Billionaire’s dismembered body found in Lagos bush (Punch)
The dismembered body of a business mogul, Ignatius Adunukwe (identified as Odunukwe on the social media), has been recovered from a bush in the Ajah area of Lagos State.
PUNCH Metro gathered that Adunukwe (name provided by the police) was about to sell a landed property to some supposed buyers when he was allegedly kidnapped by the potential buyers.
It was learnt that the supposed buyers and Adunukwe had agreed on a date and location to meet to perfect the transaction, but the suspects took advantage of the situation to whisk the Enugu State indigene away. Read more
Why I killed, butchered businessman, prime suspect confesses (Guardian)
Daniel Bob Ibeaji, aged 42, prime suspect in the murder of popular Abuja businessman and owner of Fireman generating sets, Chief Hyginus Odunukwe, yesterday gave a startling revelation to detectives on how he conspired with three others to snuff life out of Odunukwe at the Atican Beach Resort in Ajah area of Lagos State on December 1, 2019.
His three accomplices: Arinze Igwe, 26; Solomon Cletus, 30; and Israel Obigaremu, 35 who were arrested alongside Ibeaji, also stated their roles in the act. Ibeaji, who claimed to have studied Medicine and Surgery in Edinburgh, United Kingdom, disclosed that the deceased was first hit with an axe on the head before he was injected with a lethal injection and strangled.
Trouble started after the deceased, who was into estate development and gold mining, was approached by the prime suspect in respect of one of his buildings he displayed for sale in Abuja. The late Odunukwe left his Ikoyi, Lagos home on December 1, having informed his family that he was going to meet the supposed buyer but he never returned home. Read more
I no longer feel safe at NIJ, says assaulted student (Punch)
A student of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Ogba, Lagos, Anjola Ogunyemi, has said she is not returning to the school after being allegedly sexually assaulted by one of her lecturers, Tene John, as she no longer feels safe.
Ogunyemi said she feared that she would be victimised by other lecturers of the school for allegedly causing John to lose his job.
PUNCH Metro learnt that Ogunyemi was allegedly assaulted by John on December 13, 2019, in his office. Read more
Nigeria accounts for 50% of glaucoma cases in Africa – TCF (Vanguard)
A medical foundation and eye hospital in Nigeria, the Tulsi Chanrai Foundation, TCF, has raised the alarm over the rising incidences of glaucoma and other eye diseases in the country, stating that Nigeria accounts for 50 percent of Glaucoma cases in Africa.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja, weekend, the foundation also stated that Nigeria holds the record for the largest number of patients with eye cases in Africa.
Emphasizing the need for glaucoma care pathways for early detection and treatment to prevent blindness, spokesperson for the TCF, Dr. Deepak Kumar said it was estimated that 1.1 to 1.4 million adults in Nigeria have glaucoma, most of whom are not aware that they have the disease. Read more
LASEMA rescues man who jumped into lagoon (Punch)
The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, on Tuesday, rescued a 36-year-old man, Ikechuckwu Ibeh, who jumped into the lagoon on the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge.
It was gathered that Ibeh jumped into the lagoon around 4.45pm and was rescued five minutes later by the LASEMA Marine Unit.
PUNCH Metro learnt that Ibeh took the action due to financial difficulties and depression among other reasons.
Our correspondent learnt that the victim had been handed over to cops at the Maroko Police Station. Read more
Army dismisses report of killing, abduction of soldiers in Borno (Nation)
A report on alleged killing and abduction of soldiers by Boko Haram terrorists on Gwoza-Bama road in Borno are false, the military has said.
The Nigerian Army Operations Media Coordinator, Col. Aminu Iliyasu, who dismissed the report in a statement yesterday, condemned a section of the media for such report.
The army spokesman was reacting to a report on some media platforms on Sunday that 17 soldiers were killed in a confrontation with the terrorists around Banki Junction on Gwoza-Bama road.
The report also added that some soldiers were also taken captive by the insurgents during the encounter.
But Col. Iliyasu said that the report was not only untrue but simply the figment of the imaginations of their authors. Read more
Naval personnel sack Lagos community (Punch)
Residents of the Tarkwa bay area of Victoria Island, Lagos State, were on Tuesday thrown into confusion when some naval personnel allegedly invaded the community and sacked the residents from their homes.
An eyewitness, who spoke to PUNCH Metro on condition of anonymity, said the naval personnel, who had been on surveillance of petroleum product pipeline in the area, accused members of the community of vandalising the pipeline in a bid to steal fuel.
He stated that the naval personnel used that as an excuse to cover up their alleged collaboration with vandals in puncturing the pipeline to steal fuel, adding that in a bid to cover up their action, the personnel invaded the community and shot indiscriminately and sacked residents from their homes. Read more
UK-Africa summit: Wooing Africa after Brexit (BBC)
After Brexit, the UK wants to boost business trade with Africa, but as a major UK-Africa business summit starts in London, Matthew Davies asks if there really will be new opportunities for the continent.
Trade is tricky. Trade agreements are trickier. Trade negotiations to get those agreements are exponentially more complicated.
And the road that the Brexit can has been kicked down for so long is rapidly running out.
Once the UK leaves the European Union at the end of January, it has 11 months to come up with a trade deal with the European Union to avoid reverting to WTO rules. Read more
Schoolboy won’t be able to walk in graduation ceremony unless he cuts his dreadlocks (Metro)
Parents have accused a school of discrimination after it told a student he couldn’t walk in his graduation ceremony unless he cuts his dreadlocks. The Barbers Hill Independent school board in Mont Belvieu, Texas has reportedly suspended the boy, named Deandre Arnold, because of the length of his hair. Arnold was suspended after he refused to cut his hair because of his Trinidadian background. He will also not be able to participate in his graduation ceremony in three months because his dreadlocks violate the district’s dress code, which was reportedly revised over Christmas break. Read more
People still want plastic bottles, says Coca-Cola (BBC)
Coca-Cola will not ditch single-use plastic bottles because consumers still want them, the firm’s head of sustainability has told the BBC.
Customers like them because they reseal and are lightweight, said Bea Perez.
The firm, which is one of the biggest producers of plastic waste, has pledged to recycle as many plastic bottles as it uses by 2030.
But environmental campaigners argue many Coke bottles would still go. Read more
First case of deadly coronavirus confirmed in United States (Metro)
The Center for Disease Control has confirmed the first case of the deadly coronavirus in the United States. A CDC spokesman said the victim was a traveler from China who was diagnosed after arriving in Seattle, Washington.
The man is reportedly in stable condition and arrived in the US on January 15. He flew in before federal health officials began screening travelers from the Chinese city of Wuhan at airports in Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York City.
Additional screening will be added to Chicago and Atlanta this week, health officials said. Read more
Trump impeachment trial opens as senators clash over rules (BBC)
The US Senate has rejected repeated Democratic attempts to secure new evidence in President Donald Trump’s impeachment as his trial began.
Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell meanwhile backed off on a plan to fast-track the hearings after coming under pressure from fellow Republicans.
Democrats said this would have been no less than a cover-up.
Mr Trump is charged with abuse of power and obstructing the congressional inquiry. He denies wrongdoing. Read more
African countries know foes in 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign (Punch)
The draw for the Group Phase of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 took place on Tuesday in Cairo, Egypt, with 40 African countries discovering their fates for the Second Round of the qualifying campaign.
The teams representing 40 countries across the CAF region were divided into ten groups of four teams each for the penultimate stage of the continental journey to Qatar.
The group details are:
Group A: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Niger, Djibouti
Group B: Tunisia, Zambia, Mauritania, Equatorial Guinea
Group C: Nigeria, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Liberia. Read more
Kylian Mbappe: PSG striker says Liverpool a ‘machine’ as they head to Premier League title (BBC)
Paris St-Germain striker Kylian Mbappe has described Liverpool as “a machine” as they aim to clinch their first league title since 1990, and has told BBC Sport he is “100%” happy in the French capital as he continues to be linked with Real Madrid.
Liverpool have also been linked with Mbappe – regarded by many as the best young player in the world – despite manager Jurgen Klopp saying the striker is out of his club’s price range.
And while the 21-year-old World Cup winner, who joined PSG in 2017 in a transfer worth £165.7m, reaffirmed his commitment to his current club at the launch of his charity, ‘Inspired by Kylian Mbappe (IBKM)’, he says he watches Liverpool’s title charge with admiration. Read more
Akhimien: The five-year-old karate brown belt holder (Punch)
Combat sports like boxing, kick-boxing, taekwondo, karate are a no-go-area for many parents.
The fear of injury has often discouraged parents from allowing their wards to venture into the world of combat sports.
But for five-year-old Jethro Akhimien, it seems this apprehension stoked his parents’ desire to see the toddler become a karate champion, instead of killing it.
Little Jethro, a brown belt holder, is destined for greatness, reveals, his pharmacist father, Victor, who holds a seventh degree black belt. Read more
Newcastle sign Bentaleb on loan from Schalke (Vanguard)
Newcastle have signed Algeria midfielder Nabil Bentaleb on loan from Schalke for the rest of the season, the club announced on Tuesday.
Newcastle have negotiated an option to make the move permanent at the end of the season for a fee reported to be around £8.5 million ($11 million).
The 25-year-old has not played for the Bundesliga club this season after being dropped from the first-team squad due to disciplinary issues. Read more
Australian Open: Defending champion Naomi Osaka reaches last 32 in Melbourne (BBC)
Defending champion Naomi Osaka put an angry outburst behind her to move into the last 32 at the Australian Open with a straight-sets win over Saisai Zheng.
The Japanese third seed won 6-2 6-4 and now faces a potential third-round meeting with US teenager Coco Gauff, who plays Sorana Cirstea later.
Osaka, 22, threw her racquet on the floor and kicked it after China’s Zheng broke her serve in the second set. Read more
Bruno Guimaraes breaks silence on Arsenal transfer links as Edu attempts to close deal (Metro)
Arsenal transfer target Bruno Guimaraes has spoken out for the first time on speculation linking him with a January move to the Premier League. The Brazilian midfielder has emerged as a target for Arsenal, who are looking to bolster Mikel Arteta’s squad this month as he bids to challenge for a top-four spot. Guimaraes, 22, has developed into a key player for Athletico Paranaense since joining the Brazilian club in 2018 and is valued at £21million. Read more
‘Everyone wants to see my fight against Wilder’ (Vanguard)
Anthony Joshua has revealed he has already held talks to fight Deontay Wilder in 2020 in order to try and delay a THIRD bout between the American and Tyson Fury.
Wilder holds the WBC belt, the one title missing from Joshua’s collection of IBF, WBA and WBO crowns and a fight with Wilder – as long as he beats Fury on February 22 – would provide an opportunity to unify the heavyweight division.
But Joshua believes that Fury and Wilder could turn their rivalry into a trilogy and fight for a third time before the end of 2020, something Joshua has moved to try and prevent. Read more
Aguero strikes as Manchester City beat Sheffield 1-0 (Punch)
Sergio Aguero came off the bench to seal Manchester City’s 1-0 win against Sheffield United as the Argentine striker extended his red-hot start to 2020 on Tuesday.
Pep Guardiola’s side were labouring to break down United until Aguero ended their stubborn resistence in the closing stages at Bramall Lane.
City striker Gabriel Jesus had a penalty saved by Dean Henderson in the first half but with 17 minutes left Aguero bagged his seventh goal in four appearances this year.
His 21st goal of the season in all competitions moved second-placed City to within 13 points of runaway Premier League leaders Liverpool, who have two games in hand on the champions.
While City’s hopes of winning a third successive title have been shattered by a combination of their own failings and Liverpool’s incredible form, there is still much to play for this term. Read more
Barcelona considering signing a striker, says Setien (Punch)
Quique Setien said on Tuesday that Barcelona are considering signing another striker before the end of the January transfer window to stand in for the injured Luis Suarez.
Suarez is unlikely to play again this season after undergoing surgery on his knee earlier this month, which has left Barca short in the centre of their front three.
“We are considering it,” said Setien, when asked if Barca would go in for another forward.
“We are talking about that but we still have to think about it a bit more, it’s not an issue that worries me too much. Read more
Miami Grand Prix: Formula 1 makes further changes to plans for Florida race (BBC)
Formula 1 has made further changes to its plans for a Miami Grand Prix in the hope of overturning objections to the race from locals.
F1 was forced to abandon the original location for the race, which was in the downtown area and over a bridge.
But the latest attempt to secure a deal for a race around the Miami Dolphins’ NFL stadium has also hit snags. Read more
Joe Cole reveals how Frank Lampard will react to Arsenal draw (Metro)
Joe Cole believes Frank Lampard will be ‘furious’ with his Chelsea side for throwing away two one-goal leads as they could only muster a 2-2 draw against 10-man Arsenal. Jorginho had put Chelsea in front from the spot after David Luiz was sent off for pulling down Tammy Abraham – who had been put through after a horrendous error from Shkodran Mustafi – but Gabriel Martinelli capitalised on an N’Golo Kante slip as part of an 80-yard sprint to level things up. Cesar Azpilicueta put Chelsea back in front with six minutes to go before fellow right-back Hector Bellerin curled a low left-footed shot into the far corner to take a point back to the Emirates. Read more