Author: Safiu Kehinde

An 88-year-old man who is the world’s longest-serving death row inmate has been acquitted by a Japanese court, after it found that evidence used against him was fabricated. Iwao Hakamada, who has been on death row for more than half a century, was found guilty in 1968 of killing his boss, the man’s wife and their two teenage children. He was recently granted a retrial amid suspicions that investigators may have planted evidence that led to his conviction for quadruple murder. More than half a century spent on death row has taken a heavy toll on Hakamada’s mental health, though,…

Three men in Benin, including a former minister and the man in charge of President Patrice Talon’s security, have been arrested on suspicion of plotting a coup, the state prosecutor has said. Ex-sports minister Oswald Homeky was caught on Tuesday while handing over six bags of money to the head of the Republican Guard, Elonm Mario Metonou, the prosecutor told a press conference. Investigators said Col Djimon Dieudonne Tevoedjre was being bribed not to resist a coup d’etat planned for Friday in the small West African nation. Also detained was a businessman, Olivier Boko – a friend of President Talon…

Safiu Kehinde  A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a suit filed by Pan African Development Corporate Company Ltd. against the Federal Government, demanding N2 trillion in damages over alleged copyright infringement. Justice Inyang Ekwo, in a ruling on Monday, dismissed the suit on the ground that it was statute barred. According to Ekwo, that the suit was instituted after the period allowed by the Public Officers Protection Act (POPA), 2004 had lapsed. “The yardsticks to determine whether an action is statute barred are the date when the cause of action accrued, the date of commencement of the suit…

Agency Report  The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) in Kano, says has received six rescued street children in the state. The agency also reunited four rescued victims of child trafficking with their families. Mr Abdullahi Babale, the Kano Zonal Commander of the agency, said this at a news conference in Kano on Thursday. He said that a good samaritan, Kabir Abdulhamid, rescued the children along Zoo road in Kano metropolis, and handed-over the children to the agency on Sept. 24. Babale said the children aged between 7 and 9 were males, adding that, “four are…

Safiu Kehinde  Nigerian activist and social media influencer, Martins Vincent Otse popularly known as VeryDarkMan has denied defaming Folarin Falana (Falz) in his post on Bobrisky’s money laundering scandal. Responding to Falz letter demanding the retraction of VDM’s statement on his alleged involvement in Bobrisky’s case, the activist claimed he did not defame the musician. He urged Falz to meet Bobrisky and clear his name from the allegation involving him and his father, Femi Falana (SAN). Speaking in a recent video shared on X, VeryDarkMan narrated his conversation with Flalz who expressed his displeasure with the activist statement. “In respect…

Safiu Kehinde  A Federal High Court in Kano has dropped an application by the All Progressives Congress(APC), seeking to stop the Kano State Independent Electoral Commission(KANSIEC) from conducting the October 26 local government elections in the state. The applicants Aminu Aliyu-Tiga and APC through his counsel, Mustapha Idris, filed a motion exparte dated Sept.18 and filed Sept.20. The applicant’s are seeking the court to restrain KANSIEC from conducting the elections and also grant an injunction order directing all parties to maintain status quo. The respondents are KANSIEC, Kano State House of Assembly, Attorney General Kano State, INEC, DSS, Commissioner of…

Safiu Kehinde  The United Nations have warned over the escalation of humanitarian crisis in Sudan. According to UN humanitarians, Sudan is facing the world’s most severe hunger crisis, with over half of its population, 26 million people, suffering high levels of acute hunger. This was disclosed in a statement by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). It noted that famine has been confirmed in North Darfur State’s Zamzam camp, with many other areas at risk. About five million children, pregnant and breastfeeding women have been acutely malnourished, it added. “Health care and basic services have been…

Safiu Kehinde  The Federal Government has ordered probe into the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) over bribery and corruption allegations. This was disclosed in a statement issued by the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo. As contained in the statement, the Interior Minister called for unconditional and comprehensive Investigation of the NCoS as he condemned the unprofessional conducts traced to the agency. While harping on the core values of the ministry, Tunji-Ojo vowed to bring perpetrators of the corrupt practices to book. “The Ministry will not tolerate any compromise on its core values of integrity, transparency, and accountability. We will leave no…

Safiu Kehinde  With previous N80.2 billion money laundering charges still pending, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has slammed fresh N110 billion charges on embattled former Kogi state governor, Yahaya Bello. The 16-counts charges was filed against the ex- governor at the Federal High Court on Tuesday. EFCC alleged that Yahaya Bello had diverted N110 billion from Kogi state Treasury during his eight years tenure. Meanwhile, the new case had two other people involved, Umar Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu, who are charged as co-defendants. According to report, the charges include criminal breach of trust involving alleged diversion of…

A man who was facing a firearms charge walked into a California courthouse on the day of his arraignment Wednesday morning and threw a bag containing an explosive that went off, injuring several people, officials said. The incident at a courthouse in Santa Maria appears to be isolated and the suspect has no known ties to terrorism, but the FBI, along with the US Attorney’s Office, are investigating the incident. Shortly after the explosion, the suspect, identified as 20-year-old Nathaniel McGuire, was apprehended by a security guard, a Santa Barbara County sheriff’s deputy and California Highway Patrol officers, Undersheriff Craig…