Tuesday, August 23, 2011

NIS rescues 17 from human trafficking to Italy

Sokoto State Command of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has rescued no fewer than 17 victims of human trafficking on their way to Niger Republic.
Parading the victims in Sokoto yesterday, Comptroller of the State Command, Mr. Abdulmalik Abdulmuminu, said the victims were nabbed by immigration officers at the weekend in Illela local government area.



According to him, the victims were on their way to Italy via Niger Republic. He explained that in the course of interrogation, the victims confessed that they were heading to Italy and intend to reach there through the Mediterranean.
The comptroller decried the high incidence of human trafficking in recent times and advised parents to monitor their wards against being misled by unscrupulous individuals.



He added that the victims have already been handed over to NAPTIP for further investigation. Meanwhile, the Zonal Coordinator of National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, Mr. Shehu Omar, has expressed dismay over the high incidence of human trafficking in the country.



He said the agency had rescued at least 125 victims of human trafficking in the last two months.
The NAPTIP coordinator said the victims would be trained on vocational skills to enable them acquire skills they can use to fend for themselves.



The victims, who included nine females and eight males, lamented that they embarked on the move to Italy because of lack of jobs and poverty in the country.


This Day


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Grandmother orders torture and execution of 16 year old granddaughter

A sixteen-year-old girl was strangled to death in Benin, allegedly on the orders of her grandmother.


The deceased, Miss Vera Oyemwen Efe, an SS2 student of Idia College, Benin, was the daughter of Publisher of Revolutionary Times, a Benin-based newspaper, Efe Stewart. Because her two parents were separated, Vera and her two younger sisters were staying with their maternal grandmother, Mrs Roseline Igiebor.


According to the deceased's sister Osamudiamen who witnessed what happened, Vera left the house for four days without telling anybody her whereabout.


When she came back after four days she could not give any satisfactory reason of where she had been to. The grandmother then called one of her sons, Ovbokhan Irabor to help her discipline the child. Ovbokhan was said to have given the girl the beaten of her life.


Not satisfied with the beating, Mrs Igiebor then instructed one of her neighbours, Adewale Karimu, to continue the punishment.


The deceased's sister said Adewale strangled the deceased, tied her hands and put a rope round her mouth, with her last strength she muttered "please, help I'm dying". She continued muttering it until she died.


The deceased's father, Efe Stewart, who confirmed the incident said then police was already investigating it. Police Public Relations Officer Peter Ogboi also confirmed the incident.


Daily Trust


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Monday, August 22, 2011

John Mikel Obi's father freed and his kidnappers arrested



The kidnapped father of the Chelsea midfielder Mikel John Obi was freed on Monday after detectives traced him to a city in northern Nigeria.


Olusola Amore, a police spokesman, said investigators followed Michael Obi's trail from central Nigeria's Plateau state to Kano, one of the nation's largest cities. Officers raided the area where Obi was held, freeing him and arresting a number of kidnappers, Amore said.


Mikel's management company confirmed Michael Obi's release. "Earlier today, Michael Obi called his family to advise them that he had been released by his abductors. [We] have waited until now to release this information to ensure that Michael was safe," it said.


"Mikel John Obi would like to thank everyone in Nigeria, his family and friends, Chelsea FC and their fans and his agents for their total support during this terrible time."


The statement does not reveal whether a ransom was paid. Michael Obi is reported to have told the BBC shortly after his release: "I am very stressed."


Michael Obi was kidnapped on 12 August while on his way home from work in the central Nigerian city of Jos.



Guardian





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Video - John Mikel Obi's family speak about kidnapping



The father of Chelsea football star Mikel Obi is thought to have been kidnapped in Nigeria.

Micheal Obi has been missing for 10 days.

In an exclusive interview, Al Jazeera's Yvonne Ndege talks to the footballer's family about the disappearance. They believe Michael Obi has been kidnapped by men wanting to get money out of his son who earns up to $100,000 a week playing in the Premier League.


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Sunday, August 21, 2011

Video - Nigerian Police Continue Hunt For John Mikel Obi's Father



Nigerian Police Continue Hunt For Mikel's Father by NTDTV


Nigerian state police report they are doing everything humanly possible to find the kidnapped father of premiere league football star John Mikel Obi.


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