M.K.O. Abiola.
A Certified True Copy of the ruling in Appeal No. CA/L/888/2014, obtained by The PUNCH showed that the appellate court found significant discrepancies in the execution of the tripartite legal mortgage that GTBank relied on to secure the loan.
The unanimous judgment, delivered by Justice Paul Aimee Bassi, with Justices Polycarp Kwahar and Abdulaziz Anka concurring, held that the trial court erred in failing to properly evaluate serious allegations of forgery and fraud raised by the appellants.
The appeal stemmed from a June 20, 2014, decision by the Federal High Court in Lagos, which granted reliefs sought by GTBank in a motion filed on April 8, 2014.
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Dissatisfied with the ruling, the appellants, represented by Dr Charles Adeogun-Phillips (SAN), filed a four-ground notice of appeal.
The main issues before the court included whether GTBank had the right to regularise its affidavit after the matter had been adjourned for judgment, whether the trial court rightly granted the bank’s reliefs, and whether a valid legal mortgage existed to justify the bank’s appointment of a receiver over the Ikoyi property.
In his lead judgment, Justice Bassi ruled that the mortgage instrument relied on by the bank was fundamentally flawed and incapable of conferring any right of foreclosure.
While the first appellant, RCN Networks Ltd, acknowledged executing the deed, the second appellant, Agboola Abiola, denied signing it.
He claimed that the execution page bearing his signature had been fraudulently lifted from a different document and inserted into the mortgage deed.
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The appellants also accused GTBank of consolidating two separate loans one of N508m and another of N1bn without their consent.
They alleged that after liquidating the shares pledged as collateral under the N508m loan, the bank improperly attempted to use the same execution page to enforce the N1 bn loan.
Meanwhile, police investigations that were conducted yielded inconclusive results.
In one of the reports, arbitration was recommended between the parties, while another dismissed the forgery allegations.
Nevertheless, the appellate court held that such reports could not resolve the lingering doubts surrounding the authenticity of the document in question.
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Justice Bassi noted several irregularities in the pagination of the deed.
The main pages were numbered from “2 of 9” to “9 of 9,” while the execution page carried the notation “11 of 17,” indicating that it was likely sourced from an entirely different document.
He criticised the trial court for overlooking these anomalies and focusing solely on the interpretation of Clause 6 of the mortgage deed.
According to the appellate court, a document whose authenticity is in dispute cannot form the basis for adjudicating parties’ rights and obligations.
Justice Bassi held: “The lower court erred by ruling on a document whose authenticity was seriously in question. This appeal succeeds.
“The judgment of the lower court dated June 20, 2014, is hereby set aside. Parties shall bear their respective costs.”
(PUNCH)
Metro
Police Arrests Three Masterminds Of Abuja Kidnappings
Published
1 day agoon
June 19, 2025By
Editor
Operatives of the Federal Capital Territory Police Command have arrested three notorious kidnap suspects linked to a spate of deadly abductions in Abuja and neighbouring states.
According to a statement signed by the Force PPRO, Abuja Command, SP Josephine Adeh, on Thursday, the suspects, 27 years old Ya’u Shittu from Kaduna State; 30 years old Sale Usman from Niger State; and 28 years old Ibrahim Abdullahi from Abuja, were captured during sting operations carried out between June 13 and 18, 2025, in Kaduna, Niger, and Nasarawa states by the Command’s elite Scorpion Squad.
The suspects, who have been on the Command’s wanted list, reportedly confessed to multiple kidnappings and murders, including the 2024 killing of a pastor in Mpape and the abduction of children in the same area where their father was shot dead. Police also tied them to the kidnapping of a woman for whom N10 million was paid in ransom, with each gang member pocketing N500,000.
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Adeh said the breakthrough followed “credible digital reconstructive intelligence” and was led by ACP Victor O. Godfrey.
According to the police, Ibrahim Abdullahi, who also doubled as the gang’s arms supplier, led officers to a hideout in Bukuru, Nasarawa State on June 18. Upon arrival, the police team was met with gunfire from other gang members, prompting a shootout.
“Abdullahi attempted to flee but was shot and rearrested. Other gang members escaped and are currently being pursued,” the statement added.
Exhibits recovered from the scene included a long knife and various charms.
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FCT Commissioner of Police, CP Ajao S. Adewale, commended the bravery of the Scorpion Squad and reassured residents of the Command’s commitment to public safety. He urged citizens to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to security operatives.
“This is a major blow to violent crime in the FCT. We are determined to rid our communities of criminal elements,” he said.
The suspects remain in custody as investigations continue. Meanwhile, police have intensified efforts to track and arrest the fleeing members of the gang.
(PUNCH)
Metro
FG Closes Case In Alleged Terrorism Trial Against Nnamdi Kanu
Published
1 day agoon
June 19, 2025By
Editor
The Federal Government, on Thursday, closed its case in the ongoing trial of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), in the allegations bordering on terrorism and treason.
The FG’s lawyer, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, announced this after the 5th prosecution witness (PW-5), identified as EEE for security reasons, was led in evidence and cross-examined by Kanu’s lawyer, Onyechi Ikpeazu, before Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
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Awomolo told the court that after calling five witnesses in the trial, the prosecution was satisfied that from the avalanche of evidence tendered, including the broadcast of activities of the leader of the IPOB, the government had sufficiently satisfied the need to close its case.
“I therefore close the case,” the senior lawyer said.
After the announcement, the lead defence counsel, Chief Kanu Agabi, informed the court that they would be opting for a no-case submission, which would be filed in due course.
(NAN)
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