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Fake customs officer arraigned after scamming victims N34m

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A 59-year-old woman, Rakiyat Musa, was on Thursday arraigned before the Igbosere Magistrate’s Court sitting at Tinubu, Lagos Island, for allegedly impersonating a Nigerian Customs officer and obtaining over N34, 116,000, under pretence.

Musa, who appeared before Magistrate B. I. Amos, is facing a four-count charge bordering on conspiracy, obtaining by false pretence, stealing, impersonation, and conduct likely to cause a breach of peace.

During the arraignment, the prosecutor, Inspector Cyriacus Osuji, told the court that the defendant, alongside others still at large, conspired to defraud unsuspecting victims between April and July 2025.

“The defendant fraudulently obtained the sum of N13,480,000 from one Mr. Damilare Sodiq, the President of Power House Cooperative, Kosofe, Lagos, under the guise of supplying bags of rice and groundnut oil,” Osuji stated.

He further told the court that Musa also obtained N5,350,000 from Mr. Chukwudi Joshua; N2,600,000 from Mr. Mathew Nworie, and N2,686,000 from Mr. Okereke Johnson using the same false representation.

“She posed as a Nigerian Customs officer and presented an identity card to her victims to convince them of her status,” the prosecutor added. “She knew all along that her claims were false.”

Osuji alleged that Musa also stole an additional N10m, from the complainants.

The offences, according to him, contravene Sections 411, 314, 287, and 380(1) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

When the charges were read to her, Musa pleaded not guilty.

Following her plea, Magistrate Amos granted the defendant bail in the sum of N2.5m, with two sureties in like sum.

“The sureties must be resident in Lagos State, gainfully employed, and must show evidence of tax payment to the Lagos State government. Their addresses must also be verified,” Magistrate Amos ruled.

She further ordered the defendant to deposit N500,000 as part of the bail conditions.

The case was adjourned till August 11, 2025, for mention.

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Crime

PHOTOS: Police arrest three suspected child traffickers, rescue 17 children in Kaduna

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The Kaduna State Police Command has arrested three suspected child traffickers and rescued 17 children in Zaria Local Government Area of the state.

The spokesperson of the command, DSP Mansir Hassan, who disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, November 13, 2025 said the suspects were apprehended following credible intelligence on the suspicious movement of some children under the Danmagaji Flyover in Zaria.

He explained that police detectives from the Danmagaji Division swiftly swung into action, leading to the rescue of seventeen children of various ages who were allegedly being prepared for trafficking to Abuja and other parts of the country and beyond.

According to the PPRO, the suspects, upon interrogation, confessed to having brought the children from different locations and were in the process of transporting them to Abuja and beyond before their arrest.

He added that all the rescued children are in good health and currently under the care and protection of the Police Command, while efforts are ongoing to locate and reunite them with their parents or guardians.

“On 12th November, 2025, at about 1600hrs, following credible intelligence on the suspicious movement of children under the Danmagaji Flyover in Zaria, detectives from Danmagaji Division swiftly swung into action,” the statement read.

“Their prompt response led to the rescue of seventeen (17) children of various ages who were allegedly being prepared for trafficking to Abuja and other parts of the country and beyond.

“The three members of the syndicate were arrested in connection with the incident. They are; Musa Shuaibu, 21 years a native of Funtua Katsina, Sani Mamman, 23 years comes from Ingawa Katsina state and Mubarak Ismail, 20 years he hails from Unguwa Uku Kano state.

“Upon interrogation, the suspects confessed to having brought the children from different locations and were in the process of transporting them to Abuja and beyond before their arrest.

“All the children are underage they were rescued victims are in good health condition and are currently under the care and protection of the police Command, as efforts are ongoing to locate and reunite them with their parents or guardians.

“The Commissioner of Police, CP Rabiu Muhammad, psc, mni, commended the operatives of Danmagaji Division for their swift and decisive action, emphasizing the Command’s zero tolerance for child trafficking and exploitation.

“He also advised the parents not to allow themselves to be deceived or lured by the syndicate that their children will have a greener posture in the cities.

“He also assured that the suspects will be thoroughly investigated and prosecuted upon the completion of investigations.

“He further urged parents and guardians to remain vigilant and report any suspicious movements or individuals within their communities to the nearest Police formation for prompt action.”

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Crime

Robbers shoot Lagos hairstylist to death

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A professional hairstylist identified simply as Sebastine Timothy has been killed by suspected armed robbers in the Satellite Town area of Lagos State.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the incident occurred on Sunday in the Olasanoye Street area of the community.

A police source who spoke to our correspondent in confidence on Wednesday, but did not want his name in print as he was not permitted to speak on the incident, said the deceased victim was attacked shortly after he returned home after the day’s work.

The source said, “A complaint was made to the police on Monday morning that he was attacked in his apartment after he returned home from his place of work on Sunday night. The robbers robbed him of his belongings and transferred a certain amount of money from his bank account. He was thereafter shot in the head.”

The police source added that the robbers fled the scene while his lifeless body was later found on the spot by neighbours who heard the sound of gunshots.

In a separate account, a channel known for exposing cult-related activities, Confra Naija, in a post on X on Monday, linked the incident to a suspected cult attack.

The platform added that attackers had initially planned to attack his brother before killing him.

“The Eiye cultists came to attack Sebastine’s brother, who is a member of Aye. When they didn’t find him, they turned on Sebastine, who told them his brother wasn’t around. They forced him to unlock his phone and transfer money to them, took his phone after the transfer, and shot him in the head,” the platform wrote.

A Facebook user, Glory Hope, however, mourned the passing of the deceased hairstylist, describing him as hardworking.

“Very hard-working guy, why did this happen to you, na? Very good barber chai, I feel so sad since I heard the news. RIP guy,” she wrote.

When contacted on Wednesday, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Adebisi, said the deceased sustained a head injury during a fight with some unidentified men in the community.

“He sustained an injury to the head and died on his way to the hospital. The police can’t say if it is a gunshot injury or a machete cut. The family reported the incident at the station and later took his corpse to the mortuary,” she added.

PUNCH Metro reported in October that residents of the Cele Nica community in the Ojo Local Government Area of the state were thrown into mourning after armed robbers attacked a barbershop, killing two teenage customers identified simply as Chijindu and Akorede.

The incident comes amid concerns over repeated suspected cult attacks and robbery incidents in the state, as residents called on the police to intensify patrols.

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N’Assembly officials jailed for N4.8m job scam

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The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has secured the conviction of two officials of the National Assembly, Mustapha Mohammed and Tijjani Goni, for their involvement in a N4.8m job scam.

According to the ICPC, Justice B.M. Bassi of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja found the duo guilty of defrauding two victims  under the pretext of securing employment for them at the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Federal Inland Revenue Service.

In a statement issued on Wednesday,  ICPC spokesperson, Demola Bakare, explained that the case stemmed from a petition  filed by the victims, identified as  Saifudeen Yakub and Aminu Abubakar.

“ The petition detailed how the defendants, in collaboration with another suspect currently at large, collected N4.8m to facilitate fake job offers.

“Investigations revealed that Mustapha Mohammed introduced himself as a National Assembly staff member with close connections at the CBN and FIRS. He demanded N4m each from the complainants, assuring them that their appointment letters would be released by April 27, 2021.

“The petitioners later deposited N3m into a Zenith Bank account belonging to one of the defendants and were subsequently asked to pay an additional N300,000 each for purported medical screening, which was paid into another Access Bank account,” the statement read in part.

Following investigations, the ICPC arraigned the suspects on five counts, bordering on conspiracy, forgery, and obtaining money under false pretence, contrary to the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act 2006 and the Penal Code.

The prosecution counsel, Fatima Bardi, told the court that the defendants forged employment letters purportedly issued by the CBN and FIRS to deceive their victims.

However, under Section 270 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015, which allows plea bargaining, the defendants pleaded guilty to an amended one count  of making false statements, contrary to Section 25 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.

As part of the plea agreement, they refunded the entire N4.8m to the ICPC Recovery Account and were each fined N100,000.

The ICPC reaffirmed its commitment to promoting accountability and integrity in public service and warned Nigerians to be cautious of fraudulent job offers, urging them to verify such claims through official channels.

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