Fraud / Law / News

EFCC quizzes Civil Service Director for being in possession of $16m

The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Abdul rasheed Bawa, says an unnamed former Director in Nigeria’s Civil Service is being questioned for being in possession of $16 million belonging to the Federal Government.

Bawa said this during a sensitization program in Abuja, on Tuesday, on the eradication of pension fraud in the country.

In his keynote address, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, said the Federal Government is determined to eradicate pension fraud, even as some other speakers at the event pledged their support for the EFCC’s anti pension fraud drive.

Some retirees at the summit demanded contributory pension schemes from state governments. The summit is targeted to set the tone for the urgent industry-wide reforms needed to deliver an efficient and sustainable pension administration in Nigeria.…

Crime / Fraud / Law

EFCC arrests man for allegedly defrauding Chinese of N82.8m

The Lagos Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arrested one Abraham Adeniji for allegedly obtaining goods under false pretense and diversion of funds to the tune of N82,803,550.00.

The Nigerian was arrested following a petition received by the Commission from one Gao Shu Quin, a Chinese national.

The petitioner alleged that she met the suspect sometime in 2017, while doing her legitimate business.

Quin further alleged that the suspect deceived her into supplying him containers of textiles materials, believing he would remit the proceeds upon sale of same. However, Adeniji allegedly diverted the proceeds for personal use after sale. The suspect will soon be charged to court.as soon as the investigation is completed.…

Law / Movies / News

R. Kelly found guilty, to spend the rest of his life in prison

American singer R. Kelly has been found guilty of sexually abusing women, boys and girls for decades.

The disgraced music star was convicted on Monday, September 27, 2021, on all nine counts including racketeering and violations of the Mann Act, which prohibits the transport of “any woman or girl” across state lines for any “immoral purpose.”

He will be spending the rest of his life in prison.

“This case is not about a celebrity who likes to party a lot. This case is about a predator,” Assistant US Attorney Maria Cruz Melendez said at the beginning of the case.

One of his victims was R&B singer Aaliyah, who Kelly illegally wed in a Chicago hotel room in 1994, when she was 15 years old.

For the illicit nuptials to move forward, Kelly relied on his entourage, prosecutors showed.

Monday’s verdict in federal court in Brooklyn comes just over 2 years after Kelly was arrested in Chicago for multiple federal sex crimes in 2 different states.

Kelly’s legal team called a handful of ex-Kelly employees and associates to take the stand in an effort to discredit allegations the singer sexually abused women, girls and boys.

…
Law / News / Security / Transportation

CP charges motorists, police officers to obtain their driver’s licences

The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, Hakeem Odumosu, has reiterated that obtaining a driver’s license is a civic responsibility of all drivers, including police officers, plying Lagos roads.
This was contained in a statement by the Route Commander, Federal Road Safety  Corps and the Public Education Officer, Olabisi Sonusi.
The statement in Lagos on Thursday said Odumosu made the disclosure after his physical capture for driver’s license renewal at the FRSC Ojodu Driver’s License Centre in Lagos.
Odumosu was quoted as having said: “Once you are above 18 years of age, it is expected that the person interested in driving must apply through accredited driving schools for their electronic driving school certificate which is a prerequisite for applying for fresh driver’s license.
“Also, applicants for renewal are expected to appear physically to be captured or through bypass. Any process devoid of this is fake.”
He encouraged Officers of the Nigerian Police who drive, to get their driver’s license in order to serve as good examples for other motorists.
The Sector Commander, FRSC Lagos Sector Command, Corps Commander Olusegun Ogungbemide, was impressed with the leadership quality displayed by the CP and handed over the temporary driver’s license to Odumosu personally.
Ogungbemide promised that the CP’s permanent license would get to him shortly.
He pleaded with other security agencies to emulate the exemplary style of the CP.
Ogungbemide charged all motorists to always maintain safe speed and obey all traffic rules and regulations at all times as we enter the last quarter of the year.
…
Law / News / politics

MURIC to FG: We join Falana in seeking pardon for jailed 54 Soldiers

Sequel to a letter written by human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), to President Muhammadu Buhari, seeking presidential pardon for soldiers jailed for refusing to fight Boko Haram, the Muslim Rights Concern has added its voice to the call for pardon for the soldiers.

MURIC’s call was made on Thursday in a statement through its Director and Founder, Prof. Ishaq Akintola.

MURIC said: “We endorse every sentence in the letter written by foremost human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), asking President Muhammadu Buhari to pardon soldiers jailed for refusing to fight Boko Haram with poor weapons. This case has unassailable merit and Mr. Falana’s letter has addressed all the necessary issues.

“We strongly believe that the punishment meted out to the soldiers were a miscarriage of justice. We also frown at the way the soldiers were discharged from prison after serving their term without any concern for their welfare. It is an invitation to anarchy. These are soldiers trained as members of the special forces. They were not ordinary soldiers. Releasing them into the society was therefore a most dangerous move. They may fall into wrong hands.

“However, we appeal to the released men to continue to be of good conduct, to remain law abiding and to always remember that Allah has a reason for everything. While they were in jail, many soldiers died fighting the insurgents. Some lost their limbs. But Allah has preserved them. It is also worthy of gratitude to Allah that none of them died in jail.

“Therefore our message to the 54 soldiers is this, ‘Have faith and thank God. It is possible that the Supreme Creator, in His divine wisdom, decided to keep you in jail in order to keep you alive or to keep you away from a worse fate.’ After all Prophet Yusuf (Joseph, peace be upon him) was imprisoned for no just cause and he came out victorious (Glorious Qur’an 12:35; Genesis 39:20).

“The Muslims among them should remember what Allah said in the Hadith Qudsy, ‘Whoever is not pleased …

Entertainment / Foreign / Law / News

R. Kelly is on trial in Brooklyn

R. Kelly, the R&B singer who has long faced allegations of sexual abuse, will appear in a Brooklyn courthouse Wednesday for the second week of a high-profile federal sex trafficking trial.

The singer’s alleged pattern of abuse drew intense public scrutiny with the rise of the #MeToo movement, leading to the #MuteRKelly social media campaign, boycotts of his hit records, protests across the country and, perhaps most notably, “Surviving R. Kelly,” a Lifetime documentary series featuring testimony from several accusers.

R. Kelly, 54, whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, denies any wrongdoing. He is best known for tracks such as “I Believe I Can Fly” and “Bump N’ Grind.”

The trial’s opening statements are set to begin Wednesday. Here’s a look at what’s at stake.

The charges

R. Kelly was charged in July 2019 with racketeering based on sexual exploitation of children, kidnapping, forced labor and Mann Act violations — charges involving the coercion and transportation of women and girls in interstate commerce to engage in illegal sexual activity, according to a Department of Justice news release.

The singer, his entourage and his employees — managers, bodyguards, drivers, personal assistants, runners for Kelly — allegedly recruited women and girls to engage in illegal sexual activity with him and arranged for victims to travel to concerts and other events across the U.S., according to court documents.

“For two decades the enterprise at the direction of R. Kelly preyed upon young women and teenagers whose dreams of meeting a superstar soon turned into a nightmare of rape, child pornography and forced labor,” Angel M. Melendez, special agent in charge from Homeland Security Investigations, said when the charges were announced.

Federal prosecutors allege that Kelly forced his victims to follow various “rules.” They were not allowed to leave their room without his permission (including to go to the bathroom or eat), and they were required to call him “Daddy,” according to court documents.

The charges involve six women and girls.

The trial in Brooklyn is the second time R. Kelly has been …

Crime / Law / News

Abba Kyari’s probe: Police speak on reported submission of report

The Nigeria Police Force has said the probe into the alleged indictment of Deputy Commissioner of Police Abba Kyari by the Federal Investigation Bureau of the United States of America, being conducted by the NPF Special Investigation Panel, is still ongoing.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Commissioner of Police Frank Mba, spoke on the development in a statement.

Mba, in the statement on Tuesday, enjoined Nigerians to note that the panel has not submitted its report to the Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba, as being wrongly reported in some news outlet and online platforms.

He added: “The Force hereby reassures the public that the outcome of investigations by the probe panel would be communicated accordingly upon conclusion of the investigations.”…

Crime / Law / News

31 Northern lawyers volunteer to defend Kyari

 

No fewer than 31 lawyers of Northern extraction have volunteered to defend the suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari, over allegations of fraud in the United States of America.

This was disclosed to newsmen by one of the lawyers involved, Sunusi Bappah Salisu, in Abuja on Thursday.

A well known internet fraudster, Ramon Abbas, aka Hushpuppi, had in a statement to the Federal Bureau of Investigation of the United States of America, mention Kyari in a fraud cases involving $1.1 million.

Hushpuppi alleged that he gave Kyari N8 million to arrest one of those involved in the fraud, Vincent Chibuzor.

Based on this, a District Court in the United States of America ordered the FBI to arrest Kyari and bring him to court in the US.

But Salisu said 31 lawyers from the Northern part of Nigeria had offered their services to Kyari, who is from Borno State.

He said: “In apparent response to recent calls for support for Abba Kyari by the Coalition of Northern Groups, a group of about 31 young northern Nigerian lawyers, has volunteered to render legal services to the embattled Deputy Commissioner of Police.

“We would raise questions involving the possibility of the occasioning of breaches to Kyari’s fundamental rights entrenched in Articles 6 and 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Right, which essentially state that every individual shall have the right to liberty and to the security of his person and every individual shall have the right to have his cause heard.

“This comprises the right to an appeal to competent national organs against acts of violating his fundamental rights as recognized and guaranteed by conventions, laws, regulations and customs in force.”…

Crime / Law / News

US court postpones trial of suspended Abiodun’s aide to 2022

The fraud trial of suspended aide to Ogun Governor Abidemi Rufai, who was indicted for alleged conspiracy, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, has been postponed to 2022.

A fresh ruling of the court has postponed the commencement of Rufai’s trial by five months.

Rufai was arrested at the JFK airport in New York on May 14 over alleged $350,000 COVID-19 unemployment fraud in the United States.

The Nation had reported the prosecutor submitted 97,000-page materials at the US District for the Western District of Washington at Tacoma, on July 26. The indictment alleges that Rufai used the stolen identities of more than 100 Washington residents to file fraudulent claims with the Employment Security Department (ESD) for pandemic-related unemployment benefits.

Acting US Attorney Tessa M. Gorman had said Rufai filed fraudulent unemployment claims with Hawaii, Wyoming, Massachusetts, Montana, New York, and Pennsylvania, using variations of a single email address in a manner intended to evade automatic detection by fraud systems.

The trial, earlier scheduled to commence on August 31, has now been postponed to February 1, 2022.

The new trial date is based on agreement between the prosecution and the defense, describing the case as “unusual and complex”.

Judge Benjamin Settle of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, at Tacoma said pretrial motions “shall be filed no later than December 9, 2021”, and fixed pretrial conference for January 24, 2022 at 10:00 a.m.…

Crime / Law / News

Super TV boss Ataga murder: Court sends Chidinma to prison for 30 days

A Yaba Magistrates’ Court on Monday remanded Chidinma Ojukwu, prime suspect in the murder of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Super TV, Usifo Ataga, for 30 days.

Chief Magistrate Adeola Adedayo made the order following an application by police counsel Cyril Ejiofor.

Adedayo also remanded Ojukwu’s co-defendant Adedapo Quadri on the same terms.

Ejiofor had prayed the court to remand Ojukwu in police custody pending the issuance of a Lagos State Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) report on the matter. “The remand is to enable the DPP come up with legal advice. We pray for the remand of the defendants for the first 30 days in the first instance,” he said.

Director, Office of the Public Defender (OPD) Dr Babajide Martins, who announced appearance for Chidinma, complained the prosecution failed to furnish the defense with the remand application.

Nevertheless, he declined to oppose Ejiofor’s prayer “in principle.”

“I have just been privileged to get a copy of the remand application.

“I have not been able to go through it, my learned friend’s application is inevitable, I would have been happier, if I was obliged of the application earlier.

“The application will not be opposed, in principle,” Martins said.

Quadri had no legal representation.

In a bench ruling, Adedayo granted the prosecution’s prayer.

She held: “In the absence of any opposition, the two defendants are hereby remanded for 30 days in the first instance.

“The case is adjourned till September 5, for review of remand/DPP’s advice.”

Ojukwu, a 21-year-old Mass Communication student of the University of Lagos, was arrested by the police on June 23, 2021.

She was said to have been in a romantic relationship with 50-year-old Ataga for about four months before the incident.

Following her parade by the police on June 24, the undergraduate said she and Ataga were “having fun” when an argument broke out and she stabbed him twice.

On June 29, she pleaded for forgiveness saying she was not ready to die.

She attributed her action to influence of hard drugs and smoking.

But …

Entertainment / Law / News

Dr Dre ordered to pay ex-wife Nicole Young N151M monthly in spousal support

The billionaire music executive is to do that or take the option of paying $3.5M annually to Nicole until she remarries.

According to Radar, the superior court judge’s decision is only temporary until a final decision is reached.

“[Dre] is ordered to pay to the [Nicole] spousal support in the sum of $293,306.00 per month, payable on the first of each month, commencing August 1, 2021,” Dre will pay a total of $3,519,672 per year until Nicole remarries or “enters into a new domestic partnership,” the court document obtained by Radar read.

The judge also ordered Dre to keep paying for Nicole’s health insurance.

Dre and Nicole have continued to fight legally about their prenup.

Nicole has appealed for the prenup to be nullified, but Dre has disagreed with that arrangement.

Young has also alleged that Dre said he wouldn’t carry out the prenup, which he has said, isn’t true.

Nicole filed for divorce from the millionaire rapper back in 2020. She cited irreconcilable differences as the reason for her split from the hip-hop mogul.

The couple got married in 1996 and are blessed with two adult children, Truce and Truly.

Young was formerly married to NBA player, Sedale Threatt, and is a trained lawyer.

…
Crime / Law / News

Naira Marley’s alleged internet fraud case adjourned for 3 months

The music star was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in 2019 for alleged internet fraud.

On Monday, July 12, 2021, Justice Nicholas Oweibo of a Federal High Court in Lagos adjourned till October 5 (85 days) to continue the alleged internet fraud trial.

At the resumption of proceedings, counsel to the EFCC, Bilkisu Buhari, informed the judge that the matter was slated for cross-examination of the second prosecution witness, Anosike.

She prayed the court to invite the witness for the continuation of the hearing.

However, the defense counsel Akinwale Kola-Taiwo, prayed the court for a short date for the continuation of trial on the grounds that “the matter is for mention today and not continuation as disclosed by the prosecution.”

Granting his prayer, Justice Oweibo adjourned the case till October 5, 6 and 7 for continuation of trial.

The long adjournment is in view of the court’s annual vacation, which begins on July 26 and ends on September 17 (53 days).

…
Crime / Foreign / Law / News

South Africa’s ex-president Zuma hands himself to prison

South Africa’s ex-president Jacob Zuma turned himself in to prison late Wednesday to begin serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court, his foundation said.

In a historic ruling, the Constitutional Court last week handed Zuma a 15-month term for snubbing anti-graft investigators.

Police had earlier on Wednesday warned they were prepared to arrest the former president by a midnight deadline to enforce the ruling, unless the top court instructed otherwise.

But Zuma decided to make his way to an unnamed prison in his home province of Kwa-Zulu Natal (KZN).

“Please be advised that (ex) President Zuma has decided to comply with the incarceration order,” the foundation tweeted.

“He is on his way to hand himself into a Correctional Services Facility in KZN,” it said, just minutes before the deadline expired.

A convoy of cars believed to be carrying Zuma drove out of his homestead at high speed about 40 minutes before the cut-off time for him to give himself up.

Zuma had mounted a last-ditch legal defense and refused to turn himself in by Sunday night as the court ordered. Under the ruling, police were given three days to arrest him if he failed to surrender.

He had pleaded with the court for an 11th-hour reprieve.

In an urgent request to the Constitutional Court late Wednesday, Zuma’s lawyers asked it to “direct the suspension of its orders… to prevent our client from being arrested prior to all legal processes being finalised”.

Zuma’s first application to halt his arrest was heard on Tuesday but the judgement was reserved until Friday.

Separately, he has pleaded with the Constitutional Court to reconsider and rescind its jail order. That challenge will be heard next Monday.

Zuma, 79, was forced out of office in 2018 and replaced by Cyril Ramaphosa after a nine-year tenure stained by corruption scandals and the taint of cronyism.

Critics nicknamed him the “Teflon president” for his perceived ability to sidestep justice.

But his fortunes changed on June 29 when the court issued its damning judgement against him for contempt.…

Entertainment / Law / News

Bill Cosby gains freedom from prison as court overturns his sexual assault conviction

On the 30th of June 2021, Pennsylvania’s highest court has overturned his conviction and judgment of sentence, saying his due process rights were violated.

CNN reports that the panel of the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court judges in a verdict released today states that former Montgomery County District Attorney, Bruce Castor, decision to prosecute Mr Cosby was unfair because he breached an agreement signed with the actor.

Bruce Castor is said to have cut a deal with Cosby that if he testified in a civil deposition he would not face trial criminally. The agreement convinced Cosby to make incriminating statements about drugging women but that was ultimately used against him at trial.

“In light of these circumstances, the subsequent decision by successor D.A.s to prosecute Cosby violated Cosby’s due process rights,” the judges wrote.

The Supreme Court also believes that it was unduly prejudicial to allow 5 women with stories similar to Andrea Constand to testify against Cosby. The 79-page verdict has detailed that the 83-year-old comedian can not be retried on this case.

Mr Cosby’s family has released a statement signed by their press representative, Andrew Wyatt. “I want to thank the Supreme Court who saw the light and saw the truth“. He also disclosed that he was at the prison to pick him up and take him to his Pennsylvania home.

“Mr Cosby was originally given a deal by Bruce Castor in which he was granted immunity. He gave up his fifth amendment rights in hopes that he would get back to work, back to life. And he always showed up for any legal matters and questions on his own accord. Charges should never have been brought against Mr Cosby,” the statement said.

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Law / News

Disbelief, shock trail IPOB leader’s arrest, re-arraignment

Four years after the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, jumped bail and fled the country, he was yesterday re-arraigned before the Federal High Court in Abuja after his re-arrest by security agents.

Presenting him before the court, counsel to the Federal Government, Shuaib Labaran, said Kanu was arrested through intelligence and collaborative efforts of security agencies. He was, however, silent on where and how Kanu was arrested.

Following Labaran’s ex-parte application, Justice Binta Nyako ordered that Kanu, who was brought to court in handcuffs and hooded before the court’s sitting, be remanded in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).

He granted an accelerated hearing by bringing the charge pending against him from the earlier adjourned date of October 20 to July 26 and 27.

Speaking when he appeared in court on criminal charges of terrorism and treasonable felony, Kanu said he escaped from Nigeria after his house was unlawfully invaded by security men with his life seriously threatened. The separatist leader alleged that he would have been killed along with others on the day of the invasion if not for the wisdom he applied to jump bail and flee the country.

His reaction was provoked by the Federal Government’s information through its counsel, Labaran, that Kanu jumped bail granted by the court to escape trial by running out of the country.

Labaran had applied to the court for an order to remand Kanu in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).

The counsel said the request became imperative because lawyers to Kanu were yet to be abreast of his re-arrest.

Arewa elders urged the Federal Government to handle Kanu’s arrest and prosecution with caution. In a statement by the spokesman of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Emmanuel Yawe, it said that Kanu should be prosecuted because he is a threat to Nigeria’s stability as a nation, but urged the government to follow the rules of law.

“We know that the man has no respect for the country called Nigeria and has …

Law / News

Court orders FG to pay Bayelsa $951m derivative arrears

The Federal High Court, Abuja, yesterday, ordered the Federal Government to pay $951 million to the Bayelsa State Government.

The amount is the 13 per cent derivative sum due as arrears of revenue and payable to Bayelsa State.

Justice Inyang Ekwo, who delivered the judgment, held that the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), the sole defendant in the case, failed to enter his defence in the suit.

Justice Ekwo ruled that the development made the court to declare the plaintiff’s case “unchanged.”

Ken Njemanze filed the suit on behalf of the Bayelsa government. The plaintiff, in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/175/2012 and filed on February 12, urged the court to compel the AGF to pay five per cent of $50 billion recovered as additional revenue that accrued to the Federal Government.…