There was tension on Wednesday in Obodougwa-Ogume, Ndokwa West Local Government Area, Delta State as a community leader, Mr Anselm Oyibo, was found dead.

Oyibo, a former Community Development Committee Chairman of the community was macheted to death and set ablaze along with his motorcycle by unknown assailants, according to The PUNCH.

His remains were found alongside his motorcycle at Obodougwa Ogume Junction along Kwale-Obiaruku Road on Wednesday.

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Residents of the community who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the incident said the deceased left his Kwale residence at about 11.30 pm on Sunday after he received a phone call and never returned home.

“The deceased suddenly woke up from his bed just before midnight and said he was going out. He started his motorcycle, brought out his phone and started answering a call. He was married to two wives, so it was felt that he was going to his second wife’s place. The next morning, he didn’t return, so his second wife was called and she said he didn’t spend the night at her place.

“His phone was called, it rang for some time and after a while, it was no longer connecting. Later, information came that someone was killed in our junction and was burnt with his motorcycle.

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“It was later confirmed that he was the person. He was killed with machetes and set ablaze. His corpse has been taken to the mortuary.”

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Bright Edafe confirmed the killing.

He said, “Yes, efforts are ongoing to unravel the circumstances that led to his death”

Not less than 20 shops were gutted by fire as a cooking gas cylinder used by an operator of a local canteen exploded on Wednesday morning at the popular Nupe line in Igbudu Market, Warri, Delta State, causing damages to some shop owners in the market.

Structural and material damages recorded by the shop owners were estimated at millions of naira.

Eyewitnesses’ account revealed that the explosion occurred at a location very close to a warehouse storing insecticides and other flammable materials.

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Consequently, several stores in the vicinity were gutted by the inferno, leading to considerable infrastructural damage and loss of goods.

Despite the swift response by traders from the market community to put out the fire, the delay in the arrival of firefighters from the Fire Brigade exacerbated the extent of the damage.

Significant damage had already been done to the surrounding shops and goods before the arrival of fire fighting trucks of the Nigerian Navy who eventually helped in putting out the fire.

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However, no human casualties or injuries were recorded, even as local vigilantes from Igbudu/Hausa Quarters, along with the area boys, took measures to keep people away from the scene of the inferno.

When our correspondent visited the scene of the explosion later in the day, affected shop owners were seen scavenging the remnants of the ruins from their razed stores.

The Lagos State Police Command has apprehended 36-year-old robbery suspect, Amos Daniel, who stole his employer’s vehicle on the same day he was hired as a driver.

Daniel confessed to having taken the car to his church to give testimony of God’s miraculous provision.

In a related case, two dismissed soldiers, Akeem Suleiman and Abdulau Mohammed, along with two civilian accomplices, were paraded among other suspects for their involvement in a robbery gang.

The gang allegedly carried out operations wearing military headgear.

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The police recovered military headgear, uniforms, and identity cards from the dismissed soldiers.

The police also paraded a 25-year-old suspect, Thankgod Kesh-David, who posed as a roadside mechanic to repair broken-down vehicles, only to disappear with them.

Briefing journalists at the command headquarters in Ikeja on Tuesday, the command’s spokesman, SP Benjamin Hudenyin, said, “We have successfully arrested a robbery gang through our tactical team based in Surulere. The four-man gang specialised in snatching vehicles at gunpoint from motorists in Lagos.

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“They have been operating for quite a long time. Two of them are dismissed soldiers, one was dismissed in 2014 and the other in 2017. They carried out their crime wearing full military gear.

“We also have somebody who was employed as a driver. Unfortunately, the employer did not do due diligence. The same day he resumed as a driver, he ran away with the car and could not be traced.

“Interestingly, he dedicated the car in church the following Sunday, testifying of what God had done to him.”

Speaking with journalists, the arrested driver, Daniel, said, “I stole my madam’s Lexus car and took it to the church to testify that God has blessed me. I intended to use it for Uber and use the proceeds to pay my debt. I stole the car on June 23, 2024, the very first day I was employed, and I took it to church on June 30, 2024.”

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One of the dismissed soldiers, Suleiman, who claimed he was dismissed from the Nigerian Army in 2017 for desertion, told journalists “I started robbery in April 2024. Anytime we steal a car, I drive it to the receiver’s place. We steal cars randomly. If we see anyone parked and wound down, we drag them out and zoom off in the car. We operate in the Ajah area of Lagos, with a local gun. But we never killed our victims.”

The command’s spokesman advised employers to exercise due diligence when hiring drivers or domestic staff and to conduct background checks at the Central Criminal Registry at the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Alagbon, and the forensic unit before employment.

He added that the suspects will be charged in court for their crimes.