Crime
Ukraine Bans Independence Day Rallies Due To Fear of Russian strike
Russia fired rockets at towns to the west of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine early on Monday while the Ukrainian leadership banned rallies this week to commemorate independence from Soviet rule for fear of Russian attacks.
Artillery and rocket fire close to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear reactor complex, on the Russian-occupied south bank of the Dnipro River, has again stirred fears of a nuclear disaster and prompted renewed calls for the surrounding area to be demilitarised.
Ukraine and Russia have traded blame for the repeated shelling, some of which has been very close to the plant. It was seized by Russian forces shortly after they invaded Ukraine in February but is still run mainly by Ukrainian technicians.
Overnight Russian rocket salvoes into Nikopol, across the Dnipro from Russian-occupied Enerhodar where the Zaporizhzhia plant is situated, and nearby Krivyi Rih and Synelnykovsky districts injured at least four people, regional Governor Valentyn Reznichenko wrote on Telegram on Monday.
Ukraine also claimed there had been a Russian missile strike on Voznesensk, to the southwest and not far from the country’s second-largest atomic power station.
On Sunday, US president Joe Biden, British prime minister Boris Johnson, German chancellor Olaf Scholz and French president Emmanuel Macron held a phone call stressing the importance of ensuring the safety and security of Ukraine’s nuclear installations.
They also welcomed recent discussions on enabling a mission by the UN nuclear watchdog agency to Zaporizhzhia, while reaffirming their “steadfast commitment” to support Ukraine in the face of Russia’s invasion.
Russia began what it called a “special military operation” on February 24th to demilitarise its smaller neighbour and protect Russian-speaking communities.
Ukraine and its Western backers accuse Moscow of waging an imperial-style war of conquest.
The conflict, Europe’s biggest since World War Two, has flattened towns and cities, killed thousands, forced millions to flee and deepened a geopolitical chasm between Russia and the West.
Since Ukraine repelled a Russian attempt to capture Kyiv early in the war, the fighting has been concentrated in the east and south where frontlines have been largely static for weeks.
Also on Monday, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned of the risk of more severe attacks ahead of Ukraine’s 31st anniversary on Wednesday of independence from Russian-dominated Soviet rule.
Mr Zelenskiy warned Moscow could try “something particularly ugly” in the run-up to Wednesday, which also marks half a year since Russia invaded.
The Financial Times, in an article published on Sunday, quoted Gennady Gatilov, Moscow’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, as saying there was no “practical platform” for talks between Mr Zelenskiy and Russian president Vladimir Putin and that Russia was preparing for a long war.
Mr Zelenskiy also ruled out any talks with Russia on a diplomatic solution to the war if captured Ukrainian troops who took part in the defence of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol were put on trial.
In its morning update on Monday, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russian forces had made incremental advances into the Blagodnatne area in the direction of the city of Mykolaiv, a major target in the south.
Russia was also trying to regain momentum towards Pisky, Bakhmut and Kramatorsk, key towns in Donetsk province which, along with neighbouring Luhansk, captured by Moscow’s forces earlier in the summer, comprise the eastern Donbas region.
Reuters was not able to independently verify the battlefield reports.
In Russia, authorities were investigating a suspected car bomb attack outside Moscow that killed the daughter of Alexander Dugin, an ultra-nationalist Russian ideologue who advocates Russia absorbing Ukraine.
While investigators said they were considering “all versions” when it came to establishing who was responsible, the Russian Foreign Ministry speculated there could be a link to Ukraine, something a Zelenskiy adviser dismissed.
Police arrest two for allegedly selling newborn twins in Lagos
The Police Command in Lagos State says it has arrested two women, Ujunwa Una and Chinelo Igbechionwu over alleged sales of newborn twins.
The command’s spokesperson, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed this in a post he shared on his X handle @benHundeyin on Friday.
He said that the police apprehended the suspects based on a tip-off by a concerned citizen.
“The suspects were arrested by patrol officers from Ojodu Division stationed at Berger bus stop, an entry point into Lagos State, who had earlier been alerted about the suspects by a good Samaritan.
“The suspects were found with two newborn baby girls, approximately six days old, while travelling from Abia State on Sept. 9.
“Investigations revealed that the suspects were en route to deliver the babies to one nurse in Lagos State whom the mother of the babies promised to link them up with only after they had arrived in Lagos.
“Upon questioning, the suspects confessed to the crime, stating that they were paid the sum of ₦150,000 for transportation of the babies to Lagos.
“The suspects added that the mother of the babies sold the babies because she could not give them proper care, ” Hundeyin said.
The image maker said that the case was transferred to the Gender Unit of the Command, from where the newborns were placed in the custody of a motherless babies’ home for proper care and medical evaluation.
According to him, an investigation is ongoing to arrest other conspirators.
The spokesperson said that the arrested suspects were arraigned on Thursday.
Police rescue kidnap victim held inside ‘Ghana-Must-Go’ bag
The Police Command in Rivers has rescued a teenager, who was kidnapped in Enugu and transported to Port Harcourt in a ‘Ghana-Must-Go’ bag.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Olatunji Disu, announced this during a news conference in Port Harcourt on Wednesday.
Disu said that the teenager, aged 16, was repeatedly raped by her kidnappers after being taken to Port Harcourt.
He said that the crime was uncovered when officers at Abuloma Police Station received credible intelligence regarding the suspicious movement of one of the suspects.
“Upon receiving the information, operatives were swiftly dispatched to the area, and they arrested one male suspect.
“Officers rescued the teenage girl (name withheld) who had been held against her will by the suspect.
“Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspect lured the teenager from her residence in Garki, Enugu, placed her in a ‘Ghana-Must-Go’ bag and transported her from Enugu to Port Harcourt,” Disu said.
The police chief added that, upon arriving in Port Harcourt, the victim was taken to the residence of an alleged internet fraudster.
He said that the alleged fraudster and another suspect repeatedly had carnal knowledge of the teenager.
“The victim has undergone medical examination and treatment, while the suspects are in our custody,” he said.
Disu said that a manhunt for other suspects had been initiated.
70-year-old man bags six months in prison for stealing mats
A Shari’a Court sitting at Rigasa, Kaduna on Thursday sentenced a 70-year-old man, Jibril Musa to six months in a correctional facility for stealing mats belonging to mosques.
The Judge, Malam Mukhtar Aliyu gave the judgement after Musa pleaded guilty to the offence bordering on criminal trespass and theft.
The Judge stated that the convict had appeared before him in the past for the same offence where he was released with the condition that he would not repeat the crime.
The convict had pleaded for leniency, promising not to steal again but his prayers were not considered due to his history of theft.
Earlier, the Prosecutor, Insp. Sambo Maigari stated that Aminu Al-hassan, a village head in Rigasa reported the matter at the Rigasa police division on Sept. 9.
He said that the convict entered a mosque located on Dan Galadima Road and stole the mats.
Maigari added that the man also went to another Mosque located at Bakin Dogo and stole more mats and sold them to one Aisha Abdullahi.
On her part, Abdullahi stated that she bought the mats for N1,500 without knowing they were stolen goods.
She pleaded for leniency because she had been an honest businesswoman and did not know that an old man like Musa would steal.
The Judge adjourned the matter until Sept 18 for judgment on Abdullahi
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