Blind herbalist defrauds 86-year-old woman of N19m, sleeps with her daughter, granddaughter (Nation)
An 86-year-old woman is currently battling to retrieve N19 million from a blind herbalist who allegedly defrauded her under the pretext of healing her child and making money rituals for her.
The desperate attempt of an aged woman to prevent death from snatching her children has landed her in trouble. The 86-year-old woman identified simply as Madam Alimot had 15 children, but they were snatched by death one after the other until she was left with only three.
When one of the remaining children was also hit by a strange illness last year, the octogenarian woman began a frantic search for healing. In the process, she stumbled on a weekly programme on a popular radio station based in Ogun State, where a blind herbalist was advertised as a man with mystical powers to heal the sick and see visions about people’s life problems. Read more
Why Tinubu’s certificate indicates female – President’s Lawyer (DailyTrust)
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s lawyer, Wole Afolabi, has said that a mixup at Chicago State University is the reason President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s certificate indicates “F” meant for a female.
Afolabi stated this during an interview on Channels TV’s Politics Today.
The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the February 25 election, Atiku Abubakar, who is challenging Tinibu’s victory in the election, had filed case at the District Court, Northern Illinois in the United States which recently ordered the Chicago State University to release Tinubu’s academic records to him. Read more
Court issues production warrant against Naira Marley over alleged fraud (Tribune)
The Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Friday, issued a production warrant against Nigerian singer, Azeez Fashola, also known as Naira Marley.
Naira Marley is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on 11-count charges bordering on conspiracy and credit card fraud.
At the resumed sitting on Friday, counsel to the defendant, Olalekan Ojo, SAN informed the court that the defendant was unavoidably absent from court owing to his being detained by the Police for interrogation in respect of the murder of Ilerioluwa Oladimeji Aloba, also known as Mohbad. Read more
Nursing assistant, prime suspect in Mohbad’s death – Police (Leadership)
Police in Lagos yesterday said the auxiliary nurse, Feyisayo Ogedemgbe, who administered injections to the deceased popular singer, Ilerioluwa Aloba, also known as Mohbad, remains the prime suspect in the ongoing investigation to unravel the cause of his death.
Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Idowu Owohunwa who disclosed this at a press conference, said the auxiliary nurse was culpable in the death of the late musician.
He said as part of investigation aimed at obtaining expert opinion on the likely cause of death of Mohbad through a professional review, the actions of auxiliary nurse Feyisayo Ogedengbe on September 26, 2023, a team of medical doctors, pharmacists and nurses drawn from the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria, Nigerian Medical Association and the Nigeria Police Force Medical Services jointly interviewed her. Read more
Customs intercept N1.8b worth of cars, others (Punch)
The Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit Zone A Ikeja, has said it intercepted imported used cars (tokunbo), bags of foreign parboiled rice, and other contrabands worth N1.8bn.
The acting Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, said this on Friday while showcasing some of the seized goods to journalists at the unit in Lagos.
According to Adeniyi, the seizures took place at various times and locations within the border corridors of the South-Western States. Read more
Motorists stranded as tanker explodes on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway (Channels)
A tanker laden with the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popularly called fuel, has exploded on the Lagos Ibadan Expressway.
The incident which happened on Friday night around the OPIC axis in Isheri, Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State, made many motorists and travellers stranded.
Channels Television reports that the situation forced many drivers to ply one-way and also made the commuters scamper to safety. Read more
Abducted Ondo choir members regain freedom (NewTelegraph)
The abducted choir members of Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Oke Igan, Akure, Ondo State two weeks ago have regained their freedom from their abductors.
The New Telegraph had earlier reported that 25 choir members of the church were kidnapped while they were en route to a funeral ceremony on the Ifon-Benin road.
Following their abduction, the kidnappers demanded a ransom of N50 million for the release of the remaining 17 victims after eight of the 25 abducted narrowly escaped from the kidnappers’ den the previous week. Read more
Armed robbers attack hotel in Ogun, shoot Police Inspector, guards (Vanguard)
Suspected armed robbers on Friday engaged men of the Nigeria Police Force, in a gun duel while robbing a hotel in Sagamu, Sagamu local government area of Ogun State.
One Police Inspector and two security guards were shot by the armed robbers, according to a statement by the Ogun State Police Command.
Odutola stated that the injured policeman and the guards were rushed to the Olabisi Onabanjo Teaching Hospital (OOUTH) in Sagamu, where they are responding to treatment. Read more
Iran’s jailed rights advocate Narges Mohammadi wins 2023 Nobel Peace Prize (AlJazeera)
Narges Mohammadi, a jailed Iranian women’s rights advocate, has won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for her courageous struggle against the oppression of women in Iran and relentless fight for social reform.
While behind bars, she was awarded the prestigious prize on Friday for her efforts “to promote human rights and freedom for all”, according to the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
“Her brave struggle has come with tremendous personal costs. Altogether, the regime has arrested her 13 times, convicted her five times, and sentenced her to a total of 31 years in prison and 154 lashes,” Berit Reiss-Andersen, head of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said in Oslo during the announcement. Read more
Ivory Coast president removes prime minister, dissolves government (France24)
Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara signed a decree “ending the duties of the prime minister, who is the head of the government, as well as those of the members of the government”, according to a statement read by presidential secretary general Abdourahmane Cisse.
The head of state expressed “his gratitude to Prime Minister Patrick Achi and all the members of government for their service to the nation over the last years”.
The decision had been expected in recent days after the president informed members of the government of an upcoming reshuffle during the last cabinet meeting on September 28. Read more
Chris Hemsworth makes huge change to lifestyle after Alzheimer’s scare (Mirror)
Marvel star Chris Hemsworth revealed the lifestyle changes he made after discovering he is genetically predisposed to Alzheimer’s disease.
The 39-year-old learned of the risk while filming National Geographic’s Limitless. He is “eight to 10 times more likely” to battle the progressive disease than the general population as he is one of only two to three per cent of people globally who have two copies of the gene APOE4.
At the time, Chris explained how doing the show “really triggered something in me”, prompting him to take an unforced break from the limelight. At the time, the Thor: Love and Thunder star opened up about discovering the news and the steps he had to take to not put a strain on his body. Read more
Morocco begins providing cash to families whose homes were destroyed by earthquake (AfricaNews)
Moroccan authorities on Friday will begin providing money to families whose homes were destroyed in an earthquake last month that took nearly 3,000 lives and will require an estimated $11.7 billion in reconstruction funds over the next five years.
After a commission tasked by King Mohammed VI to oversee recovery efforts met earlier this week, the government said an initial monthly payment of 2,500 Moroccan dirhams ($242) will be disbursed starting Oct. 6.
The Sept. 8 earthquake wreaked havoc on rural regions south of Marrakech, where mountain roads remain unpaved and the economy relies on herding and small-scale agriculture. As autumn nights get cooler, many are sleeping outside in donated tents with the daunting task of rebuilding before them. Read more
The Exorcist: Believer delivers $2.9m in box office previews (THR)
Blumhouse and Universal‘s The Exorcist: Believer has started off its box office run with $2.85 million in Thursday previews at the domestic box office.
The David Gordon Green-directed horror pic opened exactly 50 years after the first Exorcist hit theaters.
Green and Blumhouse are hoping they can reinvent the Exorcist brand much as they did with the Halloween franchise. There’s plenty at stake considering Universal reportedly paid a huge $400 million for the rights to the franchise in 2021 (two more Believer are already planned). Read more
MTV Documentary Films releases trailer for ‘‘Pay Or Die,’’ documentary Oscar contender (Variety)
MTV Documentary Films has released the trailer for “Pay Or Die,” a documentary about America’s soaring insulin costs that the platform acquired out of this year’s South by Southwest Film Festival.
The 90-minute film, which was executive produced by Sarah Silverman, will open theatrically at New York City’s IFC Center on November 1, the first day of National Diabetes Month. That screening will be followed by a nationwide rollout. The theatrical release of the doc will qualify it for Academy Award consideration. Paramount + will begin streaming “Pay Or Die” on World Diabetes Day – Nov. 14. Read more
10-year-old boy and his grandmother killed in Russian missile attack in eastern Ukraine (PBS)
A Russian missile attack killed a 10-year-old boy and his grandmother Friday in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, officials said, a day after a strike in the same region killed at least 51 civilians in one of the deadliest attacks in the war in months.
Associated Press reporters saw emergency crews pulling the boy’s body from the rubble of a building after the early morning attack. He was wearing pajamas with a Spider-Man design.
The strike also killed the boy’s grandmother and injured an 11-month-old child, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Telegram. Read more
Gauff sets up China Open semi-final with Swiatek, Sabalenka out (StraitsTimes)
Coco Gauff extended her winning streak to 16 victories, the longest on the WTA Tour this season, by beating Maria Sakkari 6-2 6-4 in the quarter-final of the China Open on Friday to set up a semi-final clash with second seed Iga Swiatek.
The pair have met on eight occasions, and although Swiatek has won seven of these, Gauff did come out on top in their last meeting, in the Cincinnati semi-final.
“It’s going to be a tough match. We had a tough match in Cincinnati but I’m really excited and focused to play tomorrow,” Gauff said. Read more
Simone Biles wins 21st world title to become most decorated gymnast in history (France24)
US superstar Simone Biles continued her spectacular return from a two-year break by claiming a 21st world title with gold in the women’s all-around at the world gymnastics championships on Friday.
Biles dominated the final in Antwerp where she also won her first world title a decade ago, taking gold with a score of 58.399 points ahead of defending champion Rebeca Andrade of Brazil (56.766), with American teammate Shilese Jones taking bronze (56.332).
Biles, 26, also took team gold with the United States on Wednesday, less than 10 months ahead of the Paris Olympics. Read more
Osimhen tipped for FIFA award as voting closes (Punch)
Super Eagles forward Victor Osimhen has been tipped as the favourite to win the FIFA Men’s Player of The Year award as fan voting closed on Friday, Saturday PUNCH reports.
The qualifying period for the prize is between December 19, 2022 and August 10, 2023, with nominees including Argentina captain Lionel Messi, Frenchman Kylian Mbappe and Norwegian Manchester City striker Erling Haaland.
Osimhen is among the favourite for the award after scoring 29 goals in this period while helping Napoli to win the Serie A title for the first time in over three decades. He also emerged as last season’s Serie A top scorer and was named in the league’s Team of The Season. Read more
Gio Reyna recalled by Berhalter for US after family feud (ABC)
The return of Borussia Dortmund attacker Gio Reyna under U.S. men’s national team manager Gregg Berhalter highlights the 23-player roster that will prepare for friendlies against Germany in Hartford, Connecticut, on Oct. 14, and Ghana in Nashville, Tennessee, three days later.
The camp will mark the first time that Reyna and Berhalter have worked together since a feud between the Reyna and Berhalter families burst into public view in January.
Berhalter confirmed Thursday that the first step in rebuilding the relationship took place “weeks ago,” with the two conversing over a Zoom call. Read more
Francis Ngannou told he looks “terrible” in training footage ahead of Tyson Fury fight (Mirror)
Tyson Fury has been told that his exhibition fight against Francis Ngannou will be the “easiest spar” of his career.
Former UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou makes his boxing debut against Fury on October 28 in Saudi Arabia and the Brit has already put pen to paper on a deal to fight Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed title just eight weeks after. Ngannou holds an impressive record for the hardest punch ever recorded, but his chances of beating Fury have been scoffed at.
Fury was sent a chilling warning by Ngannou as the MMA star thinks his rival won’t be in a well enough state to make his pencilled-in December 23 date to face Usyk after their crossover clash. Former world champion Carl Froch has laughed at Ngannou’s chances of beating Fury after recent training footage from ‘The Predator’ was mocked by fans. Read more
Qatar GP: Max Verstappen tops sole practice from Ferrari duo Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc (Sky)
World champion in waiting Max Verstappen topped the sole practice session at the Qatar Grand Prix as tough conditions left plenty of uncertainty heading into qualifying later on Friday.
Red Bull’s Verstappen, who needs just three more points to seal a third successive drivers’ title, delivered a 1:27.428 to finish 0.3 seconds clear of Carlos Sainz, with the Spaniard’s Ferrari team-mate a further tenth back in third.
Fernando Alonso was fourth, fastest among drivers who opted not to use soft tyres in the session, saving them for use later in the Sprint weekend format. Read more