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Outrage As South African Police Allegely Kill Unarmed Nigerian

Published

4 years ago

January 6, 2022

Nigerian Citizens Association South Africa (NICASA), on Thursday, expressed shock over the killing of a Nigerian, Kingsley Ezeh, allegedly by the South African police.

The President General of NICASA, Benjamin Okoli, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that Mr Ezeh”s death on Tuesday was circumstantial in the hands of members of the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD).

According to him, members of the JMPD had invaded Mr Ezeh’s tyre shop in the late evening of January 4, where he was allegedly manhandled in the course of extracting information from him.

He alleged that the deceased was choked by police officers which eventually led to his death.

Mr Okoli said Mr Ezeh was going about his business when metro police officers with an unmarked black-BMW vehicle arrived with his brother that they arrested earlier at a different location.

The NICASA boss said, “What led to the death of Ezeh on January 4, remains a mystery which will be unravelled by police investigation.

“The shop is fitted with a CCTV camera, which we believe will be instrumental and helpful in unravelling the case.

“From indication and the brother’s account, they choked the deceased for several minutes, at the same time asking him to vomit what they assumed he had swallowed; the choking caused asphyxiation.

“Two other Nigerians in the area had allegedly accused same group of Metro Police officers of attacking them only few months ago using plastic bags to cover their heads and they almost died.

“Both Nigerians maintained that nothing was found on them at the time of the attack against them; the police stopped them while driving, after searching their cars and found nothing, insisted on extorting them certain amount.”

According to him, when they refused to pay the bribe, they were attacked and almost died with the plastic used to suffocate them by the said Metro officers.

They also alleged that the Metro officers stole their cell phones and cash.

“We are currently discussing with these two Nigerians, to see how we can add their case to this death as evidence of a pattern of attack by these group of Metro Police against Nigerians.

“The Metro Police had claimed that the late Ezeh ingested substance they suspected is narcotic when they came into his shop and they claimed he had suffocated by the substance he ingested.

“Paramedics were called to the shop where he was confirmed dead on the scene; the leadership of NICASA monitored the situation and ensured that protocols are followed to secure evidence,” he added.

He noted that Mr Ezeh’s death could be considered an unnecessary and systemic xenophobic way of killing Nigerian nationals by the members of the South African police.

He further said that if Mr Ezeh was a criminal but not conceding to it, the police could have arrested and prosecuted him, adding that such death was among many, whereby Nigerians were arbitrarily killed without justification.

He, however, appealed to the Nigerian community to remain calm, while the association awaited the result of the post mortem, in the bid to follow up the case to a logical conclusion.

Mr Ezeh, a native of Oduma, Aninri Local Government of Enugu State, is survived by his wife and children.

Related Topics:#Nigerian Law School South African kill

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We’ll Deny You Visa If You’re Traveling To Give Birth, US Tells Nigerians

Published

3 days ago

July 28, 2025

Editor

The United States Mission in Nigeria has warned Nigerians planning to travel to the US primarily to give birth to secure American citizenship for their children.

In a post on X, the US Mission stated that using a visa for the main purpose of childbirth is prohibited under US immigration policy.

“Using your visa to travel for the primary purpose of giving birth in the United States so that your child will have U.S. citizenship is not permitted. Consular officers will deny your visa application if they have reason to believe this is your intent,” the US Mission said.

This warning is coming following the rising scrutiny of visa applications and growing enforcement around what is informally referred to as “birth tourism”, the practice of traveling to the US to give birth so the child obtains automatic citizenship.

Recall that the United States Department of State had also revised its visa reciprocity policy, announcing that most non-immigrant, non-diplomatic visas issued to Nigerian citizens will now be single-entry visas with a three-month validity period.

The US maintained that its visa policies are based on global technical and security benchmarks aimed at protecting the integrity of its immigration systems.

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Three Dead, Several Injured As Train Derails In Germany

Published

4 days ago

July 28, 2025

Editor

Rescue forces work at the site of a derailed train near Riedlingen on July 27, 2025. (Photo by Thomas Warnack / dpa / AFP) / Germany OUT / GERMANY OUT

Three people were killed and several others injured when a regional passenger train derailed in a wooded area in southwestern Germany on Sunday, police said.

About 100 passengers were aboard the train, when the accident occurred at around 6:10 pm (1610 GMT) near the town of Riedlingen in Baden-Wuerttemberg state.

Contacted by AFP, police initially said four people had been killed before correcting their statement to three victims.

Authorities declined to elaborate on the number of injured or how seriously hurt they were, though tabloid Bild cited emergency workers saying there were 50 injured.

German rail operator Deutsche Bahn confirmed several deaths and numerous injured. Two train carriages had derailed “for reasons yet unknown”, it added.

Authorities were currently investigating the circumstances of the accident, the operator said, and traffic had been suspended over a 40-kilometre (25-mile) stretch of the route.

German media reported that a landslide might have caused the accident as severe storms swept through the region, according to weather services.

The passenger train was travelling from the German town of Sigmaringen to the city of Ulm when it derailed in a forested area.

– Outdated train infrastructure –

In a post on social media, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed his condolences to the families of those killed.

He added that he was in close contact with both the interior and transport ministers, and had asked them to “provide the emergency services with all the support they need”.

Footage from the scene of the accident showed yellow-and-grey-coloured train carriages lying on their sides, as firefighters and emergency services tried to get to the passengers.

According to local TV station SWR, helicopters arrived shortly after the accident to transport the injured to hospitals in the area, and emergency doctors from nearby hospitals were alerted.

German transport is regularly criticised by passengers for its outdated infrastructure, with travellers facing frequent train delays, and various technical problems.

The government has pledged to invest several hundred billion euros over the next few years, in particular to modernise infrastructure.

In June 2022, a train derailed near a Bavarian Alpine resort in southern Germany, killing four people and injuring dozens.

Germany’s deadliest rail accident happened in 1998 when a high-speed train operated by state-owned Deutsche Bahn derailed in Eschede in Lower Saxony, killing 101 people.

AFP

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Man Stabs 11 People At Walmart Store In US

Published

4 days ago

July 28, 2025

Editor

At least 11 people were injured in a stabbing at a Walmart store in the Midwestern state of Michigan on Saturday, with police saying it appeared to be a random attack.

A 42-year-old male suspect was in custody, Grand Traverse County Sheriff Michael Shea told a press conference.

“Based on the information that we have at this time, it appears they were random acts,” Shea said of the attack in Traverse City, Michigan.

“The victims were not predetermined,” Shea said, adding that the suspect, a Michigan resident, apparently acted alone and used a “folding knife.”

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Six victims were in critical condition late Saturday, and five were in serious condition, Munson Healthcare said in a statement.

At least three of the victims were undergoing surgery, according to Shea. The victims included six men and five women.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said she was in touch with law enforcement regarding the “horrible news.”

“Our thoughts are with the victims and the community reeling from this brutal act of violence,” Whitmer said in an X post.

Eyewitness Julia Martell told The New York Times she heard screaming and saw a man with a knife running through the store’s pharmacy section.

Martell said she saw the man shoving and stabbing people as he moved through the store.

The 30-year-old witness described seeing three people with stab wounds and “blood everywhere.”

Shea said the stabbing spree initially started near the checkout area of the store.

“It is very uncommon for our area,” he said of the violence, adding that citizens in the Walmart “assisted” in apprehending the suspect.

Traverse City is a popular tourist destination located on the shore of Lake Michigan.

FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said agents were providing “any necessary support to the Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Office in their investigation of the attacks at the Walmart.”

AFP