Conductor abducts, robs workers returning from office

A 26-year-old conductor, Chineyen Okoro, has been arrested by the Ogun State Police Command for allegedly abducting three factory workers in the Sango area of the state. The suspect was arrested along with his roommate, 16-year-old Kalu. According to report by PUNCH METRO, the workers were returning from their workplace around 9.30pm on Tuesday when Okoro, who had a gun, and his gang members, ambushed them in the Ntabo, Ogba Ayo area and led them to an uncompleted building. The Anambra-born suspect and his gang members, who were at large, were said to have dispossessed the workers of their valuables. A victim, 24-year-old Ibrahim Oladeji, said he took courage and challenged Okoro after the two victims (ladies) managed to escape from the scene. Our correspondent learnt that the Anti-Robbery Squad of the Agbado Police Division later arrived at the area and arrested Okoro. Oladeji said, “He (Okoro) and his gang members stopped us around Ogba Ayo while we were returning from Sango. He pointed a gun at us and we were forced into an uncompleted building. They ordered us to lie down and collected our phones and wallets. I had about N15,000 in my wallet. He gave the items to one of his gang members and told him to run away. “One of the two ladies among us managed to escape. I told the other lady, Moji, to also run. I summoned courage and challenged him. I punched him in the face and he hit me with the gun. He then fled. “I chased him into a corner where a man, who heard me shouting ‘thief, thief’ apprehended him. The police later came to arrest him.” Moji, 18, told PUNCH Metro that her wallet contained a sum of N1,500 and a mobile phone. Okoro had claimed to be a visitor to the area and was getting fresh air when a mob descended on him. However, he later confessed to have used the gun in self-defence when he heard people shouting thief. He said, “I was sitting outside when I saw people rushing towards my direction and calling me a thief. I picked the gun and shot it to disperse the crowd. But I was eventually arrested and beaten up. I did not rob anybody. “I inherited the gun from a friend six years ago after he was killed. We were both Aiye Confraternity members. I denounced the group after his death.” The other suspect, Kalu, who hails from Imo State, denied involvement in the robbery. He said, “Chineye(Okoro), his brother and I live in a room. Chineye went outside with a bag after we had finished cooking that evening. I don’t know whether there was a gun inside the bag or not. “The following day after his brother had left for work, some policemen came and arrested me. I don’t know anything about the robbery.” The Ogun State Police spokesperson, DSP Muyiwa Adejobi, said the police had launched a manhunt for the fleeing members of the gang, adding that the suspects would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department. He said, “A distress call was received that armed robbers were operating in the Ntabo area, Ijoko. Consequently, Anti-Robbery patrol team from the Agbado division responded and condoned off the area after which two suspected robbers were arrested while others fled. Efforts have been intensified to arrest the fleeing gang members.”

Mbaka: Catholic Bishops defend transfer, cleric’s loyalists kick

Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka The Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria in Abuja on Sunday defended Rv. Fr. Ejike Mbaka’s transfer from the Christ the King Parish, GRA, in Enugu metropolis, to Our Lady Parish, Emene, on the outskirts of Enugu. But Mbaka’s followers on Sunday accused the Peoples Democratic Party of masterminding the transfer of the founder and Spiritual Director of the ministry. The Breaking their silence about Mbaka’s transfer, the bishops also condemned the protest against the development. President of the CBCN, Bishop Ignatius Kaigama, who condemned Mbaka’s prophecies, said priests and leaders of the church must avoid “melodramatic displays that resembles modern broad-way shows.” Kaigama said, “Those priests who tend to compete with so-called trendy pastors to dream dreams, see visions and utter prophecies are reminded that not all dreams, visions and prophecies are revelations from God. “They are sometimes the product of one’s psychological disposition, brainwaves or even the result of mental fatigue and should not be confused with absolute reality.” He added, “We need to think positively about the Nigerian project and act in a manner that builds rather than destroys.” The Assistant Secretary General of the CBCN and Bishop of Ekity Diocese, Felix Ajakaiye, who decried the controversy over Mbaka’s transfer, said, “When I am transferred I am transferred; no sensation should be attached.” Delivering a sermon during the opening mass, Archbishop of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, said Nigerians were right to be angry at the “criminal corruption” which led to diversion of funds meant for the purchase of arms. He stressed that it was the hope of all Nigerians that such fraudulent acts were now a thing of the past. “Our gallant troops must never again be left with inadequate resources to carry out the dangerous acts imposed on them on our behalf,” he said. The cleric, who commended government’s efforts, called for the investigations and prosecution of accused persons should be transparent. Onaiyekan reiterated his earlier call for collaboration with the church and religious bodies in an effort to bring about a transformation of minds and action by Nigerians. Following growing criticism, the Catholic Church explained that the cleric’s transfer was not intended as a punishment but rather a “normal church procedure.” The church added that Mbaka’s transfer was part of a general redeployment of priests by the Enugu Catholic Diocese, headed by Bishop Callistus Onaga. But the fiery priest had, while handing over to his successor at the CKC, insinuated that the transfer was in line with a witch-hunt against him, adding that he was going to suffer in the new parish. However, his followers have accused the PDP and the Ohanaeze Ndigbo of influencing the transfer. In a statement signed by Kingsley Eze, Sunday Ukam, (Enugu State Adorer), Adedije Wale and (Osun State Adorer), Mbaka’s followers also accused Onaga of pandering to the wishes of Mbaka’s enemies. They questioned Onaga’s decision to transfer Mbaka when his predecessors allowed him to remain in the parish for about 20 years. “What Bishop Michael Eneja saw and allowed, Bishop Gbuji protected and watered but Bishop Onaga uprooted in a most barbaric and despondent manner,” they said, referring to the transfer. The worshippers alleged that Onaga was working with unnamed PDP chiefs who was unhappy with Mbaka’s role in last year’s presidential election. Mbaka had predicted President Muhammadu Buhari’s victory, and in a message entitled ‘From Good Luck to Bad Luck’, had urged Nigerians to vote for the All Progressives Congress’ candidate. The Adoration Ministry members added, “Most Nigerians know that the uncommon silence of Bishop Onaga over Fr. Mbaka’s prophesy of the defeat of the Goodluck Jonathan’s PDP-led government by President Muhammadu Buhari was not really for nothing. “He was just waiting for the time to carry out the script of the stalwarts of the overthrown party. “Barely a few weeks before the posting, the voice of a faction of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, a socio-cultural group, was heard barking at Fr. Mbaka to ‘shut up’ over his prophesies. “And now comes the posting done in such a manner as to really shut Fr. Mbaka up. “Sources close to Bishop Onaga disclosed to us that the bishop said he transferred Fr. Mbaka out of pressure from Ohanaeze and the PDP. “The posting is not Holy Ghost-oriented but PDPnized and Ohanaezenized, and any cleric be him a pastor, bishop or cardinal that supported this is an enemy of the Holy Spirit.” They warned of their readiness to carry out a “religious revolution” over the matter. They said, “We are ready and determined to carry out a religious revolution in Nigeria if the stage-managed defamation and character assassination sponsored by enemies of the Holy Spirit in the garb of clerics against Fr. Mbaka persists.”