News

Man jailed for kidnapping boy who was said to have made money from bitcoin

A schoolboy who was thought to have made money trading in bitcoin was kidnapped by a gang who demanded £10,000 for his safe return, a court heard.

The 14-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was confronted outside a takeaway in Bradford in May and bundled into a car.

After one of the kidnappers put his hand over the boy’s mouth, the child was punched and forced into the back of a Toyota Auris.

Muhammed Khubaib, who owned the car, activated the vehicle’s central locking as the boy sat between two men in the back.

Khubaib, 22, then punched him in the face with a glove containing sand, Bradford crown court heard.

The prosecutor Laura McBride said the boy was told he would have to phone his mother and tell her to hand over “£10,000 or her son wouldn’t be going home”.

The boy’s mother was called and she described how the kidnappers demanded money while her son was crying, the court heard.

McBride said it was agreed the mother would give the men £900 and she came out of her home to hand over the cash when Khubaib drove the Auris to the house.

The incident was subsequently reported to the police and Khubaib was arrested a few days later.

He pleaded guilty to charges of kidnap and blackmail, but the court heard that the three other men involved had not been identified or prosecuted. Khubaib was sentenced to four years.

The recorder of Bradford, Judge Richard Mansell QC, said the boy had “clearly been targeted” by the men.

He said they kidnapped him after seeing social media posts that suggested he had made “a reasonable amount of money” from trading in bitcoin or other cryptocurrency.

The court heard the victim was no longer living in Bradford and Mansell said the offending had resulted in “profound consequences” for the youngster and his family.

Speaking after sentencing, DC Paul Maxwell of West Yorkshire police said: “We welcome the sentence which has been passed down to Khubaib today at court. He pleaded guilty to both counts he was charged with in May.

“The victim, a young teenager, was vulnerable to criminal exploitation and Khubaib tried to exploit him for money.

“This was an incredibly distressing incident for both the victim and the victim’s mother, but thankfully both were not injured during the incident and have been given help and support by the police and partner agencies.”

News

Bandits kill one, kidnap district head, eight others in Kebbi

Bandits have kidnapped Alhaji Isah Daya, the district head of Kanya under the Danko/Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State.

The bandits kidnapped the monarch and eight others when they stormed his village on Saturday, October 5, 2024.

The bandits also k!lled one and injured three persons during the attack.

The spokesperson for the State Police Command, Nafui Abubakar, who confirmed the attack, gave the name of the deceased as Sherriff Alhaji Almu.

According to the PPRO, a combined security team led by the police has launched a manhunt on the abductors of the monarch to rescue the abducted persons.

He noted that the Kebbi State Government has provided the needed logistics to tame banditry in the affected towns, particularly Kebbi South, Zuru Emirate.

The attack came a few days after bandits k!lled the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Suru Local Government Area of the state.

News

FG mobilises Julius Berger to complete N820b road projects

The Federal Government has told Julius Berger Nigeria Plc to fast-track the completion of the rehabilitation of the 82-kilometre Section II of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano dual carriageway and the construction of the Bodo-Bonny road with bridges across the Opobo Channel, Route 430 in Rivers State.

Works Minister David Umahi said the government could not continually negotiate with the contractor over the same projects.

In a statement in Abuja by his Special Adviser on Media, Uchenna Orji, during a meeting with Julius Berger, represented by its Executive Director for Projects, Benjamin Bott, and the Head of Contract Management, Omonigho Brown, the minister stressed the need for contractors handling Federal Government’s projects to exhibit corporate nationalism in price negotiation in the face of the daunting economic challenges facing the country.

Umahi said the Federal Executive Council (FEC), at its meeting on September 23, approved the re-scoping and downward review of the contracts.

He said: “We have Section II, which is 82 kilometres by two, which is the section that JBN Plc is working on.

“And so, if you check what FEC approved on September 23, FEC had approved that the total contract sum within the scope of Berger would be N740 billion. This means that if you remove N391 billion paid already, you now have about N340 billion remaining. This is the scope of their work for the 164 kilometres.”

The minister urged the contractor to mobilise for work on the four sections of the Abuja-Zaria-Kaduna-Kano project to finish the job within 14 months.

News

Police thwart plan by armed men to kidnap a foreigner in Anambra, recover four dead bodies

Police Operatives in the morning of Sunday, October 6th, 2024 thwarted the abduction/kidnapping plan of a foreigner by suspected armed secessionist members in Ogbunka village.

The Operatives courageously engaged the hoodlums in a gun battle and saved the VIP.

SP Tochukwu Ikenga, Police Public Relations Officer who disclosed this in a statement said during the gun duel, two Police Operatives who were hit by bullet escaped with the foreigner.

He added that they are stable and are currently receiving treatment in a hospital.

Meanwhile, Operations are ongoing in the area for the possible arrest of the Armed men.

Also, Police operatives attached to Nimo Police Station responded to a distress call on 6/10/2024 by 8:25 pm of a suspected cult clash at Umuka, Nawfia. The Operatives upon arriving at the scene, found four lifeless bodies of young men in a pool of blood with suspected multiple gunshot injuries lying on the road.

The victims were confirmed dead by a doctor on duty and have been deposited to the morgue.

They were later identified as one Ebuka Nwaonkwube Ekenta of Mmimi village Nawfia, Nnatuanya Junior A.K: A Starboy of Mmimi village Nawfia, Aniemena A.K.A Osama of Umuariam Village and one Ahmed Auwal.

Information from eyewitnesses and some villagers reveal that the victims are known for their nefarious activities and are always in rivalry with another cult group in the area.

Furthermore, Joint patrol with Operatives of the Special Anit Cultism Squad (SPACS) has been intensified in the area.

In another development, the Commissioner of Police *CP Nnaghe Obono Itam* has ordered
immediate investigations into the gruesome murder of a 17-year-old girl suspected of being used for ritual purpose.

The girl’s lifeless body was found in a bush at Omasi village on 6/10/2024 by 4:25 pm and she was later identified as one Chinasa Adigwe from Umueje village and her private parts were cut off in a bush at Omasi Village before Police were alerted. The body has been recovered and deposited in a morgue.

The CP while condoling with the family, friends and Community of the deceased states that the Police shall do everything possible to make sure that those behind the barbaric act are arrested and justice served.