Connect with us

Metro

PHOTOS: Security Operatives Arrest Suspected Vote Buyer With N25.9m Cash In Kaduna

Published

on

Security operatives in Kaduna have arrested a suspected vote buyer in possession of N25,963,000.

This arrest occurred barely hours before the conduct of Saturday’s bye-elections in parts of the state.

The suspect, identified as Shehu Aliyu Patangi, was apprehended around 3:30 a.m. by operatives of the Nigeria Police Force in collaboration with the Department of State Services at a popular hotel along Turunku Road in Kaduna metropolis.

Advertisement

According to the Kaduna State Police Command, preliminary investigations revealed that the huge cash was intended to induce voters and compromise the integrity of the electoral process.

 

READ ALSO:By-election: Police Arrest 288 Thugs With Weapons In Kano

Advertisement

Police spokesman, DSP Mansir Hassan, confirmed the arrest, noting that the suspect had already confessed to the crime and pleaded for leniency.

He quoted the Commissioner of Police, CP Rabiu Muhammad, as saying, “The suspect was arrested with the said amount, believed to have been earmarked for bribing voters.

“He confessed to the crime and begged for mercy. We wish to reiterate that anyone found attempting to undermine the electoral process will face the full wrath of the law.”

Advertisement

The Commissioner further warned that the command would not spare anyone caught engaging in vote buying, thuggery, violence, or any illegal act aimed at subverting the polls.

READ ALSO:By-election: Low Turnout In Ibadan North Federal Constituency

Meanwhile, the Command issued a warning to political actors and their supporters to refrain from acts of violence or disruptions during the elections.

Advertisement

It disclosed that credible intelligence indicated plans by some politicians to instigate unrest.

In response, security agencies have deployed personnel to polling units, collation centres, and other strategic flashpoints across the state.

The Command will deal decisively with troublemakers. Anyone, no matter how highly placed, who engages in violence, intimidation, vote buying, or thuggery will be arrested and prosecuted,” the police said in a statement.

Advertisement

The police also assured residents of adequate security before, during, and after the elections, urging citizens to come out and exercise their civic duty peacefully.

Metro

Residents Flee Kogi Community Over Fear Of Bandit Attacks

Published

on

Hundreds of residents of Okunran village in Yagba West Local Government Area of Kogi State have deserted their homes following persistent attacks by armed bandits.

A viral video circulating on social media showed the once-bubbling community completely deserted, with houses abandoned and streets empty.

Okunran, once a bubbling town, is now a ghost town,” a resident said.

Advertisement

The villagers said they fled to escape incessant kidnappings, killings, and ransom demands that have plagued the community.

READ ALSO:Army Kills Notorious Bandit, Babangida, In Kogi

The government has failed us, security agencies have failed us. If we remain here, we will be consumed by bandits. We are tired of paying ransom and contributing money for bandits,” said Akin Samuel, a fleeing resident.

Advertisement

The Guardian learnt that neighbouring communities, including Okoloke and Egbe, are also considering leaving if the attacks persist.

The abduction of the first-class traditional ruler of Okoloke, 90-year-old Pa. Dada James Ogunyanda, in May 2025, deepened the climate of fear in the area. Although he was released after a ransom was paid, the monarch has refused to return to his palace.

A native of Okunran, Auwal Maroof, who now lives in Lokoja, said the decision to flee became inevitable.

Advertisement

READ ALSO:One Dead, Five Injured In Kogi Road Crash

We have been praying for God’s intervention, but the insecurity persists to the point that fleeing was the only option to stay alive,” he said.

Egbe, the commercial hub of Yagba, is feared to be vulnerable due to its close connection with neighbouring Kwara State, where the bandits are suspected to be coming from.

Advertisement

Local sources report that at least 10 people, including seven police officers and three civilians, were killed by bandits in Yagba within one week this month.

The Chairman of Yagba East Local Government recently imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew in a bid to contain the crisis, while the Kogi State government and the senator representing the district have pledged to rid the area of bandits.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Metro

18 Dead, Dozens Missing In Zamfara Mine Collapse

Published

on

Rescuers in Nigeria are searching for dozens of people missing after a boulder crashed onto an illegal mine during heavy rains, killing at least 18 people, local sources told AFP on Saturday.

The rock came crashing down on Thursday on the mine in the northern Zamfara state outside the Kadauri village in the Maru district, they said.

“We have managed to pull out 18 dead bodies from the pit and five other survivors who sustained various degrees of injuries,” Sani Lawwali, a miner who works in unauthorised pits, said from Kadauri.

Advertisement

A dozen other miners were still trapped inside and their fate remained unknown, said Lawwali, who took part in the rescue effort.

READ ALSO:

“The process is slow and laborious as we use our bare hands to chisel the end of the boulder to make holes for limited access into the pit,” he said.

Advertisement

Rescuers have asked for a bulldozer being used at a nearby road construction site to be brought in to help, but had not yet received a response from the company using it, Lawwali added.

Abubakar Nabube, a local community leader, confirmed the death toll of 18. He said that 15 of those killed came from the nearby Maikwanugga and Damaga villages.

If no help comes from emergency agencies soon, none of those trapped would come out alive,” he said.

Advertisement

READ ALSO:Bandits Attack Mosque In Zamfara, Kill, Abduct Worshippers

Zayyanu Ibrahim, a resident of Kadauri village said the collapse occurred at one of several newly dug sites in the recently established mining site.

“Dozens of miners were working in the pit while it heavily rained outside. A huge boulder at the mouth of the pit collapsed and buried miners inside,” said Ibrahim, who also confirmed the toll.

Advertisement

Sani Abdullahi, a councillor in the area, said it was difficult to say how many people there were in the pit at the time of the accident.

READ ALSO:Zamfara Gov Disburses ₦322m To Support 8,225 Schoolgirls

Officials from the Nigerian emergency agency NEMA did not respond to an AFP enquiry about the accident.

Advertisement

Zamfara, a poor agrarian state, is rich in gold deposits where illegal artisanal mining thrives in the countryside, despite several attempts by authorities to stop the practice.

The authorities have blamed illegal mining for the worsening of bandit violence, with criminal gangs getting money from protection fees they extort from miners.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Metro

Police Confirm Abduction Of 17 Passengers Along Calabar Waterway

Published

on

The Police Command in Cross River has confirmed the abduction of 17 passengers by sea pirates along the Calabar Waterways.

The command’s Deputy Public Relations Officer, DSP Igri Ewa, who made the confirmation on Saturday in Calabar, said that the passengers were abducted on Thursday.

Ewa said that the command had already swung into action to ensure the ‘immediate and prompt’ rescue of the abductees.

Advertisement

According to the police spokesperson, a serving police officer in Akwa Ibom and a popular politician in Cross River who were on board the boat narrowly escaped abduction.

READ ALSO:Six Arrested For Alleged Killing Of Police Constable In Bayelsa

A passenger who preferred anonymity told newsmen that the boat was attacked a few minutes after take-off from Oron en route Calabar.

Advertisement

They stopped our boat, transferred some passengers to their boat, and when their boat was full, they took off.

“When we arrived at the Inland Waterways Jetty, we were thoroughly quizzed by the police. Our statements were later taken before we were allowed to go home.”

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending