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EFCC arraigns man for alleged N208m theft in Lagos

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Lagos Zonal Directorate 2, on Thursday, July 31, 2025, arraigned one Iwunze Ikechukwu Favour before Justice Mojisola Dada of the Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja on a one-count charge of theft involving the sum of N208,384,000.

According to the charge, the defendant is accused of dishonestly stealing and converting groceries and household goods valued at N208,384,000, property of Ogechi Okorie and G-Chinodan Ltd, for his personal use.

The alleged offence took place between January and December 2024 within the jurisdiction of the court.

The charge reads: “That you, Iwunze Ikechukwu Favour, sometime between January and December 2024, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud, stole and converted to your personal use the sum of N208,384,000.00 (Two Hundred and Eight Million, Three Hundred and Eighty-Four Thousand Naira), being the value of several groceries and household items, property of Ogechi Okorie and G-Chinodan Ltd, and thereby committed an offence of stealing, contrary to and punishable under Sections 280 and 287 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.”

The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Following the plea, prosecution counsel A.A. Usman requested a trial date and urged the court to remand the defendant in a correctional facility pending trial.

In response, defence counsel N.M. Abraham informed the court of a pending bail application and subsequently moved the motion for his client’s release.

Justice Dada granted the defendant bail in the sum of N10,000,000 with two sureties in like sum. One of the sureties must commit to placing a lien on their bank account. The court further ordered that the defendant deposit his international passport with the court registrar.

The matter was adjourned to October 30, 2025, for the commencement of trial.

Meanwhile, the defendant was ordered to be remanded in a correctional centre pending the fulfilment of his bail conditions.

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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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Crime

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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Crime

DSS charges man for advocating military coup

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The Department of State Services has filed a six-count charge against 27-year-old Innocent Chukwuemeka Onukwume for allegedly calling for a military coup in the country.

The charges, brought before the Federal High Court in Abuja under case number FHC/ABJ/CR/610/2025, relate to posts Onukwume made on his verified X account (@theagroman) in October 2025.

According to the DSS, the posts encouraged the removal of the ruling All Progressives Congress, the suspension of the federal government and support for the military in taking over the country.

In the charge filed on Tuesday by DSS counsel A.M. Danalami, Onukwume’s actions were said to contravene Sections 46A(1) and 59(1) of the Criminal Code Act, as well as Section 24(1)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2024 (as amended).

Some of the statements attributed to him include: “A coup in Nigeria is needed. Dispose of APC, suspend the Nigerian government and join the AES. That is all we need now.”

He allegedly also wrote, “It will happen eventually, Nigerian. The military needs your support now! Only they can save this country. The bastard in Aso Rock has basically sold this country to the West and they run our intelligence apparatus only the military can reset this country.”

In another post, he reportedly stated, “Tinubu has to go and APC has to die for Nigeria to have any semblance of normal life. And if you think your stupid votes can remove Tinubu, I’m here to tell you that you’re a fool.”

The DSS further cited the same post repeated on his account, adding, “A coup in Nigeria is needed. Dispose of APC, suspend the Nigerian Government and join the AES. That is all we need now.”

Onukwume, a resident of Umusayo Layout, Oyigbo Local Government Area of Rivers State, is expected to be arraigned later this week.

In October, there were reports of an alleged plot by some military personnel to overthrow President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

This, however, has triggered outrage among Nigerians, with senior lawyers, civil society groups and retired generals warning against any attempt to subvert democracy.

Meanwhile, the Defence Headquarters dismissed the reports, saying there was no coup-related detention or plan within the military.

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