A Makurdi magistrates’ court on Tuesday remanded seven men at the Makurdi correctional centre for allegedly kidnapping the Benue State Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development, Mr Ekpe Ogbu.
The suspects: Nuhu Musa, Mohammed Danjuma, Yunusa Usman, Abubakar Usman, Usman Saleh, Hamza Sani and Monday Samuel, are of various addresses in Oju/Otukpo LGA.
They were charged with criminal conspiracy, illegal possession of firearms, kidnapping and acts of terrorism.
The prosecutor, Insp Jonah Uletu, told the court that the police received a signal on December 31, 2022, from the Operation Zenda Joint Task Force that its operatives had trailed and arrested the suspects following the kidnap of the commissioner on December 4, 2022.
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He added that it was discovered that the suspects were members of the kidnap gang terrorising Benue South and that one Beretta pistol was found on them.
Uletu said the suspects confessed to the crime during police investigation, noting that other members of the gang were still at large.
The Magistrate, Mrs Roseline Iyorshe, did not take their plea for want of jurisdiction, referred the case to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) and adjourned to February 22. (NAN)
Kano man who stood as surety for son, arraigned for screening him
A 63-year-old man, Yohanna Usman, who stood as surety for his son, was on Tuesday arraigned in a Kano magistrates’ court for allegedly screening his son and obstructing justice.
Magistrate Farouk Ibrahim-Umar, admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N10m with two sureties in like sum and adjourned to February 7.
Earlier, the prosecutor, Mr Aminu Dandago, told the court that the defendant on May 20, 2022, at Gwale Quarters, Kano, knew that his son, Livinus, collected N23.6m belonging to one Alhaji Ahmad Badawi of Gwale Quarters Kano.
He said, “The defendant took his son (Livinus) on bail with the intention of screening him from legal punishment as they both absconded since then until December 19, 2022, when detectives from SCID visited his home and in the process, he concealed his son and obstructed the police from arresting him, which made Livinus to escape.”
The defendant denied committing the offence. (NAN)
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